As the girls in the dressing rooms get into their gowns to walk the stage and hear the winner of the town pageant, one girl in particular is staring into the mirror thinking about all of the good she could participate in if she would be crowned. She’s also thinking about the scholarships and open opportunities she’ll be given after her reign as queen.
Pageants have gone back in history for being known for many good things like opportunities, self confidence builders and all in all helping young girls surround themselves with people who want to help them succeed. However, with the good things there will always be bad. People call pageants gross, evil and a way for young girls to only see themselves for beauty rather than being smart, nice, etc. While most pageants nowadays don’t take beauty as far into the score as it once was, people still only think of them as “beauty pageants.” Pageants now have taken a turn for the better, focusing on what these girls would bring to a platform of their choosing and finding ways to make their community better if they are chosen to be their towns queen for a reign of one year.
The pageantry pathway has been around for many years and from those who have gotten a chance to hold a title, whether that be city, county, state, country, or for any organization, those girls/women developed many skills that can help them in later life opportunities. The chance to work on public speaking, personal growth, leadership, self-confidence and so much more depending on your story.
“I have found that pageantry,” Angela Hutchins, a director for the Lake County Scholarship Program, says, “whether it be a beauty or community service pageant it helps girls and women of all ages by teaching and installing many great qualities in them that will help in many different ways.”
Hutchins goes on to explain how participating in service projects builds leadership, organization, communication and teamwork skills. She also explains self-confidence comes with having to be your own advocate during your reign and how being recognized for your community service and other contributions can boost your self-esteem highly. Another thing Hutchins explained is that being a part of a pageant community can give you more social awareness. With having a lot of community service opportunities, you see a lot more events and news happening around your town and even neighboring areas.
The pageant pathway, although mostly impactful for teens and older, is available for kids as young as six years old. This gets these girls into a good spot to develop a bunch of skills like public speaking, how to build long lasting relationships and all in all how to be a good role model for their community.
“The youngest girls in our program have so much fun with not only the pageant but,” Crystal Downey, a director for the Lake County Scholarship Program, says, “being out at events.”
Being a part of a pageant community builds a great resume and also gives many different opportunities after finishing a reign. These opportunities and benefits help these young women continue to grow as a role model and also grow their career and education.
“The reigning queen receives an educational scholarship,” Danielle Badgley, pageant director for the Miss McHenry pageant says, “numerous opportunities to grow their networks, develop valuable life and career skills and become a role model for the community after making an impact throughout their reign.”
While the pageant community has grown and beat most of the stereotypes, there are still many people who think that pageants are ruining young girls confidence by judging girls off of their looks and not her personality. The people that think this way, more likely than not, have not been around a pageant community close enough to know the behind the scenes and other mentorship that builds self confidence through the competition season.
While pageants are thought of being a bunch of girls getting together to dress up and look pretty, the underlying benefits are uncountable. The girls in scholarship and community service pageants get exposed to volunteer hours and get to meet leaders of cities like their city council, mayors, business owners, and many other important people. Making these connections in your home town can be a gateway to making bigger and even more important, connections in your future.