Electrifying words and a battleground for emotions await students taking the mic at El Camino College’s yearly poetry-reading competition being held Tuesday, April 29.

The seventh annual Poetry Slam, taking place in the Social Justice Center at 1:15 p.m., gives students the opportunity to recite poems in front of a panel of judges.

The judges, consisting of faculty from different departments on campus, will select a winner to receive a cash prize.

Though the deadline to submit poetry was March 15, students still interested in competing are encouraged to submit their work.

Poems submitted to the competition must be original and written by the performing student, and must also take no longer than three minutes to recite.

The center encourages students not to be pressured by the set deadline and to come and join the event even if they aren’t going to participate in the contest portion.

“It’s one of my favorite events because it’s a form of free expression, students get to experience a wide range of emotions,” SJC student worker and paralegal major Frankie Davis, 20, said.