Students came out last Friday night to attend Alpha Phi Alpha's 27th Miss Black and Gold Scholarship Pageant in the Student Center.
Three contestants competed in the 45-minute competition, vying for the first place prize of $500 and a chance to compete in the next round this Saturday in Montgomery.
The event kicked off with a performance from Therapy, a local seven-member, neo-soul and jazz band, and a dance routine was performed by AU Rhythm, the University's rhythm and dance team.
Graduate student in political science, Marvin Price, and last year's Miss Black and Gold, Jessica Alexander, hosted the pageant.
The contestants, Candace Brown, a junior in English, Faith Kashaa, a sophomore in biomedical sciences, and junior Andrea Jemison, started the competition with the swimsuit portion.
Then the ladies went into the talent portion where Brown sang a soulful rendition of Etta James' "At Last." Kashaa sang "Hero" by Mariah Carey and Jemison danced.
Next was the evening wear competition where the ladies showcased their gowns.
After a piano performance by Alexander and a question-and-answer round about Michelle Obama, Jemison was announced as the winner.
Kashaa was second runner-up and Brown came in second place.
"I'm thrilled about it. I'm at a lost for words really," Jemison said.
She said she planned to participate when she first heard about the pageant on Facebook.
"It's an awesome opportunity to even be in the pageant and furthermore to win it," Jemison said. "I totally intend on doing everything I'm required to do and more."
Joshua Agee, pageant co-chair and community service chair, said the fraternity has been working on the pageant since the summer, and the girls have been practicing since the beginning of this semester.
"The pageant highlights young ladies on the campus that are successful and are involved in the community," Agee said. "We ask them a series of questions in the interview portion about their life goals. It's our chance to give these girls to showcase their talents and receive scholarship money."
Agee said in order to compete in the pageant, the girls must be University students and raise at least $300.
He said proceeds from the event benefit chapter functions and community service events throughout the year.
Allysa Barber, a junior in psychology, said she attended the event because she's always heard good things about the pageant and wanted to see what it had to offer.
"I want to see these women compete for the scholarship and excel in what they want to do," Barber said. "I'm here to support members of the Greek community and I may be a participant one day."
The Omicron Kappa Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. was established at Auburn University in May 1982.
Its biggest community service projects are junior hunts and Easter egg hunts at Boykin Community Center, the Big Brother/Big Sister Program and Bone and Homeless for a Day
According to the fraternity's Web site, 116 members have been initiated into the AU chapter and there are 16 members with varying majors.
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
