The 2009 Miss University of Georgia Pageant

The 2009 Miss University of Georgia Pageant will be held in at the Performing Arts Center (Hodgson Hall) on the UGA Campus on Saturday, January 31, 2009.

Applications will be available beginning on September 4, 2008 at the Tate Student Center Information Desk or on-line.  They will also be available at the Student Activity Fair on the Tate Center Plaza on September 10.

Applications will be due to the Campus Life Business Office by 5:00 PM on Thursday, October 16, 2008. 

A contestant orientation will be held on Sunday, October 19, 2008 in room 141 of the Tate Student Center at 2:00 PM.

Official Guidelines

As approved by the Miss America Board of Directors March 1, 2008

• A contestant must be a citizen of the United States of America.
• A contestant shall not be less than seventeen years of age on the date of this pageant nor more than twenty-four years of age on December 31, 2009.
• A contestant must be enrolled and taking classes at the University of Georgia fall semester 2008 and spring semester 2009.
• No contestant may have previously been a state finalist who competed in the national competition for the title of Miss America.
• No contestant may enter the Miss University of Georgia Pageant if they have held the title of Miss University of Georgia.
• A contestant must be a female and shall always have been a female.
• A contestant must be single and never been married or had her marriage annulled.
• A contestant must not be and never have been pregnant.
• A contestant must be of good character and have not been involved at any time in any act of moral turpitude. She must not have been convicted of any crime nor have any criminal charge pending against her. She may not have been involved in any activity which is or could be characterized as dishonest, immoral, indecent or in bad taste.
• A contestant must be in reasonably good health and can to the best of her knowledge participate fully and without limitation in any pageant activities.
• A contestant should possess poise, personality, intelligence, and charm and must possess and display talent. This talent, to be presented in not more than two minutes, may consist of singing, dancing, playing a musical instrument, dramatic reading, art display, or talk. Other talent may be considered provided said talent has been specifically approved in writing by the Miss Georgia Pageant.
• A contestant's talent may be amateur or professional.
• No contestant shall be eligible to compete if she has endorsed or contracted to endorse any product competitive to those sold by the national sponsors of the Miss America Organization within three months prior to the competition and/or is under such contract for endorsement at the time of the competition or thereafter.
• A contestant must be a bona fide registered full-time student (at least 12 credit hours) at the University of Georgia during fall semester 2008 with a cumulative GPA of 2.3 or higher at the end of fall semester 2007 and must be a bona fide registered full-time student at UGA during spring semester 2009. In addition, the winner of the Miss University of Georgia Pageant must remain in good academic standing with the University of Georgia during her service as Miss University of Georgia. Unless the winner graduates during her year of service, any plans not to be enrolled as a full time student during her year of service must be approved by Jerry Anthony, Pageant Director.
• Every contestant must be able to provide two or more of the following items to determine eligibility: (1) valid and current driver's license; (2) automobile registration; (3) lease of housing with valid dates; (4) utility bills; (5) voter's registration; (6) Federal income tax return (may delete amounts).
• All contestants must sign the official Miss America contract prior to competing in this pageant.
• The winner of the Miss University of Georgia Pageant must be willing to compete in the Miss Georgia Pageant in June 2009 or whenever the pageant is held and represent the University of Georgia at various official functions as they arise.
• The Miss America Organization has selected the Children’s Miracle Network as their official philanthropy. All participants in the Miss University of Georgia Scholarship Pageant must fulfill a service requirement of raising $100 for the Children’s Miracle Network/Miss America Organization. The deadline for this requirement will be December 31, 2007.

Phases of the Miss University of Georgia Pageant Competition

Private Interview (25%)

Each contestant will have a private ten-minute interview with the judges. It is recommended that you wear business attire-clothing which is suitable for a job interview. During the 10 minute interview the judges will ask questions which could cover interesting facts about the contestant, local, national and world events, political issues, or any other topic of interest to the panel. The contestant will be given the opportunity to have 30 seconds for closing remarks. Contestants must use the Miss America format of the one page resume and the platform essay for their private interview. Judges will be observing your mental alertness, personality, voice, general knowledge, personal appearance, etc. The interview is confidential even after the pageant is over and will count 25 percent of the overall score.

Evening Wear (20%)

For this portion of competition you are allowed to wear evening wear (i.e. pants, cocktail dress, etc.) or the traditional gown. The evening wear competition will count 20 percent of the overall score.

Lifestyle and Fitness in Swimsuit (15%)

This phase of competition will highlight posture and physical fitness. You will walk out toward the judges, make a circle and end up in front of the judges for a pause of four counts and should not exceed 20 seconds on stage. You will have a choice of a one or two piece swimsuit of any style you want. It cannot be a thong and should be in good taste. You may compete either barefoot or in shoes/sandals.

The Miss Georgia Field Director will be at the orientation meeting and the second meeting to approve your choice of swimsuit. The fitness in swimsuit competition will count 15 percent of the overall score.

Talent (35%)

Talents may not exceed two (2) minutes. Consistently contestants have scored better using one talent rather than a combination of two or more, i.e. singing & dancing, playing two unrelated instruments. Multiple talents tend to leave an audience wondering which was the contestants real talent.

Talent presentations MUST be live on stage and not by use of projection. This does not preclude the utilization of taped background music (on CD) as long as you, yourself, are performing live. Any contestant who plans to present a talent involving original work on her part MUST send a notarized authentication that she created that work if she wishes to receive credit for the same. (two weeks prior to performance).

Talents may not be duplicated on stage. The Miss UGA Pageant will consider requests on a first come basis.

NO-NO's: Fire batons, sword and/or knife twirling, bow and arrow skills, or any other talent that would constitute danger to anyone. Props that require excessively large stage areas and complicated setting up and striking will not be permitted. Live animals are not permitted. You cannot remove articles of clothing while presenting your talent.

Depending on the type of movement a contestant has planned and the limitations of the sound system in the Theatre, you should decide upon which type of microphone you will need (stand mike, wired hand mike, or wireless hand mike). You must make these arrangements with the production coordinator well in advance of rehearsals.

Taped accompaniment must be on a CD. Regardless of the type of talent background music cannot have voices, instruments, or other noises which mimic the talent of the contestant. (Example: A vocalist may have back ground vocals with “oohs and aahs” or other background lyrics, but cannot have a tape with a voice singing the melody line for the contestant to sing along with. The same would apply for instrumentalists, dancers, and any other talent which could provide for an unfair advantage if a judge could not delineate from the talent on the track versus the live performance of the contestant.)

Hugh Hodgson Hall has a grand piano if you play the piano.

Any article you wish to bring on stage with you MUST be absolutely functional. Some Non-functional props tend to distract from the contestant. i.e. If you wish to bring a chair on stage you must actually NEED it to sit or stand on.

If technical difficulties prevent you from performing any phase of competition, fairness dictates that you will be allowed to restart. The decision for a restart will be made with consultation of the producer, Field Director, and the judges panel.

The talent competition will count 35 percent of the overall score.

On Stage Question - 5%

You will be asked one question during the competition. The question will most likely relate to your platform issue. Your answer should be brief and to the point. You will not be scored on what you wear during this phase but rather on how you respond to the question. This phase of competition will count 5% of the overall score.

Meetings and Rehearsals

We have held the number of meeting for this pageant to a minimum. All contestants are expected to attend each of the following meetings and/or rehearsals (unless it is noted as optional).