Competing against more than 30 women across the state, three participants with Ball State ties will have the chance to take home the title of Miss Indiana and have a shot at the Miss America crown.
Courtney Jurick, Gabrielle Bunn and Megan Thwaites will participate in the Miss Indiana Pageant beginning Wednesday at the Zionsville High School Performing Arts Center.
The four-day competition includes a mixture of public and private events, ending with the Miss Indiana finals on June 22 at 7 p.m.
Jurick graduated from Ball State in 2012 with a bachelor’s degree in public relations and currently works as an administrative assistant for the March of Dimes.
She first got involved with the Miss America organization during her freshman year at Ball State after receiving an email about competing in a pageant for scholarship money.
“We all know how expensive college is, so I decided to enter and I was completely unprepared,” Jurick said. “It was a crash course into how everything works.”
Jurick was crowned Miss Ball State University in 2012 and currently holds the title of Miss South Central Indiana.
Since starting the pageant circuit, Jurick said her interesthas grown from originally just participating for the scholarship money.
“I’ve learned so much about myself and I want to use that as an opportunity to be a role model for young girls,” she said.
Bunn, a junior marketing major, started competing in pageants as a child and then took a break during her high school years. Scholarship money was a motivator for her as well.
Competing in a pageant takes dedication and the preparation is a continuous process, Bunn said.
“You’re always doing community service and working on your platform as much as you can,” she said. “To win Miss Indiana would mean everything to me.”
Jurick, who has one more year to compete before reaching the age limit of 24, said winning Miss Indiana is something she has dreamed about her entire life.
“So far 2013 has been one of the best years of my life and things have kind of just fallen into place,” Jurick said. “I think I’ve never been at a better place in my life to fully devote myself to being Miss Indiana.”
Junior public relations and journalism major and current Miss Ball State Megan Thwaites was unavailable for comment on Wednesday.
