MIT grad wins Miss Massachusetts, trying for Miss America 2004

http://alum.mit.edu/ne/noteworthy/ebbel.html

Beauty & the Geek: When Stereotypes Collide

Miss Massachusetts Erika Ebbel '04 has her sights set on the Miss America Pageant





Hold on to your pocket protectors—MIT alumni have accomplished yet another first: Erika Ebbel '04 has won the Miss Massachusetts pageant, and now has her sights clearly set on becoming Miss America.

(Did someone just write MIT and Miss America in the same sentence?)

Yes. Erika Ebbel is taking MIT into a whole new arena—an arena that, at first glance, seems a million Smoots away from MIT. But as any MIT alum can tell you, never judge a problem set by its length. Spend ten minutes talking to Ebbel and you'll never look at the Miss America pageant the same way again.

"People often confuse the Miss America pageant with the Miss USA pageant," says the 23-year-old who graduated Course V this past June. "Miss America is a scholarship pageant, first and foremost."

Yeah, right. What about the swimsuit competition, that movie Miss Congeniality, and—dare I say it—the whole bimbo factor?

Ebbel smiles at the "b" word. "Look, I'm all for world peace. I'm also for stem cell research, and I can explain, with significant detail, the scientific reasons behind my opinion."

Okay, good answer. But still, a beauty pageant?

"Stereotypes are almost always born out of incomplete information," she says politely. "In this case, I would guess it's from someone who has not met the contestants, or is unfamiliar with the pageant's history."

Ah, yes, the storied history behind the world's most watched pageant. The Miss America pageant started in 1921, and was at its essence a beauty pageant. It grew fast, capturing the American imagination in a hurry. In 1944 it began to award small scholarships to top candidates. In 1945 when the pageant selected its first Jewish Miss America, Bess Myerson, the effect on the country's consciousness was profound. A few years later the pageant had change forced upon it when Miss Alabama, Yolande Betbeze, won the title in 1951 and refused a sponsor's request to walk around a Milwaukee department store in her swimsuit in "the middle of winter." The sponsor was Catalina Swimsuits who apparently decided that a Miss America thinking for herself was more than they bargained for. They immediately started two new pageants of their own, the Miss USA and the Miss Universe pageants.

"The focus of the Miss USA pageant is on professional modeling skills which is primarily how the contestants are judged," explains Ebbel. "The Miss America pageant, however, measures a different set of criteria. Forty percent of the evaluation is based on extensive interviews with judges, who ask you an array of questions relating to your education, your public service platform, and your background. Thirty percent is based on talent, twenty percent on public speaking, and just ten percent on swimsuit. It's a different set of criteria, and a set that appeals to me."

Pageant officials rightfully point out that the Miss America Organization awards more scholarship dollars to young women than any other organization in the world, last year awarding more than $45 million. And since academics and community service comprise two main pillars of the pageant, well, you can begin to see how an MIT alumna might compete successfully.

Ebbel entered her first local pageant back in 2002, and admits her motivation then was simply friends pushing her to try it and her own penchant for having diverse experiences.

"I enjoy doing new things, because they always lead to learning experiences," says Ebbel. "And my first year was definitely a learning experience." Despite being her first pageant ever, Ebbel finished second runner-up. "That first year I simply grabbed my Speedo swimsuit from the dresser and a gown out of the closet. I did very little preparation, and I must say my MIT education helped me that year."

Really? How so?

"Most new contestants are surprised by the amount of work involved for the pageant," says Ebbel. "The paperwork alone is pretty daunting. But at MIT, your perspective of what constitutes 'a lot of work' changes, so I felt like I had an advantage there."

Ebbel cites perseverance, hard work, community service, and not rushing to judgment as key MIT traits that help her pageant performance.

While the workload wasn't a surprise, Ebbel says she was initially surprised by the quality of the contestants. "The women competing in these pageants are very accomplished."

In fact, Ebbel points out that she was not the only MIT alumna to place in the 2004 Miss Massachusetts pageant: Joanne Chang '03 was fourth runner-up. And the second runner-up was a Harvard grad, Chia-Jung Tsay .

"Public speaking is a big part of the competition," says Ebbel. "You must address complex social issues in a way that moves the discourse forward. It's a valuable skill that I had to develop outside of MIT, as public speaking is not a big part of our curriculum."

Okay, these are all good answers, Erika. But you graduated Course V. And from MIT. Is this really the proper use of an MIT education?

"The implication behind your question suggests that the Miss America pageant is all I plan to do," smiles Ebbel. "I have additional goals I intend to achieve. Win or lose, I still plan to continue my education. I want to get a joint MD/PhD degree and using my chemistry background, perhaps work in designing anti-viral pharmaceuticals."

Virology. Finally, something that sounds techy. Any other MIT traits in your background?

In high school Ebbel was an Intel "Science Talent Search" finalist, and later won California 's prestigious Science Fair Student of the Year and Science Fair Project of the year awards. A classical pianist, she graduated from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music at age 17. (For the talent portion of Miss America, Ebbel will play Chopin's Fantasie–Impromptu.) She's fluent in Russian and Spanish, and has more than a passing knowledge of Japanese. A member of the MIT pistol club, she's a pretty fair shot with a .22 caliber. She was a member of the MIT Dance Troupe and currently serves as an editor for Wellness Options magazine, a Canadian publication available at Barnes and Noble in the United States as well as other book stores in Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Malaysia. And forget the swimsuit competition—Ebbel can flat out swim, as she's an "advanced open water" scuba diver.

She also founded WhizKids, a nonprofit foundation designed to bring science and math fairs to junior high and high school students.

"WhizKids was launched in 2002 and is the public service platform I'm promoting through the pageant," says Ebbel, who hopes the exposure will raise awareness and help grow the program. "I've always been amazed by the number of people who describe science fairs as a defining moment in their decision to pursue science. But not every secondary school has a science or math program strong enough to compete in science fairs. WhizKids connects these schools to mentors who can help bring these types of experiences to kids or even help the school conduct their own science fair."

Okay, maybe the beauty queen stereotype is jumping the gun a bit. There's obviously more here than a pretty face. So let's ask the really tough question: Can you win?

"I'm prepared to win," says Ebbel. "I've been working toward this for a number of years, and feel very well qualified to serve in the role. I think it will open doors, which can only serve to make WhizKids stronger, and thereby bring more math and science into schools that need it. I also think it will serve to make me stronger, as it will bring me new experiences every day."

Okay, but in 83 years of trying, starting in 1921, Massachusetts has never won a Miss America title. Only the Red Sox have had a longer drought, and at least they won in 1918.

"I know Massachusetts has never won," says Ebbel. "Some might say the odds are against me. Then again, over the past four years the winners have been gradually moving east. [Miss Hawaii in '01, Miss Oregon in '02, Miss Illinois in '03, and Miss Florida last year.] Plus, the last two winners were both named Erica. I think this could be our year."

Any personal pride in being the first to represent MIT in this new territory?

"A little," she says with a smile, and then after some prodding, "The Miss America pageant is a different medium for an MIT grad, a medium that requires significantly more communication skills than a typical MIT endeavor. So I feel like I'm expanding the Institute's boundaries in a way, and I'm doing it while having fun and earning money to continue my education."

Can she win? Sounds like she's won already. -James Wolken

 

She can explain to me all she wants...