What are your Hobbies?
Singing, working out, playing tennis, teaching English as a Second Language, and playing board games.
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What makes you special and unique?
What makes me special and unique is the same thing that makes each of us special and unique. God created me according to His exact plan. He made me with special talents and abilities. There is no other person in the world that God made to be exactly like me. That is what makes me, and all of us, special and unique.
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What is the best advice you have ever received?
When I was a teenager, every time I left the house my mother would say to me, “Remember whose you are,” and she did not mean hers and my father’s. My mother was reminding me to always keep in mind that I am a child of God, and to let my actions reflect that. Even though I live on my own now, sometimes I think I can still hear my mother’s words when I am leaving my apartment.
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Name one thing you cannot live without.
One thing I cannot live without is my weekly episode of Grey's Anatomy! My friends and I never miss a Thursday night of cooking dinner and watching Grey's together!
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What's the most valuable lesson you've ever learned?
Frank Lloyd Wright once said, “I know the price of success: dedication, hard work, and an unremitting devotion to the things you want to see happen.” I learned this lesson myself by competing in thirteen preliminary pageants before winning my first title. This experience taught me that persistence really does pay off, and anything worth having is worth all the hard work you put in to achieve it.
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Who is your most valued role model and why?
My most valued role model is my sister. Although she is three years younger than me, I have always looked up to her and respected her for being such a good example for others, including myself.
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What was your most unexpected moment?
This past year, I had a much unexpected moment. While working on my internship in Memphis, TN, I looked up from my desk one day to see tennis great, Jim Courier, walking by. Being a tennis player myself, I was excited and very surprised to encounter this amazing athlete on a Tuesday morning in my office.
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What is your workout routine?
I honestly love working out! My workout routine consists of 30 to 45 minutes of cardio (either running, using the elliptical machine, or riding a bike), combined with 30 to 45 minutes of weight training and plenty of abdominal exercises, 6 days a week.
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What has been your biggest accomplishment to date?
My biggest accomplishment to date is graduating summa cum laude with dual degrees from Mississippi State University. After putting in so much hard work, it was very rewarding to receive this honor.
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What is the best compliment you have ever recieved?
I have a very unique sounding voice, and growing up I always hated my voice and wished that I could change it. My first year of college, I met a classmate who told me, "You have such an interesting voice. If I heard an entire room or people talking, you would be the one that I would listen to." Her compliment was extremely helpful in me growing to love and embrace my voice.
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What is your secret wish?
My secret wish, although it’s not so secret anymore, is to get my private pilot’s license. My father obtained his pilot’s license when I was a child, and since that time it has been a dream of mine to follow in his footsteps.
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What was your most embarrassing moment?
I have never been the type to get embarrassed very easily, so I have very few truly embarrassing moments. But the most humiliating one that comes to mind was during my freshman year of high school. I was walking from the parking lot to school one morning, when I tripped and fell. I had to go into school with two bloody knees. Your freshman year of high school is difficult enough, without any added embarrassment.
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What is your biggest guilty pleasure?
Since I don’t like chocolate, it’s not hard for me to avoid eating too many sweets. My guilty pleasure is french fries! Although I try to limit how often I allow myself to eat them, I always enjoy it so much when I do!
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What is your favorite movie and why?
It’s hard to narrow the list down to just one favorite movie. But one of my all time favorites is Hope Floats. I just love the way the movie combines love, humor, and heartbreak. My favorite line from the movie is “Momma says that beginnings are scary, endings are usually sad, but it's the middle that counts the most. Try to remember that when you find yourself at a new beginning. Just give hope a chance to float up. And it will.”
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What do you like to do for fun... relaxation... recreation?
Shopping! For me, shopping is fun, relaxing, and recreational. I can’t think of a better way to spend a Saturday afternoon!
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What would be your dream vacation or destination?
I was lucky enough to be able to spend last summer at one of my dream destinations, Costa Rica. Although it was a study abroad trip, it was a dream vacation for me as well. The next dream vacation I would like to take is a trip to Australia.
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What do you like best about the state of Mississippi?
One thing about Mississippi that I take great pride in is that we are the most generous state in terms of how much we give to charity compared with how much we earn. The fact that one of the poorest states in the nation is the most generous says a lot about the spirit of Mississippians. We have a tradition of taking care of one another in times of need that you just won’t find anywhere else.
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Where do you see yourself in ten years?
In ten years, I see myself in a successful career in finance with a multinational company. I also see myself married and starting a family.
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Who am I?
Do you remember the song by the 1990's band Chumbawumba, entitled "Tubthumper?" OK, I agree, it's a very annoying song. In fact, it's a song that I would never choose to listen to again. But, the main line of the song, "I get knocked down, but I get up again," describes me and my life perfectly.

I grew up on a farm in Northeast Mississippi. When I was six years old, I was kicked in my right eye by a horse. I had to spend several days in the hospital, but by the grace of God, I did not sustain any serious injuries. On that day in 1989, I was literally knocked down, but I did get up again. I didn't venture to have anything to do with the horses again, but I did get back up!

As my life progressed, I began to suffer from chronic daily headaches. As I grew older, the headaches became worse. I visited countless doctors, and tried every available medication, but nothing seemed to work. My headaches were doing everything they could to "knock me down" again, and it was beginning to work. Finally, a couple of years ago, I found something that truly helped-Botox! As weird as it sounds, I now receive Botox injections every three months for my headaches, and it actually works! So, once again, I had been knocked down, but I got back up again.

In college, I got involved in the Miss America Organization. Becoming Miss Mississippi became one of my ultimate goals. And as with any goal, I learned that it would not be easy to achieve. I competed in thirteen preliminary pageants before winning my first title and getting to compete in Miss Mississippi. But every time I lost a pageant, and got "knocked down" again, I became more determined to get back up and try another one. My persistence paid off, and I am now competing in the Miss Mississippi Pageant for my third and final year. All of these experiences of getting "knocked down," and then "getting up again," have shaped me into the woman I am today. They have shown me how to deal with all sorts of circumstances, and prepared me to be Miss Mississippi.
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Tell us about your platform.
My platform, "Building Bridges through Language Acquisition," is two-fold. One facet of my platform focuses on an issue that is very prevalent in our nation today, the growing language barrier due to increase immigration. The other facet focuses on encouraging students in our schools to learn a foreign language.

I began learning Spanish when I was in kindergarten. Although I didn't have the opportunity to have another Spanish class until the 8th grade, I had developed a passion for foreign language at an early age. By my senior year of high school, I had run out of Spanish courses to take. My Spanish teacher informed me of several Spanish-speaking students at our elementary school who were failing in school and needed someone that could help to teach them English. Although I really had no idea what I was getting into, I set up a program of teaching the students English as a Second Language. At the end of my first day of teaching, one of my students wanted to show his mother what he had learned. So, he recited his numbers to her in English. As he did so, I watched his mother, and she began to cry. She said to me, in Spanish of course, "Thank you for helping my son, but also for helping my family." I realized at that moment that I had become involved in something much bigger than I had imagined.

By helping those children learn English, they would then be able to help their families learn English. And in turn, they would all be able to succeed in school, and in our society. From that day on, my passion for teaching ESL grew. I became aware of not only our nation's, but our state's tremendous need for adequate programs of teaching these children English so that they would have equal educational opportunities. Since my first ESL program, I have established a second ESL program, and worked with several other ESL organizations. My goal is to raise awareness of this problem in our state, convince the Mississippi Department of Education to apply for and receive more funding for ESL programs, and as a result to have adequate ESL programs implemented throughout the state.

The older I have grown, I have realized how much of an advantage that I have from being able to speak a foreign language. Speaking a foreign language opens up the door to many more job opportunities. The typical American student graduates from high school and college speaking only English. Around the world, students are growing up learning at least one foreign language in addition to their own language. American students who do not learn a foreign language are quickly becoming disadvantaged in today's global job market. Our public schools must put more emphasis on students learning a foreign language, and should offer these classes in earlier grade levels. I share my passion for this issue by speaking in classrooms and encouraging the students to learn a foreign language. In the near future, I hope to see foreign language classes being offered in our schools, prior to the high school level.

Through both facets of my platform, we are able to build bridges through language acquisition. The first bridge is built when we are able to teach the non-English speaking students English, and they are able to succeed in school, and assimilate into our society. In turn, these immigrants are allowed to "live the American dream." The second bridge is built when American students are speaking more than one language and are able to retain their competitive advantage in the global job market. In the changing environment of international business, it is vital that American students continue to educate themselves to assure the future of our nation's economy.
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