Miss SAU 2014 Randee Jo Langley is crowned by Ashley Walthall, Miss SAU 2013, as Miss Arkansas 2013 Amy Crain looks on.
Randee Jo Langley hopes to use her title as Miss Southern Arkansas University to be a voice against bullying.
Langley, 18, of Crossett, was crowned Thursday, January 23, as Miss SAU 2014. Her platform is “bullying has no age limit.”
“I was bullied from the time I was in middle school through high school. If [children] are bullied by an adult like I was, I can be their voice. I want to help them not have to go through the pain that I had to go through, so they won’t take it to the extent of hurting themselves,” said Langley, who is a freshman business administration major at SAU.
With this title, she has earned a spot in the Miss Arkansas pageant, which is scheduled for June 15-21 in Hot Springs.
“I have worked super hard for this – training in the gym, doing interview lessons, working on modeling and my walk,” said Langley. “I am going to get fitted for my swimsuit for Miss Arkansas tomorrow and get a new dress soon, and get back into working out.”
Langley admitted that her she put her diet on hold for a celebration dinner after the pageant last night.
“I had Burger King and a Hershey cream pie afterwards that was to die for,” said Langley.
Pictured, from left, Sierra Lites, Miss SAU 2014 Randee Jo Langley, Miss Arkansas 2013 Amy Crain, Miss SAU 2013 Ashley Walthall, Sarah Clayton and Chelsa King.
Along with winning the top SAU scholarship prize of $5,000, Langley tapped her way to top the scores in the Talent competition. She also won the Evening Gown portion of the pageant. These two wins earned her an additional $500 in scholarship money.
Langley said that along with this opportunity to represent SAU at Miss Arkansas, she was excited that she was crowned for her first “Miss prelim” by Ashley Walthall, Miss SAU 2013. Langley said that Walthall also crowned her for her first “Teen prelim.”
First runner-up was Sierra Lites, 19, from Grapevine, Ark. She also won the Lifestyle and Fitness and the Interview portions of the pageant. Lites earned a $2,500 scholarship. She is a freshman nursing major.
Sarah Clayton, 19, from Camden, earned a $50 scholarship for the Spirit of SAU Award and a $100 Vocal Award for her Talent performance. She is a sophomore business administration major.
A total of $8,150 in scholarship money was awarded.
“This year we were able to add $250 in additional scholarships for our contestants, thanks to generous sponsorships like Serenity Day Spa,” said Anne Sands, executive director of the Miss SAU pageant. “Scholarship is our number one priority, so we are always happy when we get to add more.”
To find out more about SAU, visit www.SAUmag.edu.
