“When I was about 12 years old, I decided that it was going to be my job to encourage girls in my community to love STEM– science technology, engineering and math,” Jacqueline Means told CBS3’s Janelle Burrell.
Virginia's Alexandria Hunter Crowned Miss Black USA Talented Teen 2020
Washington, D.C., March 21, 2021. -- The Miss Black USA Organization crowned Alexandria Hunter as Miss Black USA Talented Teen 2020 . The 2020 event, which was postponed due to COVID-19, took place took place virtually over a 3 days period, with the culmination and announcement of the winner on Sunday, March 21st.
Hunter is a freshman at James Madison University pursuing a a Bachelor of Music in vocal performance. She has performed in JMU’s renowned Opera Theatre, serves as a College of Visual and Performing Arts Student Ambassador, and is a member in training for the professional music fraternity, Sigma Alpha Iota. She aspires to become an influential opera singer and use her platform as an international performer to uplift spirits through music. She plans to earn a Masters of Music degree after graduating from college. With her crown and sash in tow, she will use her platform to venture into communities often overlooked and in desperate need of encouragement and inspiration. She will continue to promote music education and its value to society on a broader scale.
Alex wowed the Judges with a vocal performance of “L’ho Perduta” from Mozart’s opera Le Nozze di Figaro for the talent portion of the competition.
This year’s judges were Award-winning journalist, host, and actress Jamila Mustafa, Miss Black USA Talented Teen 2011 and Director of Alumni Affairs at Fayetteville State University, Jasmin Sessoms, and award-winning actor and voiceover talent James Lewis. Host was former Miss Black Indiana USA and Founder of the Love Tour, Demitrea Kelley.
Contestants competed in Talent, Athletic Wear, and Question & Answer. Angela Pierre-Louis crowned Akira her successor at the conclusion of the annual event.
Final Results:
First Runner-Up: Miss Black Louisiana Talented Teen USA, Diamond Muse
Second Runner-Up: Miss Black Georgia Talented Teen USA, Taylor MacKenzie
Third Runner-Up: Miss Black North Carolina Talented Teen USA, Serenity Preston
For the first time ever, MISS BLACK USA TALENTED TEEN USA® took place as a virtual competition due to the ongoing global pandemic.
A part of her prize package, the new Miss Black USA Talented Teen receives a $2,500 scholarship for continued education; travel opportunities representing The Miss Black USA Organization, sponsors, and charitable partners; and a personal appearance wardrobe allowance.
For media interview request, email: pr@missblackusa.org.
Find MISS BLACK TALENTED TEEN USA® on Facebook and follow on Instagram.
US Virgin Islands' Akira Pickering Crowned Miss Black USA Talented Teen 2018
Washington, D.C., July 1, 2018. -- The Miss Black USA Organization crowned Akira Pickering as Miss Black USA Talented Teen 2018 at TheARC Theater in Washington, D.C. The event, which took place on Sunday, July 1, featured young women across the U.S. and the Virgin Islands.
Pickering is a 16-year-old high school junior temporarily relocated to Fayetteville, North Carolina after experiencing the devastation and destruction of Hurricanes Irma and Maria. Despite being born with temporary stridor, a medical condition where the inside of the throat is not fully formed and the ability to speak and eat is impaired, Akira wowed the Judges with a winning talent performance of "Stand Up for Love" by Destiny's Child.
Contestants competed in Talent, Athletic Wear, Evening Gown, and On Stage Interview. Angela Pierre-Louis crowned Akira her successor at the conclusion of the annual event.
Final Results:
First Runner-Up: Miss Black North Carolina Talented Teen USA Jaala McCall
Second Runner-Up: Miss Black New York Talented Teen USA Damitri'ana Douglas
Third Runner-Up: Miss Illinois Teen USA Sydni-Dion Bennett
For the first time ever, MISS BLACK USA TALENTED TEEN USA® took place in conjunction with MS. BLACK USA, the first national Mis. Black USA pageant for women of color ages 28 to 35 years.
A part of her prize package, the new Miss Black USA Talented Teen receives a $2,500 scholarship for continued education; travel opportunities representing The Miss Black USA Organization, sponsors, and charitable partners; and a personal appearance wardrobe allowance.
For crowning moment video of Akira, please visit HERE.
Find MISS BLACK TALENTED TEEN USA® on Facebook and follow on Instagram.
Miss Black USA Partners with Ethnic Custom Doll Maker
It's only befitting that Miss Black USA, the nation's premier pageant for women of color partner with the Queen of Ethnic Doll-Making, Karen Byrd. Miss Black USA is proud to announce this partnership to empower young girls of color to see themselves in dolls and Queens that look like them.
Miss Black USA CEO, Karen Arrington, an award-winning women's empowerment expert and global philanthropist applauds, Karen Byrd on the importance of instilling positive self-image in our young girls through her ethnic doll collection featuring ethnic inspired hair styles.
Karen Byrd is a mother, artist, natural hair enthusiast and business woman from California. In 2011, Karen created Natural Girls United, a one-woman business that gives makeovers to black Barbies by replacing their straight hair with natural styles, to have the look and feel of ethnic-inspired hair styles.
What started as a hobby has grown into a full-time business. Auburn dreads, charcoal twists, a honey-blonde 'fro — Karen makes them all!
Karen has always understood the need for our young girls and women to have positive images of themselves because it impacts self-esteem, confidence, and how we feel about ourselves overall. Her hope is that her dolls will help others to recognize their beauty and find joy in having locs, braids, kinky hair, curls, waves and more. Karen is working hard to show everyone that our beauty is amazing and worth celebrating.
Her Natural Hair Dolls have been featured nationally and internationally on MSNBC's Melissa Harris-Perry Show, The Steve Harvey Show, BET.com, HuffingtonPost.com, Clutch Magazine, Upscale Magazine and more, and on natural hair blogs in France, Spain, Germany, and Brazil. Karen is looking forward to continuing to inspire young women and growing her business.
As a child, I remember playing with dolls that were beautiful. But they never looked like me. Their hair, features and skin tones did not match mine. I always wondered - if my Barbie doll is beautiful and it doesn’t look like me… does that mean that I am not pretty? This is a question I struggled with through my childhood into early adulthood. Even though I had an amazing mom that always told me how beautiful I was, all the images around me in the media contradicted this message. And seeing other young women in my community that did value their own beauty also did not help.
As an adult, while shopping with my own daughters, I was shocked to find that stores still did not have dolls that reflected the beauty of the ethnic community. There were a few dolls that would surface every now and again, but it was not very often. On the average, a young girl of an ethnic cultural background could not go to just any store and find a doll that looks like her. This is something that needs to change.
There has been a continuous problem in our community where we don’t seem to value our own beauty, history or heritage. It is something that has been a problem for a very long time. In articles, videos and news stories such as “Black Girls Want White Dolls”, “What a Doll Tells Us About Race”, “Black Doll White Doll & A Girl Like Me” - it is apparent that this is something that affects many children and adults; and that there is a need for positive community change.
There is a need for our young girls to be able to have dolls that look like them. It is something that affects their self-esteem and confidence, and how they few about themselves from an early age. There have been quite a few studies done (as noted above) that show that African American boys and girls often think of black dolls as bad and white dolls as good. Of course, this is not something that the parent is teaching their child. So why are they getting these mixed messages about good and bad skin color or good and bad hair? It all has to do with the images they see as they grow up. If a child is constantly looking at images, dolls, television, books and magazines - and only seeing beauty as something or someone with non-ethnic features and someone that has long straight hair - then they are going to assume that this is what beauty is. It is something that has hurt our young people for centuries. But each day we learn that it is important to show them and teach them that their beauty is indeed beautiful.
I have wanted to take on the project of customizing dolls hair, to have the look and feel of styles and textures of African American & Multi-Cultural (ethnic) women and girls, for a long time. From this came the Natural Girls United project that has now turned into a business, and is something that I hope will help to bring a positive view of what ethnic beauty is.
My goal is to have a doll line that ranges in skin tones from a light to dark complexions. I would like for there to be a variety of hair styles that represent the styles that can be seen in many ethnic cultures – Dreadlocks, Sisterloc’s, Loc’s, Afro’s, Braids, Twist, Cornrows, Curls and more. The doll's features should also represent the girls and women from ethnic backgrounds. Empowerment is a big driving force behind this line of dolls with customized hair. Each doll will hopefully send a message of hope. It is a goal to have dolls that are doctors, artist, businesswomen, athletes, teachers and more. A little girl should be able to look at their doll and say my doll looks like me and I want to be a doctor just like my doll when I grow up.
Former Miss Black USA Talented Teen 2009 Cast in West Side Story
Jasmine Alexis, the first crowned Miss Black USA Talented Teen 2009 was cast as one of the Shark Girls in West Side Story at the prestigious Signature Theatre, 2009 Regional Tony Award recipient. The actress, former national Miss Black USA Talented Teen and professional ballroom dancer is an alumna of Concordia University in Bronxville, New York.
Throughout her year of service, Jasmine traveled the US and West Africa speaking on behalf of various organizations all while continuing her support for a chance at a safer, healthier and brighter future for young women. One program she supports is JEWELGIRLS, an economic and art therapy program for adolescent girl survivors of human trafficking, sexual violence and street life.
A former Miss DC Teen USA (2007) and Miss District of Columbia’s Outstanding Teen (2008), Jasmine competed in the 2009 Miss America’s Outstanding Teen Pageant where she placed in the top ten as a national semi-finalist. A talented and accomplished dancer, Miss Alexis has won numerous first place awards in International Latin Ballroom Dancing, including the 2008 Mid-Atlantic Dancesports Championships. She has also been the featured halftime entertainment for the NBA’s Washington Wizards.