In 1921, the Miss America pageant was created to attract visitors to Atlantic City's boardwalk. Then in the mid 1940s, a time when only 76,000 women in the USA graduated from college, Miss America added scholarships to their prize package.
College scholarships changed the pageant dramatically and eventually helped the Miss America organization become the United State's leading provider of educational scholarships for women. Since then, education has been an important component, but—aside from the interview—the connection to the pageant wasn't on prominent display.
Until now.
Camille Schrier is a 24 year-old with Bachelor of Science degrees in Biochemistry and Systems Biology from Virginia Tech—where she graduated cum laude—and is working on her Doctor of Pharmacy Degree at Virginia Commonwealth University. Until earlier this month she was also Miss Dominion—a regional pageant title in Virginia—but now Schrier is Miss Virginia.
Next stop: Miss America.
How did she win the crown?
Partly through her performance in the talent competition. But Schrier didn't dance, sing or play an instrument—talents we associate with pageants.
Camille Schrier demonstrated the "catalytic decomposition of hydrogen peroxide."
Inside Edition/YouTube
Yep, she pulled a Bill Nye on stage, complete with white lab coat and safety glasses.
Inside Edition/YouTube
Watch footage of her performance here:
How Miss Virginia Won Her Crown Thanks to Scienceyoutu.be
Watch #VCUPharmacy student Camille Schrier wow the judges for Miss Virginia with her talent performance — the catal… https://t.co/WfzyrRQzel— VCU School of Pharmacy (@VCU School of Pharmacy) 1561582134.0
Schrier competed in pageants beginning at the age of 14 and stopping when she began college.
After learning that the Miss America organization eliminated the swimsuit portion of their pageants and vowed to focus more on professionalism and social impact, Schrier decided to return to the pageant world.
And her choice to make a chemistry experiment her talent?
Schrier said on an Instagram post:
"When I said during my chemistry demonstration that 'I've loved science since I was a little girl' I wasn't kidding. Who would have thought that this little girl would grow up to not only be a Miss Virginia, but also start an international media firestorm about SCIENCE!"
Her unconventional talent created quite a stir.
Camille Schrier was crowned Miss Virginia 2019 at the end of June, and for the talent portion of the competition, t… https://t.co/SenmoKvl9d— CNN (@CNN) 1562474766.0
Camille Schrier, scientist, Miss Virginia 2019. - 24 thn. - Dual Graduated: Biochemistry and Systems Biology. - Un… https://t.co/NgkFc85Z9D— Semesta Sains (@Semesta Sains) 1562291596.0
"I'm trying to be like Bill Nye [the Science Guy]. That's what I'm going for. I want to get kids excited [about science], but I don't want it to be boring."
"To me, talent is not a passion alone, but also a skill which is perfected over years of learning.” – Camille Schri… https://t.co/ejTF6pMlmQ— Science Center of IA (@Science Center of IA) 1562811780.0
She added:
"I expected to hear some feedback saying that my talent wasn't really a talent. But I will tell you, I was overwhelmed with messages saying how cool my talent was, how refreshing it was and how everyone was impressed that I was able to tie education and science into something that was also entertaining."
"I didn't have that kind of role model who had gone through the same experiences that I had of being an undergrad in a science career."
"And now I'm in a graduate program. It's not easy [getting a science degree] and I want to be that person to go out there and encourage and show [children] that I did it. And so can you."
STEM stands for: Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.
Women in #STEM represent! https://t.co/aYaLN3Pb70— Kelly Lyon (@Kelly Lyon) 1562810334.0
In another Instagram post, Schrier said:
"WOW! Hi everyone, I'm Camille Schrier and I'm MISS VIRGINIA 2019! I am SO EXCITED to start this journey."
"This year, I'll be traveling across the commonwealth visiting schools & children's hospitals, as well as advocating for STEM education & drug safety and abuse prevention. LET'S DO THIS!"
As for pageants, the new Miss Virginia said:
"It taught me a lot about being professional … in terms of just being able to prepare a resume, go into an interview confidently, and how to prepare for something like that."
"The evolution of the Miss America competition, which reflects greater inclusiveness, and an opportunity to make a difference and win scholarships inspired me to step forward this year and compete."
"I am more than Miss Virginia. I am Miss Biochemist, Miss Systems Biologist, Miss Future PharmD looking toward a pharmaceutical industry career."
"Now was the time for me to create a mind shift about the concept of talent by bringing my passion for STEM to the stage. To me, talent is not a passion alone, but also a skill which is perfected over years of learning."
Schrier won $21,000 in scholarships out of $75,000 total offered during the Miss Virginia pageant.
The beauty of STEM at work! https://t.co/a7VrYGkLJw— GoldieBlox (@GoldieBlox) 1562086892.0
And her experiment?
The catalytic decomposition of hydrogen peroxide is a science experiment where the giant spurts of foam occur when potassium iodide (Kl) is added to a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and dish soap. The process resembles what happens when hydrogen peroxide is applied to a wound and bubbles form.
Many dedicated scientists faithfully travel to local schools to give #STEM #demonstrations and wonder at times what… https://t.co/yO5Q6j1xko— Rebecca Lee (@Rebecca Lee) 1562563859.0
In September, Schrier will join talented, educated women from across the United States to compete for the Miss America 2020 crown.
The book Pretty Smart: Lessons From Our Miss Americas, available here, offers:
"...insights, wisdom and stories from twenty-two former Miss Americas, who are not just pretty but pretty smart, and how they pursued their passions all the way to professional and personal success. With their thoughtful intelligence and insightful eloquence these women shatter the myth that the Pageant is 'just a beauty contest'."
"Their stories, woven into a tapestry of inspiration and wisdom, prove that it takes vision, discipline, drive and, yes, brains to win the crown."
Three women have recently taken charge in NASA's Earth Science, Heliophysics and Planetary Sciences divisions. These women—Sandra Cauffman, Nicola Fox, and Lori Glaze—are now the leading scientists at NASA, making strides towards new space missions and research projects within the agency.
Sandra Cauffman is the newest acting director of the Earth Science division, and takes the reigns when it comes to learning about our home planet. Born and raised in Costa Rica, Cauffman displayed an interest in space travel from a young age, pouring over every science fiction book she could find.
Even when she was younger, she dreamed of exploring the great beyond.
Cauffman said in an interview with NASA:
"I just remember telling Mom I wanted to go to the Moon."
Early on in her NASA career, she found herself being one of the only women in the room, and quickly learned to speak up in a male-dominated environment. Years later and with several Mars missions under her belt, Cauffman now makes sure that everyone in her division is heard, as she leads them in learning about the benefits of our planet.
"What we do in observing Earth as a system gives us the additional benefit of helping humans here on Earth survive hurricanes, tornadoes, pollution, fires, and help public health. Understanding the oceans, the algae blooms — all of those things help humans right here on Earth."
For the first time in history, three out of the four NASA science divisions are led by women. Also, out of the new… https://t.co/qMzqJdYZlo— Mike Sington (@Mike Sington) 1557663751.0
How inspiring ❤️✨🚀 NASA announces: Women are now in charge of NASA's science missions - https://t.co/WqneVZiN3H— Martha 🕷 (@Martha 🕷) 1557607729.0
Nicola Fox has earned the title of director of the Heliophysics division. She is responsible for all of NASA's research and exploration of the most important star: the sun.
She attributes her love of space to a personal connection with the Apollo 11 moon landing—having watched it on television with her father at only eight months old.
"Dad takes credit [for my space science career]."
Fox added:
"To him, the best thing you could do in life was to work at NASA."
Fox became the lead in the Heliophysics department in September 2018 and immediately was taken by NASA's capacity to accept and include people from all walks of life.
"If you think about the diversity of roles that take getting a mission into space, all different types of jobs come together. If you want to work at NASA, there's a job for you."
Now, her job is to learn how exactly the sun impacts Earth, and to further learn how to protect explorers from its harmful radiation.
👇🏾I love hearing that women are in charge at Nasa. Commenters who were upset about gender being highlighted here mo… https://t.co/tm8bER74XU— Akshita Nanda (@Akshita Nanda) 1557541461.0
“We control everything the light touches in heliophysics.” — @nasa’s Nicola Fox at #AGU100 #SimbaOfSpace https://t.co/Mi54kUp500— David Hitt (@David Hitt) 1544546110.0
Lori Glaze is the new leader of the Planetary Science division. Her job is to maintain all explorations and missions pertaining to the history and evolution of our solar system.
Her mother, an aeronautical engineer, is one of Glaze's biggest inspirations. She admired her persistence to be seen in a male-dominated field.
Glaze said to NASA:
"That was a tremendous inspiration for me, as a young woman, seeing that a technical career, a career in leadership in a mathematical or scientific field, was possible."
While in college, she learned of the impact of volcanoes on Earth, as well as on other planets. This sparked an interest in learning about the formation of lava, and the reasons for eruptions.
She was involved in several of NASA's Venus missions, and was the principal investigator of a Venus atmospheric entry probe concept called Deep Atmosphere Investigation of Noble gases, Chemistry, and Imaging (DAVINCI).
"It's the most diverse group of people I've ever worked with and it's the kind of place where you feel like everyone's ideas are being heard; and really moving along and advancing our understanding in how we want to go about doing science at NASA. I think it's a great place to be today."
Leading Women @NASA. Shout out to excellent leaders, who happen to be women! @SolarGirl2018 @SandraCauffman… https://t.co/q2BVulnQV3— Dava Newman (@Dava Newman) 1557525134.0
Each of these women bring expertise in their respective fields to make NASA stronger than ever.
They are sure to continue to inspire for years to come.
