“On Sunday night, Nia Franklin was crowned Miss America 2019. A classically trained opera singer, Ms. Franklin represented New York in the competition, focusing on equal opportunity and education in her interview questions,” write Bonnie Wertheim and Choire Sicha in Sunday’s (9/9) New York Times. “Ms. Franklin is a graduate of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, where she studied music composition.” In 2016-17, she taught music theory and choir at the Salvation Army Summer Music conservatory in partnership with the Winston-Salem Symphony; her opera King Solomon was premiered in 2015. “She emphasized, during the competition, that ‘there is a 20 percent higher graduation rate at schools where music is a part of the curriculum.’ … The annual event … has … been rebranded as a competition, rather than a pageant—and yes, they’re calling it Miss America 2.0.… Participants had platforms that were described as ‘social impact statements.’ … Miss Michigan, Emily Sioma, introduced her state as having ‘84 percent of the country’s fresh water but with none for its residents to drink.’ … The outgoing Miss America, Cara Mund … will head to law school. She hopes to become the first female governor of her home state,” North Dakota.
Posted September 10, 2018
Nia Franklin photo by Jessica Lehrman
