Shannon Sanderford

Shannon Lee Sanderford (born March 9, 1992) is an American beauty pageant titleholder from Coppell, Texas, who was crowned Miss Texas 2015. She competed for the Miss America 2016 title in September 2015 and placed in the Top 10.

Shannon Sanderford
Born	Shannon Lee Sanderford March 9, 1992 Coppell, Texas
Education	University of Oklahoma
Title	Miss San Jacinto 2013 Miss Duncanville 2014 Miss Fort Worth 2015 Miss Texas 2015
Beauty pageant titleholder
Hair color	Blonde
Major competition(s)	Miss America 2016

Pageant career

Early pageants

In her first try for Miss Texas, Sanderford won the Miss San Jacinto 2013 title.[1] She competed in the 2013 Miss Texas pageant with the platform "Double Beauty" and a vocal performance in the talent portion of the competition.[2] She was named Overall Interview Winner but was not a finalist for the state title.

On November 30, 2013, Sanderford won the Miss Duncanville 2014 title.[3][4] She competed in the 2014 Miss Texas pageant with the platform "Mentoring Made Easy" and a vocal performance in the talent portion of the competition.[5][6] She was named was a Top-10 finalist for the state title.[7][8]

Miss Texas 2015

On November 29, 2014, Sanderford was crowned Miss Fort Worth 2015 which made her eligible to compete at the 2015 Miss Texas pageant.[9][10][11] Entering the state pageant at the Eisemann Center for Performing Arts in Richardson, Texas, in June 2015 as one of 57 qualifiers, Sanderford's competition talent was a pop vocal performance of "Dear Future Husband".[12][13] Her platform is "She Matters".[11]

Sanderford won the competition on Saturday, July 4, 2015, when she received her crown from outgoing Miss Texas titleholder Monique Evans.[12][14] She earned more than $15,000 in scholarship money and other prizes from the state pageant.[14][15] As Miss Texas, her activities include public appearances across the state of Texas.[13]

Vying for Miss America 2016

Sanderford was Texas's representative at the Miss America 2016 pageant in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in September 2015.[11][12] In the televised finale on September 13, 2015, she sang Dusty Springfield's "Son of a Preacher Man" during the talent portion of the competition. Sanderford placed in the Top 10 finalists and earned a $7,000 scholarship award.[16][17]

Personal life and education

Sanderford is a native of Coppell, Texas, and a 2010 graduate of Faith Christian School (Texas).[13] Her father is Wayne Everett Sanderford and her mother is Nancy Lee Wilkinson Sanderford.

In 2014, Sanderford graduated from the University of Oklahoma where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism and advertising.[4] While a student at Oklahoma, she became a member of the Chi Omega women's fraternity.[18][15] Sanderford is a marketing coordinator working in the Dallas area.

References

1. "Miss Texas - 2013 Contestants". Miss Texas. Archived from the original on April 14, 2013. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
2. "State Contestants: Texas - 2013". Miss America. 2013. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
3. "Miss & Teen Duncanville Pageant". Duncanville, TX: Ellis County Scholarship Organization. Archived from the original on October 20, 2013. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
4. Hanson, Sherry (June 23, 2014). "Miss Duncanville 2014 To Compete For Miss Texas". Duncanville BubbleLife. Duncanville, TX. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
5. "State Contestants: Texas - 2014". Miss America. 2014. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
6. "Miss Texas - 2014 Contestants". Miss Texas. Archived from the original on April 23, 2014. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
7. "Miss Texas 2014 Is Monique Evans". The Gilmer Mirror. Gilmer, TX. July 6, 2014. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
8. "Monique Evans wins 2014 Miss Texas Pageant". Focus Daily News. DeSoto, TX. July 7, 2014. Archived from the original on July 6, 2015. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
9. "2015 Miss & Teen Fort Worth Pageant". Fort Worth, TX: Miss & Teen Fort Worth & Duncanville Pageant Organization. Archived from the original on November 14, 2014. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
10. "Miss Texas - 2015 Contestants". Miss Texas. Archived from the original on July 7, 2015. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
11. "State Contestants: Texas - 2015". Miss America. 2015. Archived from the original on September 16, 2015. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
12. "Miss Fort Worth is the New Miss Texas 2015". Fort Worth, TX: KXAS-TV. July 4, 2015. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
13. Raglin, Taylor (July 6, 2015). "Coppell native named Miss Texas". Coppell Gazette. Coppell, TX: Star Local Media. Retrieved July 25, 2015.
14. Bell, Denise (July 6, 2015). "Miss Fort Worth Shannon Sanderford Crowned 80th Miss Texas". The Forney Post. Forney, TX. Retrieved July 25, 2015.
15. Medina, Mariah (July 8, 2015). "10 things to know about Miss Texas, Shannon Sanderford". San Antonio Express-News. San Antonio, TX: Hearst Corporation. Retrieved July 25, 2015.
16. "Miss America Show Scholarships 2016". Miss America. Archived from the original on April 5, 2016. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
17. "The 2016 Miss America Competition Scholarships & Awards" (Press release). Miss America. September 16, 2015. Archived from the original on October 22, 2015. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
18. 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 Texas official website