As the semester begins to come to an end, pageant season nears its head. The Nu Psi chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. kicked things off with their annual Miss Black and Gold pageant on Sunday.
Students, faculty, family and friends gathered in the Union Theater to witness Miss Ashton Champion win the title of Miss Black and Gold. She will go on to compete in the regional pageant.
Soon after the pageant began, the Southern University Golden Blues kicked things off with a dance routine.
The Master and Mistress of Ceremonies for the night were Southern University graduate Samantha Smith and Alpha Phi Alpha president Chase August.
“The Miss Black and Gold pageant is our annual scholarship pageant benefitting the females of the designated Alpha chapters nationally,” August said.
The judges consisted of Samuel James and Brandon Lewis, both members of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc., and Linda Smith-Griffin, a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc.
The contestants of the night emulated the beauty, intelligence and spunk of black women by unapologetically professing their pro-blackness throughout the night.
“A part of the definition of black is the absence of light. I’m here to show you that we are the light,” said Contestant No. 1 Jatejah Phillips during her introduction.
Before the pageant began, the contestants had already competed in the Interview and Scholastic Performance segments, which were worth the most points.
The first segment on stage was Talent, with contestants dancing, singing and performing spoken word pieces, one of which was in Spanish from one of the Afro-Latina contestants.
The other segments of the night included Swimwear, Evening Gown and Oral Expression, where contestants answered random questions onstage.
“The pageant was very well put together. The contestants did an amazing job of exemplifying excellence and, overall, girl power,” sports administration senior Destinee Merida said.
Other awards given during the night were Miss Congeniality, won by Contestant Jetejah Philips; Miss Viewer’s Choice, won by D’errah Scott; second runner up, also known as “Miss Old Gold,” won by Kayla Rivers; and first runner up, also known as “Miss Black,” won by D’errah Scott.
“This really set the bar for our future pageants to come,” August said.

Gallery • 11 Photos

Mykeil Chambers

LSU Marketing Junior Ashton Champion presents her swim attire for the 2016 Miss Black and Gold Pageant on Sunday, Nov. 6, 2016 at LSU Union Theatre.