On Saturday night in Emilie K. Asplundh Concert Hall, Miss West Chester University 2014, Molly Callanan, crowned Nia Andrews Miss WCU 2015.
As soon as the doors opened, the theater filled with excited guests, chattering about who would be crowned the next Miss WCU. The lights dimmed and Miss WCU 2008, Jackie Chilcote-Billek, and Miss WCU 2010, Elizabeth Toal sang the National Anthem.
A welcome video, featuring Miss WCU 2014 played as the 21 contestants surprised the audience by coming through the back doors and walking through the crowd onto the stage, joining Callanan. The women showed off their moves in an upbeat dance number. After, a video played, introducing contestants, including their major, platform, and sponsors.
Mayor Carolyn Comitta then took the stage for her opening remarks then formally introduced Molly Callanan and the judges. The head judge was Ryann Richardson, an experienced Maryland and Pennsylvania pageant title-holder, Miss Philadelphia 2009 and now a marketing communications strategist and brand manager. The other judges included Angela B. Kosar, a partner in the law firm Connor, Weber, and Oberlies in Moorestown, NJ; Cathy Gandolfo, a retired Channel 6 ABC broadcaster and member of the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia; Bethanie Lori, a 12 year on-air QVC guest and first runner-up to Miss WCU 2001 and 2002; and Mark Edwards, a WCU alumnus and off-Broadway actor.
The judges said that they were looking for the contestants to be “courageous, strong, smart, unapologetically themselves, and confident.”
[pullquote align=”right”]It feels great; it’s an unthinkable experience. I’m just so honored to have this prestigious position.[/pullquote]
After introductions, Miss WCU 2012, Alexis Stinson took the stage to introduce the contestants in the Casual Wear portion of the pageant, worth 15 percent of their score. The contestants modeled their casual wear in a fashion show setup, including a runway and an audience on stage.
Before moving onto the talent portion of the pageant, Michael Hartman, the pageant producer and choreographer, honored former Miss WCU runner-up, Melissa Christie. Christie was just recently diagnosed with stage three lymphoma and received a standing ovation from the crowd when she was brought on stage. Hartman announced that the pageant’s Spirit Award would be named after her from this year on, she would receive the official Miss WCU Crown Pin, and the money earned from the People’s Choice Award would go to Melissa to help her financially.
Molly took the stage to perform a dance to the song, “Rather Be” by Clean Bandit before the other contestants showed their variety of talents including singing, dancing, translating a song to American Sign Language, and standup comedy. Nia Andrews chose a powerful dance routine to wow the judges. The talent portion was worth 25 percent of the total score.
After intermission, Michelle Filling-Brown, Miss WCU 1999, joined Mayor Comitta for the Evening Gown and Onstage Questions portion of the competition. One by one contestants modeled their dresses and answered a random question from Michelle about topics involving their majors, classes, and platforms.
While the judges deliberated, the Garnet Valley High School Dance Team entertained the crowd with a fun performance to the song, “All About that Bass” by Megan Trainor. The Mayor then recognized visiting titleholders and former Miss WCUs that were present.
Before it was time to narrow down the contestants, Miss WCU 2014, Molly Callanan, presented her farewell video. This video shared her experience and involvement over the past year as Miss WCU. Molly described the past year as a “whirlwind.” Mayor Comitta also awarded Molly with an official citation from the mayor’s office for everything she has accomplished the past year and a key to the city.
When asked if she had any advice to give the next Miss WCU, Molly said, “Just to take every opportunity that comes her way.”
Nia Andrews Crowned Miss WCU 2015
The judges had made their decisions and it was time to narrow down the 21 candidates to the top five. In no particular order, the top five contestants were announced: Jenny Korb, Deanna Holzer, Nia Andrews, Christina Bucci, and Haley Shutt. These five contestants then had to answer a final question, which for the first time came from a member of the audience using Twitter and the hashtag #MissWCU2015. These questions were worth 5% of their score.
Nia’s final question from an audience member was, “If you could be president for a day what would you like to accomplish?” Without hesitation, she answered that she would want to find a way to make sure everyone could have access to affordable medication that they need and mentioned the need for this in her platform, Camp Dreamcatcher which supports children with and affected by HIV/AIDS.
While judges were busy making their final decision, the WCU Dance team shared their award winning hip-hop dance routine to a remix of Beyonce and Jay-Z songs.
After the judges’ final deliberation, the winners the awards were announced as follows: Fourth Runner Up: Jenny Korb, Third Runner Up: Deanna Holzer, Second Runner Up: Christina Bucci, and First Runner Up: Haley Shutt; making Nia Andrews Miss West Chester University 2015.
Andrews also recieved the People’s Choice Award and Leadership Award and given the Miss WCU 2015 Prize package.
Andrews received a standing ovation from the crowd and when asked how it felt to be named Miss WCU 2015 she said, “It feels great, it’s an unthinkable experience. I’m just so honored to have this prestigious position.”
Colleen Curry is a fourth-year student majoring in communication studies. She can be reached at CC763513@wcupa.edu.