The 59<sup>th</sup> annual Miss UT Martin and 23<sup>rd</sup> annual Miss Tennessee Soybean Festival will be crowned on Nov. 5 at 6 p.m. in the Boiling University Center’s Duncan Ballroom. The combined pageant is a preliminary to the Miss Tennessee Volunteer Scholarship Pageant held each July in Jackson.

Contestants must be at least 17 years old by Nov. 5 and no older than 26 years old on July 25, 2023. Miss UT Martin contestants must be enrolled as a full-time student through the spring 2023 semester or have a UTM degree and currently be pursing an additional degree full-time from another Tennessee school. Miss Tennessee Soybean Festival is open to all of Tennessee.

The pageant is divided into four phases of competition, including private interview, fitness and wellness, talent and evening wear. Each category counts for 25% and each contestant is scored individually from one to 10 in each category.

The contestant crowned Miss UT Martin will receive $2,000 in scholarship money, and Miss Tennessee Soybean Festival will receive $1,500 if she is a UT Martin student or $500 if not. The first runner-up for Miss UT Martin will receive $750 and the second runner-up will receive $500. There is no financial award for runners-up in the Miss Tennessee Soybean Festival competition.

Both titleholders will compete in the statewide Miss Tennessee Volunteer Scholarship pageant next summer, and the winner of that crown will serve as the governor’s spokesperson for character education across the state and compete at Miss Volunteer America the following year.

Tickets will be sold in advance at the Boiling University Center beginning Monday, Oct. 24. Tickets will also be available at the door the night of the event. Cost of tickets will be $10 for UT Martin students with current student ID and $15 for all others. Only one ticket may be purchased with each student ID.

For more information, or to register, contact Katrina Cobb, pageant director, at <a href="mailto:kcobb@wljt.org">kcobb@wljt.org </a>or 731-881-7561.
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