Miss America 2015

[SigKapSweetie]

Originally Posted by Cheerio

As Elizabeth was previously Miss America's 2012 Outstanding Teen, I would think she might handle the news with grace and poise.

She put up a blog post about it...she's a class act all the way. Very poised young lady.

http://elizabethfechtel.wordpress.com/

[MaryPoppins]

Originally Posted by AGDee

They are already misogynistic, why would ageism on top of that be a big surprise? I am more and more disturbed by this whole pageant thing the older I get. Why in the world would a "scholarship" be dependent on how you look in an evening gown or bikini? What kind of crap is that? Maybe the #YesAllWomen thing really got to me, but I've become so incredibly aware of the misogyny in this country and I'm so sick of it. What kind of messages are we giving our daughters?

When Matt Lauer asks the CEO of a Fortune 5 company if she can handle being a mom and a CEO, that's BS. When we focus so strongly on what the First Lady wears to the Inauguration Ball, that's BS. When I posted pics of my graduation on my FB, the MAJORITY of the comments were about how pretty I looked. I got my MASTER'S DEGREE! The accomplishment that day was NOT how I looked.

/<end rant>

This^. Yes, this^^, And this^^^. Finally, this^^^^. And in summation this ^^^^^.

And just to let you really know we feel about misogyny:

[azureblue]

New winners in BOLD:

Miss Alabama - Caitlin Brunell - Phi Mu, University of Alabama
Miss Alaska - Malie Delgado - Alpha Sigma Alpha, University of Alaska Anchorage
Miss Arkansas - Ashton Campbell - Chi Omega, University of Arkansas
Miss District of Columbia -Teresa Davis- Kappa Alpha Theta, University of Georgia
Miss Georgia - Maggie Bridges - Alpha Delta Pi, Georgia Tech
Miss Florida - Victoria Cowen - Kappa Delta, Florida State University
Miss Kansas - Amanda Sasek - Alpha Sigma Alpha, University of Central Missouri
Miss Louisiana – Lacey Sanchez – Phi Mu, Southeastern Louisiana/Louisiana State
Miss Maryland – Jade Kenny – Alpha Delta Pi, University of Alabama
Miss Nebraska - Megan Swanson - Alpha Sigma Tau, Belmont University
Miss Pennsylvania - Amanda Smith - Alpha Delta Pi, Florida State University
Miss Tennessee - Hayley Lewis - Phi Mu, Belmont University
Miss Rhode Island - Ivy DePew - Delta Gamma, University of Memphis
Miss South Carolina - Lanie Hudson - Alpha Delta Pi, Clemson University
Miss Vermont - Lucy Edwards - Delta Delta Delta, University of Vermont

15 women from 9 NPC organizations:

ADP - 4
ASA - 2
AST - 1
DDD - 1
DG - 1
KAT - 1
KD - 1
PM - 3
XO - 1

[clemsongirl]

Not only am I thrilled about the fact that I have four sisters competing in this pageant so far, one of them is a newly-graduated alum from my chapter! Two of the past three Miss South Carolinas have been from my chapter, too-Ali Rogers was the winner in 2012.

[azureblue]

clemsongirl....Miss South Carolina USA was an ADPi from College of Charleston too. So many of our sisters representing SC in pageants! Very cool

[LAblondeGPhi]

Miss California - Marina Inserra, Delta Zeta from San Diego State University

https://www.facebook.com/DeltaZetaSD...98293&filter=3

Originally Posted by AGDee

They are already misogynistic, why would ageism on top of that be a big surprise? I am more and more disturbed by this whole pageant thing the older I get. Why in the world would a "scholarship" be dependent on how you look in an evening gown or bikini? What kind of crap is that? Maybe the #YesAllWomen thing really got to me, but I've become so incredibly aware of the misogyny in this country and I'm so sick of it. What kind of messages are we giving our daughters?

First and foremost, it's a beauty pageant. It was founded that way, and it remains that. The addition of scholarships, platforms, and interviews have made it, in my opinion, a much more well-rounded organization, but it is still a beauty pageant.

I competed several years in the Miss America organization, I found it encouraging, friendly, and I can honestly say that it helped develop my public speaking and poise. My first real job out of college required a lot of public speaking and I contribute much of my ability to do that well to the MAO.

If you look at the scoring system, 60% of the scoring is based on private interview (typically a 10-minute, press-conference style interview), and talent. For most contestants, the majority of time was spent on those phases of competition.

Anyway, all this is to say that I personally started competing on a whim in college, and found my experience to be really positive. I know of dozens of accomplished, smart women who feel the same. And while the scholarship aspect may have been a nice bonus, the majority of the women I knew who competed did so because they enjoyed the competitions themselves. Many women had strong dance or music backgrounds, and this was one of the few places they could show that off in their 20s. Plenty enjoyed the glitz and the girly aspects more than anything else. And plenty just found the camaraderie and meeting new people fun. I actually think that in terms of stereotypes and misconceptions, the MAO and sororities have a lot in common.

[unarose]

I'm keeping track of non-NPC orgs as well (provided they have a sort of recruitment period ) so I've added Miss Delaware back to the list and also added Miss Illinois who is a member of Mu Phi Epsilon professional co-ed music fraternity.

Miss Alabama - Caitlin Brunell - Phi Mu, University of Alabama
Miss Alaska - Malie Delgado - Alpha Sigma Alpha, University of Alaska Anchorage
Miss Arkansas - Ashton Campbell - Chi Omega, University of Arkansas
Miss California - Marina Inserra - Delta Zeta, San Diego State University
Miss Delaware - Brittany Lewis - Alpha Kappa Alpha, Temple University
Miss District of Columbia - Teresa Davis - Kappa Alpha Theta, University of Georgia
Miss Georgia - Maggie Bridges - Alpha Delta Pi, Georgia Tech
Miss Florida - Victoria Cowan - Kappa Delta, Florida State University
Miss Illinois - Marisa Buchheit - Mu Phi Epsilon, Cleveland Institute of Music
Miss Kansas - Amanda Sasek - Alpha Sigma Alpha, University of Central Missouri
Miss Louisiana – Lacey Sanchez – Phi Mu, Southeastern Louisiana/Louisiana State
Miss Maryland – Jade Kenny – Alpha Delta Pi, University of Alabama
Miss Nebraska - Megan Swanson - Alpha Sigma Tau, Belmont University
Miss Pennsylvania - Amanda Smith - Alpha Delta Pi, Florida State University
Miss Tennessee - Hayley Lewis - Phi Mu, Belmont University
Miss Rhode Island - Ivy DePew - Delta Gamma, University of Memphis
Miss South Carolina - Lanie Hudson - Alpha Delta Pi, Clemson University
Miss Vermont - Lucy Edwards - Delta Delta Delta, University of Vermont

Alas, the SAI that was competing for Miss Massachusetts didn't win. Maybe there's one in one of the remaining state pageants. *crosses fingers*

[ASTalumna06]

Miss Delaware considers lawsuit:

http://m.today.com/style/miss-delawa...ing-1D79863050

[ASUADPi]

So let me get this straight, because someone screwed up during tabulating, Elizabeth gets the crown taken away from her? How in the world is that her fault! (Just an FYI I would feel this way whether Elizabeth was an ADPi or not).

Elizabeth should be getting a lawyer and suing as Amanda, Miss Delaware is.

To me it sounds like the 1st runner ups were "bitter" for not winning and caused the "tiff" that propelled the state pageants to look over everything again and take these crowns away. I'm sorry that isn't right.

As for Amanda, what boggles my mind is them claiming she is too old. Hello, why the world were the regional and state pageants allowing her to compete? They knew when her birthday was.

And the kicker with her situation is that the runner up is also 24!

[pinksequins]

Caveat: I know nothing about pageant rules. However, where an error is not due to the fault of the contestant, what about co-winners? Both receive crowns, and both make appearances. For highly coveted appearances, both attend. Yes, it will cost the pageant organization more, but that's the price the organization pays.

[DeltaBetaBaby]

No way. You sign a contract saying you meet the eligibility requirements, and if you are found after the fact to not meet them, they can DQ you, no questions asked.

[LAblondeGPhi]

Ya - in regards to the tabulation error, I've seen plenty of pageants need to re-crown a winner due to a tabulation error. In the MAO, at the local level, IF the pageant can afford to sponsor two winners to go onto state, then having multiple winners is a possibility. There are many local pageants that crown 2-3 girls in California. But at the state level, you can't really have two go on to compete at Miss America. You have to pick one, and it's only right that the "true" winner gets to move on.

As for the age eligibility, this one kind of baffles me. When I competed, I recall a hard date that you needed to still be 24 by. It was usually a month or two after the Miss America pageant. This was also the era when the national pageant switched from September to January, so we paid extra attention to the new date requirements (I imagine some women who thought they had another year of eligibility were saddened to find out otherwise, or vice versa).

I've been looking at some of the local and state websites, as well as the Miss America website, and I don't see a date cut-off, I just see "must be between 17 and 24". I would hope that the contestant paperwork that was signed was more specific. If not, Miss Delaware may have a real lawsuit.

[MSKKG]

Originally Posted by ASUADPi

As for Amanda, what boggles my mind is them claiming she is too old. Hello, why the world were the regional and state pageants allowing her to compete? They knew when her birthday was.

And the kicker with her situation is that the runner up is also 24!

I think I heard her say that her birthday is in October (she would turn 25 then) but that the rules state that she still has to be 24 through December. Maybe the 1st runner-up's birthday is after December.

The sad thing is that the ones in charge knew when her birthday was, they had her birth certificate, she specifically asked them if she were eligible, and all the local pageants let her compete. Talk about slipping through the cracks!

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally Posted by MSKKG

The sad thing is that the ones in charge knew when her birthday was, they had her birth certificate, she specifically asked them if she were eligible, and all the local pageants let her compete. Talk about slipping through the cracks!

The contract you sign supersedes some pageant official saying "yeah, it's fine." Unless Delaware works VERY differently from the states with which I have MAO experience, she's outta luck.

[MSKKG]

OK, but you'd think somebody would have mentioned something to her about double-checking the rules. I've never been in a pageant, so I don't know all these behind-the-scenes tips.