On April 30, eight hand-picked contestants who have practiced for two hours, three nights a week for three months in a lecture hall will compete for the title of Miss Black UT 2017.  

Miss Black UT is a 35 year old ethnic scholarship and beauty pageant presented by Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity. Miss Black UT strives to be more than just a beauty pageant. The competition hopes to empower young black women on campus and build them into the confident voices that shape the UT community.

“Its main purpose that has been successful is empowering black women,” theatre and dance senior and last year’s runner-up Tori Robertson said. “You don’t have to be white to be beautiful, and you don’t have to be in a beauty pageant that only caters to people who don’t look like you.  This is just for you.”

Robertson is this year’s pageant mom and is responsible for helping contestants write their statements, polish their walking and poses; she also serves as a role model. She works with pageant dads general management senior David Moton and acting junior Nyles Washington, two members of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity.  By incorporating members of the fraternity in the process, the pageant hopes to alter men’s perception of women and vice versa.

“I enjoy getting to know the girls,” Washington said. “Being in a fraternity, you get put in a box of guys who look at women in a bad way. This is our opportunity to show the girls in the pageant that we truly and sincerely care about them and their growth.”

Robertson, Washington and Moton said they all agree that one of the more fulfilling aspects of the pageant is getting to see participants who are usually shy and introverted become more confident through their involvement in the pageant.

The pageant is comprised of introductory statements, service platform presentations, a talent portion and final walks in ball gowns.  The service platform requires contestants to make a presentation on an issue they feel strongly about.  Journalism senior Rachael Malonson, who is biracial, has noticed a lack of diversity in the media throughout her time at UT and said she wants to change that.

“Through the struggle and confusion of finding my identity as a biracial person, I grew to understand it as a strength,” Malonson said.  “You don’t have to look a certain way to be a certain race.  If I win, I’ll be able to host an event where I’ll talk about diversity in the media and help students understand how they can make the media more diverse.”

Robertson was inspired by her background in theater to promote the importance of developing public speaking skills as her service platform. Robertson said she also used her experience with the pageant to work on other life skills and building relationships with other contestants.

“I’m a performer, so I’m used to being onstage, but it was awesome seeing my pageant sisters who were so shy just come out of their shell,” Robertson said.

The other seven contestants Robertson participated in the pageant with have come to be some of her best friends.  While the pageant can be time-consuming and challenging, in the end, Robertson says it is very rewarding. Robertson, Washington and Moton said they all agree that one of the pageant’s main lessons for contestants is time management and overcoming the challenges associated with that.

“Life is a series of challenges destined to be mastered,” Washington said. “I just want people to know this isn’t just a debutante pageant where we’re throwing eight girls on stage and having them walk around in ball gowns.  This is an opportunity for women of color to get up and showcase themselves and tell their stories.”