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Miss Ï㽶ֱ²¥ to be crowned Sept. 27

Miss Ï㽶ֱ²¥ to be crowned Sept. 27

Contact: Anna Owens

STARKVILLE, Miss.—Seventeen young women will seek the title of Miss Ï㽶ֱ²¥ 2020 during the campus pageant’s 61st year of providing scholarships.

The public event is Friday [Sept. 27] at 7 p.m. in Lee Hall’s Bettersworth Auditorium. General admission is $15 and $10 for current Ï㽶ֱ²¥students with identification. Tickets are available online at or from the Center for Student Activities in Colvard Student Union, Suite 314.

Miss Ï㽶ֱ²¥will advance to the Miss Mississippi Pageant in June 2020, with that program’s winner becoming eligible to compete for Miss America later in the year.

Sydney Baucum
Sydney N. Baucum
Jessie V. Besanson
Jessie V. Besanson
Leah Boyd
Leah A. Boyd
Mila M. Combs
Mila M. Combs
Kaylin D. Costello
Kaylin D. Costello
Shelby G. Freeman
Shelby G. Freeman
Camille E. Green
Camille E. Green
Mary M. Hulbert
Mary M. Hulbert
Josie M. Nasekos
Josie M. Nasekos
Mikayla R. Poindexter
Mikayla R. Poindexter
Hunter Rush
Hunter G. Rush
Maggie Shoultz
Maggie A. Shoultz
Rachel Shumaker
Rachel K. Shumaker
Sydney Slocum
Sydney E. Slocum
Bailey Stewart
Bailey Stewart
Hannah Vanderberg
Hannah M. Vanderberg
Derykah Watts
Derykah T. Watts
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Photos by Megan Bean

In addition to in-state students, this year’s contestants include residents of Alabama, Illinois and Tennessee including (by hometown):

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama—Hunter G. Rush, a junior chemical engineering major and pre-law minor.

BRANDON—Shelby G. Freeman, a sophomore marketing major.

BROOKHAVEN—Bailey Stewart, a junior biological sciences major with a pre-nursing concentration.

CARRIERE—Jessie V. Besanson, a junior biochemistry major with a pre-medicine concentration, also pursuing a certificate in medical humanities.

CLINTON—Josie M. Nasekos, a freshman industrial and systems engineering major.

DECATUR—Sydney N. Baucum, a senior elementary education major.

GOREVILLE, Illinois—Camille E. Green, a sophomore wildlife, fisheries and aquaculture major with a concentration in wildlife agriculture conservation.

JACKSON—Derykah T. Watts, a junior wildlife, fisheries and aquaculture major with a concentration in wildlife veterinary medicine.

LUCEDALE—Mary M. Hulbert, a sophomore business administration major.

MABEN—Hannah M. Vanderberg, a junior communication major with concentrations in broadcasting and public relations.

MADISON, Alabama—Leah A. Boyd, a senior music education major with piano and voice concentrations.

OLIVE BRANCH—Sydney E. Slocum, a senior kinesiology major and psychology minor.

PELAHATCHIE—Maggie A. Shoultz, a junior marketing major.

PONTOTOC—Rachel K. Shumaker, a junior political science and communication double major with a concentration in public relations, and a pre-law minor.

SIGNAL MOUNTAIN, Tennessee—Mila M. Combs, a business administration master’s student with a plant and soil sciences concentration.

TUPELO—Kaylin D. Costello, a sophomore psychology major.

WEST POINT—Mikayla R. Poindexter, a junior special education major.

Ï㽶ֱ²¥pageant sponsors include the Center for Student Activities, Division of Development and Alumni, Office of the President, National Pan-Hellenic Council, Interfraternity Council, Student Association, and University Recreation.

For more information, contact the Center for Student Activities at 662-325-2930.

Ï㽶ֱ²¥is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at .