Miss Indiana captures Miss America title
January 31, 2009
By: Jessica Kiefer, Features Editor
Since the 1920s, the winner of the Miss America pageant has graced the nation showcasing her talent with poise and beauty. But until this year, Miss Indiana had not managed to capture the gleaming crown that accompanies the coveted national title. University of Indianapolis senior Katie Stam is the first.
A communications major from Seymour, Ind., 22-year-old Stam has shown she has got skills - in beauty pageants and school work. One of the top broadcasting students in the communications department at the University of Indianapolis, Stam was no stranger to stage presence when she won the titles of Miss Indiana and Miss America. She and her fellow students won TV School of the Year in the Indiana Association of School Broadcasters last spring. Individually, Stam won first place in the categories of TV News Package and TV News Anchor.
Despite her success, Stam is focused on community service. She is using the exposure that accompanies her new title to increase the community’s awareness of how to get involved. Community service was her platform during the Miss America pageant. During her Jan. 26 interview on "The Today Show," Stam said the Miss America organization and the fame it has achieved will give her the opportunity to reach a larger audience.
Stam has already reached a significantly-sized audience on her own campus in Indianapolis. On top of chairing the Service and Philanthropy Committee as part of student government, she has organized fundraisers to benefit the homeless community and Riley Hospital for Children. It seems as though the only thing missing from her list of goals was to capture the Miss America title.
As Stam said in her interview on "The Today Show" and countless other television appearances after capturing the national title, she has thoughts of attending graduate school, but has no idea where she is headed after she graduates a semester early in December.
No matter where she ends up, however, she will be graduating debt-free thanks to her winnings in the Miss Indiana and Miss America pageants, which have helped fund her college education. Both pageants' prize packages included scholarships.
As far as Stam’s home state goes, there really is more than corn in Indiana. Now there is a Miss America title.
