Contestants outline community-service initiatives; judges weigh interview, talent and fitness phases

Eight contestants at the Miss Provo scholarship pageant presented community-service initiatives and competed across five judged phases that together determined final scores. Each contestant gave a short onstage conversation about her Community Service Initiative (CSI). Highlights from those statements, as spoken on stage: - Emery Thomas (Contestant 1, CSI: Advocating for all abilities) said she is dyslexic and has scoliosis and described embracing differences and advocating that “visible or non, everyone is valid and seen.” - Britney Rivera (Contestant 2, CSI: Beauty in Education) described being first-generation and the daughter of immigrants and said her CSI focuses on encouraging learners who feel they “do not belong in the classroom.” - Georgia Collings (Contestant 3, CSI: From Sash to Sash) urged young people to vote to enact change. - Savannah Bertinel (Contestant 4, CSI: Diabetes education) discussed making diabetes education accessible to people without a personal connection to the disease. - Sam Tibbetts (Contestant 5, CSI: Light the Darkness) spoke about reducing perfectionism to create openness about mental health. - Elizabeth Rampton (Contestant 6, CSI: Read to Rise) cited the Provo Library’s Every Child Ready to Read tips: talk, sing, read, write and play. - Jaylyn Lindley (Contestant 7, CSI: Win Within) described rebuilding identity after losing her specialized sport and encouraged athletes to adopt broader identities. - Elle Miller (Contestant 8, CSI: Prioritizing access to women’s health care) said communities are stronger when women’s health is supported and women’s voices included in policy development. The judges’ scoring breakdown announced by organizers: private interview (30 percent), onstage conversation (10 percent), health and fitness (20 percent), talent (20 percent) and evening gown (20 percent). Judges use a 1–10 scale in each phase and discard high and low scores in each phase. Judges on the panel were named on the program. Contestants also performed in the fitness, talent and evening gown phases; the talent portion included vocal, piano, composition and dance performances. Organizers noted that judges assess communication skills and presence for the onstage conversation and do not score for agreement with a contestant’s views. The competition emphasized scholarship awards and preparation for service roles; the onstage conversation portion was explicitly framed as evaluating contestants’ ability to be spokespersons for community initiatives rather than as a policy forum.