Hannah Roberts

Hannah Camille Roberts (born August 21, 1993) is an American beauty pageant titleholder from Mount Olive, Mississippi. She was named the Distinguished Young Woman of Mississippi in 2011 and crowned Miss Mississippi 2015. Roberts competed for the Miss America 2016 title on September 13, 2015, and was named first runner-up.

Hannah Roberts
Born	Hannah Camille Roberts April 15, 1993 Mount Olive, Mississippi, U.S.
Education	University of Southern Mississippi
Years active	1997–present
Height	5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Title	Distinguished Young Woman of Mississippi 2011 Miss University of Southern Mississippi 2013 Miss University of Southern Mississippi 2015 Miss Mississippi 2015
Beauty pageant titleholder
Hair color	blonde
Eye color	blue
Major competition(s)	Miss America 2016

Pageant career

Early pageants

In July 2010, Roberts won the Covington County's Junior Miss title and competed in July 2010 finals for the state Distinguished Young Woman title.[1][2] After two days of competition in talent, fitness, scholastic achievement, and self-expression, Roberts was named 2011 Distinguished Young Woman of Mississippi.[1] She earned a $10,000 scholarship prize from the Mississippi Junior Miss Scholarship Foundation and the right to compete for the national title.[3] Roberts was named second runner-up for the national title in June 2011, earning a $15,000 scholarship prize.[4][5] She also won $1,000 scholarships for scholastic and talent category awards plus $1,500 for winning the Bel Air Mall Community Service Award.[5]

In October 2012, Roberts won the Miss University of Southern Mississippi 2013 title.[6] She competed in the Miss Mississippi pageant in July 2013 with the platform "Pages of Love" and a classical violin performance in the talent portion of the competition.[7] She was named first runner-up to winner Chelsea Rick.[8][9][10] Roberts skipped the 2014 competition season to focus on her studies.[9]

Miss Mississippi 2015

In October 2014, Roberts was crowned Miss University of Southern Mississippi 2015 which made her eligible to compete at the 2015 Miss Mississippi pageant.[6][11][12] She entered the state pageant at the Vicksburg Convention Center in June 2015 as one of 30 qualifiers.[9] Roberts's competition talent was a shred of the classical violin performance of a variation around "Zapateado" by Pablo de Sarasate, Op. 23 No. 2.[10][13] Her platform is "Pages of Love", donating more than 25,000 books to children's hospitals, shelters, and schools.[11][13][14] Roberts won the competition on Saturday, June 27, 2015, when she received her crown from outgoing Miss Mississippi titleholder Jasmine Murray.[15][10] She earned more than $10,000 in scholarship money, use of an automobile, and other prizes from the state pageant.[13] As Miss Mississippi, her activities include public appearances across the state of Mississippi.[16]

Vying for Miss America

Roberts was Mississippi's representative at the Miss America 2016 pageant in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in September 2015.[17] In the televised finale on September 13, 2015, she performed a violin solo in the talent portion of the competition and her interview question was about controversial county clerk Kim Davis. Roberts was named first runner-up to Betty Cantrell and awarded a $25,000 scholarship prize.[18][19] In addition, Roberts was awarded the $500 Louanne Gamba Non-Finalist Instrumentalist scholarship for her classical violin performance.[20] However, her performance of Pablo de Sarasate's Zapateado has been widely criticized by members of the music community, who have noted that her performance was riddled with errors and severely lacked the technique, musicianship, and knowledge of the correct notes and rhythms required for the virtuosic piece she intended to play.

Personal life and education

Roberts is a native of Mount Olive, Mississippi, and a 2011 graduate of Sumrall High School.[21][22] Her father is James Roberts and her mother is Danna Warren Roberts.[9][12]

Roberts is a May 2015 graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi where she majored in biochemistry with a minor in biology.[9][22] She was a recipient of the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship for undergraduates planning a career in science.[9][21] While a student at USM, Roberts became a member of the Kappa Delta sorority.[6][23] She currently attends medical school at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, Mississippi.[22]

References

1. Alig, Rachel (July 25, 2010). "2011 Distinguished Young Woman of Mississippi". Meridian, MS: WTOK-TV. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
2. "Past Distinguished Young Women 2015 - 2011". Mississippi Junior Miss. Archived from the original on December 4, 2016. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
3. Alig, Rachel (September 24, 2010). "2011 Distinguished Young Women of Mississippi Winners Announced". Meridian, MS: WTOK-TV. Archived from the original on July 7, 2015. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
4. "Scholarship, leadership and talent embodied in Tennessee teen selected as Distinguished Young Woman of America for 2011" (Press release). Distinguished Young Women. June 25, 2011. Archived from the original on April 15, 2015. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
5. "2011 Award Recipients". Distinguished Young Women. Archived from the original on July 7, 2015. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
6. "Hannah Roberts wins second Miss University of Southern Mississippi title". The Mississippi Press. Mobile, AL: Advance Publications. October 15, 2014. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
7. "State Contestants: Mississippi - 2013". Miss America. 2013. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
8. Elkins, Chris (July 14, 2013). "Chelsea Rick wins Miss Mississippi 2013". Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. Tupelo, MS: Journal, Inc. Associated Press. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
9. Coll, Jim (June 27, 2015). "USM's Chemistry Queen: Miss Mississippi Hannah Roberts Just May Shatter a Few Stereotypes". Southern Miss Now. Hattiesburg, MS: University of Southern Mississippi. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
10. Threadgill, Jacob (June 28, 2015). "Miss USM crowned Miss Mississippi". The Clarion-Ledger. Jackson, MS: Gannett. Retrieved June 28, 2015.
11. Apel, Therese (June 28, 2015). "Miss Mississippi 2015: 'Shoot for goals that are bigger'". The Clarion-Ledger. Jackson, MS: Gannett. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
12. "Pascagoula's Joni Lucas competes in Miss USM Pageant set for Saturday in Hattiesburg". The Mississippi Press. Mobile, AL: Advance Publications. October 7, 2014. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
13. Wade, Maggie (June 29, 2015). "Miss Mississippi 2015: Hannah Roberts". Jackson, MS: WLBT-TV. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
14. "Miss Mississippi 2015". Miss Mississippi. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
15. Burks, Bob (June 27, 2015). "Hannah Roberts is Miss Mississippi 2015". Biloxi, MS: WLOX-TV. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
16. "Miss Mississippi 2015 crowned at Vicksburg Convention Center". Vicksburg Post. Vicksburg, MS: Cashman Publishing. June 27, 2015. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
17. "State Contestants: Mississippi - 2015". Miss America. 2015. Archived from the original on September 17, 2015. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
18. Jensen, Erin (September 14, 2015). "Miss Georgia is crowned Miss America 2016". USA Today. Gannett. Retrieved September 15, 2015.
19. "Miss America Show Scholarships 2016". Miss America. Archived from the original on October 22, 2015. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
20. "Miss Georgia, Betty Cantrell, Crowned Miss America 2016" (Press release). Miss America. September 13, 2015. Archived from the original on September 16, 2015. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
21. "#CloserLookUSM: Take a Closer Look at Hannah Roberts, Southern Miss Student". Hattiesburg, MS: University of Southern Mississippi. January 24, 2014. Retrieved July 6, 2015 – via YouTube.
22. Coll, Jim (July 2, 2015). "Miss Mississippi Comes Home: USM to Honor Hannah Roberts". Southern Miss Now. Hattiesburg, MS: University of Southern Mississippi. Retrieved July 7, 2015.
23. Becque, Fran. "Sorority Women on the Road to Miss America 2016 (2015 State Winners)". Focus on Fraternity History. Archived from the original on June 10, 2015. Retrieved July 6, 2015.

External links

• Miss Mississippi official website