Ball State University junior Whitney Kraus captured the Miss Ball State title Sunday night, winning the opportunity to compete at the state, and possibly national, Miss America pageants.
"You never know going into a pageant," she said. "It was a complete shock."
Runners up, from first to fourth, were senior Ebony Gaston, junior Tiara Kincade, junior Danielle Sayre, and sophomore Claire Buffie. Contestants competed in five categories: interview, talent, physical fitness in swimsuit and casual and evening wear.
Although she has competed in other pageants, including Miss Teen Indiana International and Miss International, this was Kraus' first time in a Miss America preliminary pageant. She began competing in pageants several years ago.
"I started because I was invited to," Kraus said. "I actually turned down my first pageant three times before I tried."
She also received the Interview Award for scoring the highest on the interview portion of the pageant.
Kraus is a musical theatre major from Fishers, Ind., and her platform is College Mentors for Kids Inc.: Empowering Youth to Succeed, an organization that brings at-risk high school students on campus to work with college students.
"It's very important because Indiana high school graduation rates rank 30th in the nation," Kraus said. "Education really is the key to success these days."
Up to 15 of the 23 contestants were first-time pageant competitors, Carol Kosisko, program executive director, said. Despite having so many first-time contestants, Kosisko said several other Indiana pageant directors and the judges said the pageant went well, and competition was strong. -á
"There were so many strong talents," she said.-á "I think it was a really tough decision for the judges this year. We had so many girls competing for the first time, and I think the judges were impressed. It's a good reflection on Ball State."
Junior Tiffany Schroer, Miss Ball State 2005, handed over the crown after a tearful speech about her experiences throughout the past year. Schroer made the top 10 at the Miss Indiana pageant.
For winning Miss Ball State 2006, Kraus will receive $2,000 in scholarships as well as $650 in other awards. Runners up received smaller scholarships and awards, and the final 12 contestants each received a $100 scholarship. Recipients of category and special awards received additional scholarships.
The Miss America scholarship program is the largest scholarship program for women in the country, with $45 million donated during 2005. Despite misconceptions about pageants, Kosisko said they provide important opportunities for young women to not only earn money and gain opportunities, but also to build self-confidence.
"For me, it's pretty easy to defend the system because firstly I tell them it's not a beauty pageant anymore," Kosisko said. "It's about inner beauty as well as outer beauty. It's just as much about talent and intelligence as personal appearances."
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