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Kristin Gauvin '05 to Compete in Miss America Pageant All of those childhood dreams could come true on the evening of Saturday, January 21 when Gauvin competes as Miss Massachusetts in the 2006 Miss America Pageant at the Aladdin Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. The event will be televised live on CMT (Country Music Television) at 8 p.m. ET and will be hosted by actor James Denton who plays the role of plumber Mike Delfino on ABC’s hit show Desperate Housewives. The pageant was first held in 1921 and had taken place in Atlantic City, NJ since 1940. This is the first year the event has ever been held in Las Vegas. Gauvin is already getting a taste of the media blitz that comes with being involved in such a high-profile event. Over the last week, she has done interviews with virtually every major media outlet in the Worcester/Boston area including the Boston Globe and Worcester Telegram & Gazette as well as several local television and radio stations. She also spent five days in Los Angeles with all of the Miss America contestants as part of a marketing program for the pageant. In L.A., Gauvin and the rest of the contestants appeared on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno as well as Inside Edition, and had an opportunity to tour Universal Studios. She arrived in Las Vegas last Saturday and began the preliminary stages of the competition this week. “I’m very excited to represent Massachusetts,” said Gauvin, the first Worcester resident to compete for the Miss America crown since 1966. “It’s a surreal experience to actually be here. I grew up wanting to be Miss America.” Since being crowned Miss Massachusetts in June 2005 when she received more than $9,000 in scholarships, Gauvin has been busy with speaking engagements and public appearances in and around the Bay State. She spoke to middle school students throughout the state about the effects of making educated decisions on tobacco and drugs through the “Right Decisions, Right Now” program. This speaking circuit was made possible through a grant from the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company’s youth smoking prevention programs. She continues to teach dance in Worcester and coaches the Assumption dance team, a team she helped establish as a student. She also worked a part-time job at the Olive Garden. However, her ultimate focus over the last six months has been mentally and physically preparing for the Miss America pageant. Gauvin’s background is filled with accolades and impressive accomplishments. While at Assumption, Gauvin majored in business management, earned Dean’s List honors and graduated cum laude. She has 17 years of dancing experience and competed as a member of the College’s varsity track team. During her senior year she was a candidate for a Fulbright scholarship. Off-campus, Gauvin was a member of the New England Patriots cheerleading squad, serving as captain during the 2003 season and cheering at the 2004 Super Bowl. During the same season, she was named the team’s Cheerleader of the Year, which enabled her to travel to the 2004 Pro Bowl with 24 of the NFL’s best cheerleaders.
Last year, the Miss America Organization and its state and local organizations made available more than $45 million in cash and scholarship assistance. This assistance is not just for the handful of young women who become Miss America, but is available to the over 12,000 young women who compete in the state and local competitions as well. Gauvin is bidding to become the first Miss America from the state of Massachusetts. If she wins, a whirlwind tour of media and promotional appearances will follow throughout the course of the coming year. But it’s a trip that Gauvin would love to take. “It would be absolutely crazy for a year but it definitely would be worth it,” she said. CMT is available to Charter Communications digital cable subscribers in Worcester on Channel 214. Not all subscribers presently have access to this channel depending on their package. Charter subscribers can contact the company in advance of January 21 for access to CMT. Through a special arrangement with Charter, the Assumption cable network will have access to CMT this weekend on channel 37 off all cable drops on campus. CMT will replace NESN on channel 37 for this weekend only. For more information about Gauvin including photos, video and biographical information, please visit the CMT Miss America Web site, www.missamerica.org, or www.missmass.org. |
January, 2006 - Back when she was a child, Kristin Gauvin ’05 always dreamed about being Miss America. The glitz, the glamour and a chance to be in the spotlight were all things she imagined. 
An experienced pageant competitor in the Miss America system and a former Miss Worcester County, Gauvin has competed four times in the Miss Massachusetts event. At the 2003 competition, she received an academic achievement award, and she was named as first-runner-up in 2004.