Katie McNiff Interview
Miss Massachusetts Teen USA 2007
Why did you decide to compete in the Miss Massachusetts Teen USA pageant?
To be perfectly honest, I never thought of entering a pageant growing up. I was always focused on schoolwork and getting into a good college. A family friend told me that pageants are a terrific way to make connections and further career ambitions. I did an online search and after speaking with my state director, the Miss Teen USA pageant circuit seemed the most fitting to what I was looking for. When I entered, never in a million year did I imagine I would be making it to nationals!
What was going through your head when you were announced as the new Miss Massachusetts Teen USA?
The whole weekend leading up to the final night’s pageant was stressful, tiring, but mostly exciting! I was the first number called for top 15 and top ten, and both times I thought it must have been a mistake. When four of the top five were announced, I accepted defeat and was grateful I had made it that far until… They called my number! I was dumbfounded. I thought I was going to pass out I was breathing so hard. When the crowning moment finally came I looked at the girl across from me, and thought about all the other gorgeous and worthy girls that had entered. We all put so much into this one weekend. I wasn’t sure what the judges had seen in me in particular, but I was so grateful that I knew I would work my hardest that whole year to fulfill their expectations.
What would be your most memorable moment at Miss Teen USA?
The Miss Teen USA pageant was a whole different league than my state pageant. I felt like I was so inexperienced and clumsy. Girls there were amazing dancers, had such stage presence, and were in pageants since youth. I kept telling myself that all I could do was put everything I had into those few weeks. If, in the end, that wasn’t enough to earn the crown then I could at least take comfort in knowing I tried my best. I met amazingly sweet and talents girls from all over the country and saw a part of the US I had never travelled to. I consider the whole trip extremely fulfilling and memorable. It was unique and trying experience not many get the chance to have.
What issues did you focus on during your reign as Miss Massachusetts Teen USA?
Although Miss Massachusetts Teen USA does not have a specific platform or issue, there were a few organizations that I was able to work with regularly. I worked with United Way throughout Massachusetts. United Way is a nonprofit organization that works to better communities through educating their youth, offering safe havens and clubs for children who might otherwise be exposed to negative environments, and raises money for the many needs of our local communities. I also got to work with American Heart Association, D.A.R.E., and a whole list of wonderful and noteworthy organizations, associations, clubs, and causes.
1 How would a typical day go during your reign as Miss Massachusetts Teen USA?
I can confidently say, there was no such thing as a typical day during my reign. There would be days when I would wake up, drive to my fitness trainer, go to school, go to track practice, attend an event in my crown and sash, and finish my homework just in time to crash into bed. Then other days I would roll out of bed and watch TV all day with a big bowl of cereal. My director was great about giving me a list of events and letting me organize my own schedule. Of course I took as many events as I could, but if an event overlapped with an important school test, or a big track meet, I could find ways to balance my pageant life with my personal life and school obligations.
What would be your most memorable moment as Miss Massachusetts Teen USA?
I love children and come from a big family so any event at schools or with children’s’ clubs I would automatically have a blast. At a particular event, one little girl I gave an autograph card to and wrote, “You’re such a sweet and beautiful girl!” She sent me a thank you card that said “Thank you for saying I was beautiful” with a picture of a princess crown on it. It was a moment of realization for me because this little girl internalized so much what one person said. It just shows how far a nice word or two can go and how much our younger generation truly does confide in a role model.
What emotions were you going through when you gave away your title?
Everyone always says they cry! I wasn’t exactly sad; I was apprehensive. Any significant event that marks the end of one chapter in your life makes you nervous for the next chapter following. For me that meant college, being away from home, meeting new friends. The most prominent feeling for me was appreciativeness. I was appreciative of all the love and support I had gotten throughout the year from my family, friend, directors, and elected officials fromMassachusetts.
1Lastly, what have you been up to since your reign as Miss MA Teen USA ended?
A lot! It has been just under two years since I gave up my title. I attend Bentley University where I am a cheerleader for football and basketball and a member of my school’s campus activities bureau. I am majoring in Economics and Finance and a minoring in International Studies. This August, I am going to be starting my junior year in Florianopolis,Brazil as a semester abroad! Until then, I am spending my summer working, going to the beach, and enjoying the company of my family and friends.
To be perfectly honest, I never thought of entering a pageant growing up. I was always focused on schoolwork and getting into a good college. A family friend told me that pageants are a terrific way to make connections and further career ambitions. I did an online search and after speaking with my state director, the Miss Teen USA pageant circuit seemed the most fitting to what I was looking for. When I entered, never in a million year did I imagine I would be making it to nationals!
What was going through your head when you were announced as the new Miss Massachusetts Teen USA?
The whole weekend leading up to the final night’s pageant was stressful, tiring, but mostly exciting! I was the first number called for top 15 and top ten, and both times I thought it must have been a mistake. When four of the top five were announced, I accepted defeat and was grateful I had made it that far until… They called my number! I was dumbfounded. I thought I was going to pass out I was breathing so hard. When the crowning moment finally came I looked at the girl across from me, and thought about all the other gorgeous and worthy girls that had entered. We all put so much into this one weekend. I wasn’t sure what the judges had seen in me in particular, but I was so grateful that I knew I would work my hardest that whole year to fulfill their expectations.
What would be your most memorable moment at Miss Teen USA?
The Miss Teen USA pageant was a whole different league than my state pageant. I felt like I was so inexperienced and clumsy. Girls there were amazing dancers, had such stage presence, and were in pageants since youth. I kept telling myself that all I could do was put everything I had into those few weeks. If, in the end, that wasn’t enough to earn the crown then I could at least take comfort in knowing I tried my best. I met amazingly sweet and talents girls from all over the country and saw a part of the US I had never travelled to. I consider the whole trip extremely fulfilling and memorable. It was unique and trying experience not many get the chance to have.
What issues did you focus on during your reign as Miss Massachusetts Teen USA?
Although Miss Massachusetts Teen USA does not have a specific platform or issue, there were a few organizations that I was able to work with regularly. I worked with United Way throughout Massachusetts. United Way is a nonprofit organization that works to better communities through educating their youth, offering safe havens and clubs for children who might otherwise be exposed to negative environments, and raises money for the many needs of our local communities. I also got to work with American Heart Association, D.A.R.E., and a whole list of wonderful and noteworthy organizations, associations, clubs, and causes.
1 How would a typical day go during your reign as Miss Massachusetts Teen USA?
I can confidently say, there was no such thing as a typical day during my reign. There would be days when I would wake up, drive to my fitness trainer, go to school, go to track practice, attend an event in my crown and sash, and finish my homework just in time to crash into bed. Then other days I would roll out of bed and watch TV all day with a big bowl of cereal. My director was great about giving me a list of events and letting me organize my own schedule. Of course I took as many events as I could, but if an event overlapped with an important school test, or a big track meet, I could find ways to balance my pageant life with my personal life and school obligations.
What would be your most memorable moment as Miss Massachusetts Teen USA?
I love children and come from a big family so any event at schools or with children’s’ clubs I would automatically have a blast. At a particular event, one little girl I gave an autograph card to and wrote, “You’re such a sweet and beautiful girl!” She sent me a thank you card that said “Thank you for saying I was beautiful” with a picture of a princess crown on it. It was a moment of realization for me because this little girl internalized so much what one person said. It just shows how far a nice word or two can go and how much our younger generation truly does confide in a role model.
What emotions were you going through when you gave away your title?
Everyone always says they cry! I wasn’t exactly sad; I was apprehensive. Any significant event that marks the end of one chapter in your life makes you nervous for the next chapter following. For me that meant college, being away from home, meeting new friends. The most prominent feeling for me was appreciativeness. I was appreciative of all the love and support I had gotten throughout the year from my family, friend, directors, and elected officials fromMassachusetts.
1Lastly, what have you been up to since your reign as Miss MA Teen USA ended?
A lot! It has been just under two years since I gave up my title. I attend Bentley University where I am a cheerleader for football and basketball and a member of my school’s campus activities bureau. I am majoring in Economics and Finance and a minoring in International Studies. This August, I am going to be starting my junior year in Florianopolis,Brazil as a semester abroad! Until then, I am spending my summer working, going to the beach, and enjoying the company of my family and friends.