Pageants-- All's Fair!

In the age of advocating for gender equality in the workplace and promoting the leadership of women, public opinion surrounding “beauty pageants” can be a real mixed-bag.  What role are pageants playing in modern society?  How do these contests effect the participating youth?  The answers to those questions may be surprising. 

Each year, counties in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania hold contests to select candidates, young women, to representative their counties at the Pennsylvania State Fair Queen Contest in Hershey, PA.  These contests are touted as royalty pageants, the winning contestants receive a crown or tiara and a sash.  In Jefferson County, the contestants in the highest age group receive more than that-- the Jefferson County Fair Queen and her runner up receive hundreds of dollars in prize money, awarded in the form of a scholarship towards higher education.  And then there are the other prizes that cannot be measured in dollar value: experience, confidence, and pride. 

The Jefferson County Fair Royalty Pageant accepts contestants from ages 8 to 20.  The candidates compete in categories ranging from written essays to on-stage talent presentation and everything in between.  Queen contestants participate in a panel interview.  Princess contestants introduce themselves on stage in front of a crowd using a microphone.  These sectors of competition are not arbitrary, each holds a specific merit for the competitor. 

By participating in pageants or royalty contests, young ladies are exposed to challenges that they will face in some form or another throughout their lives and careers.  Portions of these competitions help to prepare women for their future.  Girls who learn to master a panel interview during their pageant years are at a greater advantage during future job interviews.  Contestants who learn to clearly and uniquely introduce themselves on stage are more likely to command a room with their presence.  Leaders are cultivated through the pageant system because every skill needed to succeed in a pageant is a skill that can be used later in life. As a perfect example, the Jefferson County Fair Royalty Pageant committee is made up of former Fair Queens.  The women who have cut their teeth in the fair royalty contests have gone on to become teachers, leaders, and mothers. 

Pageants can be the foundation and backbone upon which a career is built.  Women who participate in pageants gain the confidence and ability to succeed in other aspects of their lives and are in a better position to become leaders.  Are pageants necessary for a young lady to succeed?  Certainly not.  But young women who decide to compete in these contests are making a choice to enrich themselves, their families, and their futures.  In this modern time, pageants are a great way to infuse value into experience for young women who reap the benefits long after the competition is over.