Ettrick, V.A. (April 27, 2021) - Junior Woo Woo Cheerleader, Ashlee Gray was named the 93rd Miss Virginia State University on the afternoon of April 25. The overall experience consisted of an interview and pageant, which was made up of the pre - pageant evaluation, pageant and student voting. 

Contestants were expected to include an essay on why they deserve to named Mr or Miss VSU. This portion covered 5% of the final score.

The day before the pageant, contestants participated in the interview portion, in which they were expected to answer five questions about their platform. 

The questions were: 

1. Personal Connection: Why is this platform important to you on a personal level?

2. Judges Emotional Reaction: As a judge, why should I care about your platform on a personal level? Telling me this issue is important is not good enough. Why should a judge be emotional about it?

3. Specific problem/challenge you are addressing. Why is there a real need for your platform? What needs to be accomplished specifically?

4. Specific steps taken to address item number the problem/challenge. What is your plan of action? This plan of action must be organized and able to be explained to someone who does not know anything about your platform

5. What is the expected measurable impact did you make?

Grays platform of choice was T.A.P. IN. Which stands for Trojans, Achieving, Possibilities, In Your Academics, Relationships in the Community, and Within Yourself. 

The pageant opened with the candidates participating in an opening dance scene. This was a choreographed routine that promoted the theme of the pageant and was not judged.

Next, came the platform scene. During the Platform portion of the pageant, contestants created a pre - recorded  video to inform the audience of their platform of choice .The final score in this category represented 10% of the contestants total score.

After the platform scene came the Oratory Scene. In the Oratory Scene, contestants presented the Topic "HBCU's : Social and emotional change during the COVID-19 Pandemic." The judging panel assessed the contestants ability to clearly present information to an audience. The final score in this category represented 15% of your total score.

The next section of the pageant was the fan favorite that is the talent show. Contestants were judged on stage presence, originality of talent, totality of all elements. (e.g. costume, props, voice, use of body and /choreography, etc.) and overall performance. Gray was able to express herself through a masterful dance the 'Blessed' by Daniel Ceasar. The final score in this category will represent 10% of the total score

Up next was the formal/evening wear scene where the contestants were judged on first impression, along with your personality, sense of confidence, choice of attire, style, fit, poise and grace.

The last scene of the pageant was the question and answer portion which was designed to assess the contestants ability to speak eloquently and carry on a thought-provoking conversation. This segment represented 15% of the total score.

The last 10% of the voting came from the student - body. 

When asked about the honor of being named the 93rd Miss Virginia State University, Gray had this to say,

" It was an honor to be selected as the 93rd Miss Virginia State University Elect because it has been a dream of mine since my freshman year. To now see that all of the hard work has paid off is a blessing. I am so grateful for my support system and everyone that has supported me along the way. This journey was not easy, but anything worth having is worth fighting for. I am so excited to humbly serve as the 93rd Miss Virginia State University!"