Starting Tuesday, June 2, nine Auburn students began competing for the title of Miss Alabama in the 2015 Miss Alabama Pageant at Samford University.
According to the Miss Alabama website, Miss Alabama Pageant Inc. is a nonprofit organization that awards college scholarships to distinguished women of the state. The program is meant to encourage and challenge women to achieve their goals. Contestants of Miss Alabama participate in projects like Cancer research and education, organ donation, child mentoring programs, arts and cultural organizations among others.
The Miss Alabama Pageant is sponsored by Miss America among other groups.
The competition is divided into three groups - Mu, Alpha and Sigma. Each group is required to compete in different events. All groups were interviewed by judges Tuesday morning, June 2, and celebrated with a dinner at Dreamland Bar-B-Que.
According to Linda Russell, the Executive Secretary of the Miss Alabama Pageant Inc., each contestant must have a service project planned to serve as part of their platforms for Miss Alabama.
Russell said the show for Miss Alabama is a production called Dancing Queen. The title refers to the 70s hit pop single “Dancing Queen” by Abba.
Miss Cahaba Valley Carson Smith, a sophomore in political science and history is competing with her platform “Make A Resolution to Stop Water Pollution,” which focuses specifically on the prevention of water pollution.
Smith said she will travel to schools around the state and plans to turn her platform into a non-profit organization.
She also said she is working with an author to create a children’s book to promote her platform.
“Miss Alabama Pageant has so many things to offer for those young ladies competing and for the community,” Smith said. “Not only are we awarded scholarship money to attend our dream schools and get an awesome education, but we’re also involved in the community.”
According to Smith, beauty is not all it takes to win Miss Alabama.
“Contestants must love their state and must be involved," Smith said. “The Swimwear competition promotes a healthy lifestyle. The interview with the judges lets them get to know you and what you want to do with your life and how you want to make an impact on the world. There’s also [the] evening wear [competition] which shows how poised you can be.”
Each contestant is asked a question onstage about a world issue to determine how well the contestant can think on their feet and provide an answer.
Miss Auburn University Jessie Garrison is a junior and will begin Nursing School in the fall. Garrison’s platform is “Engaging Heart and Soul Through the Arts.”
“It’s all about promoting arts education," Garrison said. "Arts education is something that gets cut in school systems because of budgeting. It’s all about how arts is something that can be integrated daily into the classroom. It can help you maintain a healthy lifestyle. It’s a release for your emotions. The arts can help in other areas of your life.”
Miss Patriot Mi’A Callens, senior in communication with a minor in Africana studies, said her platform is called "On the Surface."
The program is a youth character-building system Callens began eight years ago.
“It’s all about helping youth and helping them patch their confidence," Callens said. "It helps them find who they are and build their self esteem, and motivate them to know that they can do anything they set their minds to and achieve any goals that they may aspire to have.”
Callens said she plans to enter broadcast journalism and hopes to get a master's and work for a marketing company producing pop culture and lifestyle pieces.
The remaining six Auburn students competing in the pageant are: Susannah Bagwell, Victoria Bailey, Madelyn Gathings, Meg McGuffin, Jill Vinzant and Madison Smith.
The pageant will end Saturday, June 6.
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