Miss Black UT Pageant Crowns a Queen

By Mahlah Freeman

Reporting Texas TV

AUSTIN, Texas – Eight UT students competed to be crowned Miss Black UT on March 28 at the Student Activity Center.

The Miss Black UT Pageant is a yearly scholarship pageant hosted by the Black Student Alliance (BSA). Participants must be a young black woman at UT,  hold a leadership position on campus, be actively involved in the community, and dedicate the time it takes to get the pageant off the ground.

“We like to highlight and showcase the exceptional young women who are leaders, followers, and organizers in our community. It’s the time for them to shine and showcase what they got, build a sisterhood and compete for a grand prize of $1000,” pageant coordinator Nia Franzua said.

Tayler Edwards took home the crown, a $1000 scholarship, and the title of Miss Black UT 2024. Edwards said she competed to boost her confidence. She said she was a shy kid who hid from the spotlight. Edwards never thought she would be Miss Black UT.

“I went from being scared to wondering maybe this is a possibility to now I’m here and I have so much support with me,” Edwards said.

 

Each woman interested in the pageant had to raise $300 to cover the cost. Franzua said the women showed their dedication to the pageant by exceeding the original goal and raising over $7000 among each other through Double Good Fundraising.

The pageant consisted of five categories: opening statement, UT spirit wear, talent, formal, and Q&A.

“I’m excited about the UT spirit wear category!  I have been to a lot of games because of my dance schedule and I’m just excited to dress up and be in UT spirit gear,” Ivy Camille Sampson said.

This was the second year the Black Student Association hosted the pageant, which the organization called “Miss BSA” in 2023. It is a restart after a 10-year hiatus from the original of a similar pageant called Miss Iota Delta, hosted by the Iota Delta Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi.

“We thought we should just take the [pageant], and we should be able to showcase these young exceptional women…We decided to change the name because we wanted to highlight the many different components of black  UT and the [different] girls that are a part of that,” Franzua said.

 

For many women competing in the pageant, it isn’t just about the six-inch crown or the check, but what the title of Miss Black UT allows them to do for their community.

“Being Miss Black UT would mean being able to be a leader to the little black girls in the Austin community. I know when you come to Austin you’re like ‘Where are the black people?’ There are Black girls just like me who grew up here and to be a leader for them is very important to me,” Wynter Winston said.

BSA members said the pageant is about scholarship and community. Their goal is to uplift black women and display excellence in their community, especially in the wake of Senate Bill 17. The bill bans Texas public universities from having DEI programs and training. The BSA wants future classes to see that everything they do is a collaborative process, not a competitive process.

“We can work together. It’s not a single person carrying this entire thing, it’s a group, it’s a community,” Sampson said.

Kelsey Green finished second and received a $500 scholarship and Wynter Winston finished third and received a $250 scholarship.