Under bright stage lights after three and a half hours of nerves and held breaths, another Ouachitonian was granted the title of Miss Ouachita Baptist University last Saturday night in front of a crowded JPAC audience.
“It was such a whirlwind,” said Kiley Jane Wright, a senior biology major from Glenwood, Ark., and the newly crowned Miss OBU 2013.
Miss OBU was Wright’s first pageant other than the Arkansas State Fair Rodeo Queen Contest, which she won in 2008.
“I’d always thought about it and just never had time to. I was on the court last year and that was a lot of fun,” Wright said. “Alison Johnson and I joked about it, saying we would do it our senior year and just go for it. And we did.”
Being a newcomer to the pageant world was exciting and slightly confusing for Wright.
“I did feel a little out of my element,” she said. “But I just thought I would have a good time anyway.”
Though she is new to pageants, her sister was a participant in Miss Teen Arkansas, meaning she and her mom were a huge help in knowing exactly what to do during preparations for Miss OBU and being a solid support system throughout the process.
In addition to having the help of family and friends with the pageant, Wright also had experience performing on the JPAC stage as a 2011 Tiger Tunes hostess.
“Having been on the JPAC stage as a Tiger Tunes hostess helped a lot,” Wright said. “I had seen the crowd before, so I kind of knew what to expect in that area. But, I’d never seen the crowd before while wearing a swimsuit. So that was a completely new experience and I wasn’t quite ready for that.”
Wright says the most stressful parts of the pageant were interview, on-stage question and lifestyle and fitness.
“After [swimsuit] was done, I just had a blast. It was all fun, but those were my most nerve-wracking times,” Wright said. “After I got those over with, I just got to breathe.”
In addition to the stress and nerves on the big night is the overwhelming prep work leading up to the pageant.
“There’s just a lot that goes into it that you don’t know about when you say you want to do a pageant,” Wright said. “You have to find your dresses and pick out a talent and work on a platform and find something you believe in.”
Wright’s platform is Animal Cruelty Awareness. She hopes to use it as a way to educate people on safely and humanely owning a pet so neglect doesn’t become an issue.
“It’s something I’m passionate about and that’s why I chose it,” she said. “It’s pretty neat because people are contacting me about different things because they liked my platform.”
The experience has already opened doors to events and people for Wright, including speaking at the Alumni Advisory Board meeting this upcoming Saturday, about which she has already sought advice from Miss OBU 2012, MaryLacey Thomson, a junior musical theatre major from Plano, Texas.
“I contacted her and asked about what she wore and what it was like and all those things,” Wright said. “I definitely think I’ll be able to talk to her more as things come up so that I know what to expect. She has been very helpful every time I ask her something.”
Two other big helps in Wright’s journey to and time at Miss Arkansas are Justin Harper and Kirt Thomas, Ouachita alumni and Miss OBU pageant directors.
“I know that Justin and Kirt will have lots of amazing ideas,” she said. “I think they’re probably two of the best pageant directors I could have ever asked for and so I’m really excited to see what they have to say.”
In addition to taking advice from the directors, Wright will receive feedback from the judges of the Miss OBU pageant. When talking to them after the pageant, they only focused on praising her for her strengths.
“They talked to me a little bit and told me what they liked about me,” Wright said. “They didn’t want to give me critiques yet because I had just won and didn’t want me to be thinking about what I could have done differently. They told me the good things about my performance and that was a really neat experience.”
Though Wright will take the critiques and advice seriously in preparing for the upcoming Miss Arkansas event, going into Miss OBU, she wasn’t expecting anything.
When awarding the Lifestyle and Fitness in Swimwear winner, Wright was mentally going through all the contestants wondering who would win.
“Then they said contestant number 14. I thought, ‘Who’s 14?’ I was racking my brain for who was 14 and then they said my name and I just looked over and thought, ‘Oh! That’s me!’ That was something I definitely didn’t expect,” she said.
Once the top five were being announced, everything for the next several minutes became a blur for Wright.
“After they announced Kris as first runner up, I started wondering and then they called my name. I was just really excited. I don’t know what I thought or what was going through my brain because it was just so overwhelming,” she said. “After they called my name, it was just flash after flash and people taking all these pictures. I can’t remember what happened.”
After taking many more pictures with friends and family, Wright entered the lobby of JPAC, greeted by her EEE sisters and fellow EEE pageant contestants to circle up and sing their song.
“I never thought I’d be in the center of the circle,” she said, “especially with a crown.”
After the photos and post-pageant buzz had subsided, Wright headed home with her sister, wearing her crown the entire way – even wearing it proudly into McDonald’s for a sweet tea pit stop.
The crown and new title haven’t caused anyone to ask for Wright’s autograph just yet or changed the way she goes about her last semester at Ouachita, but it has caused some temporary increase in Facebook notifications and the number of people who say hi in passing.
“People that I don’t know have congratulated me. It’s just been really fun and different,” she said. “I just feel like a little celebrity. It’s just a little more attention. I’m sure it will calm down and be right back to normal next week, but it’s been fun.”
Wright also said her experience thus far in the pageant system has changed her view of pageants.
“Now that I know better what all goes into it, I can respect it that much more,” Wright said.
In addition to finding a new appreciation for the world of pageants, Miss OBU will provide Wright with many opportunities she may not have otherwise had and help develop and grow her as a person.
“I wanted to do it because I’ve seen other girls grow so much. You have to push yourself a little more and put yourself out there because people don’t know you,” she said. “I’ve always been a little bit more shy, so I thinking it will help a lot in that area. I’m really just excited to see what I can do with it.”
Wright believes one of the most rewarding aspects of the whole experience thus far has been forming new friendships and bonds that otherwise may have never been.
“I’m so glad that I got to know some new girls,” Wright said. “It was a really great time all around. Everyone was so nice and supportive.”
Wright says she has been overwhelmed by the support and love from people on campus and even those outside of Ouachita and cites that strong sense of community and care as something to encourage her to give her best at Miss Arkansas.
“I think it’s part of the Miss OBU pageant rather than another pageant just because it’s such a community here. That’s why I’m so excited to represent OBU,” she said. “It’s just such a great community here and a great support system. I want to show people how great Ouachita is while I’m at Miss Arkansas.”
