Tech ladies win top honors in Miss Asian Atlanta
By Jamie Howell / Student Publications
Vibrant music and ethnic dances were featured throughout this year's Miss Asian Atlanta Scholarship Pageant, which was held Jan. 26.
Stylish, confident and focused, fifteen young women of seven different Asian backgrounds from four different universities displayed their intelligence, charisma and talent in the 2007 Miss Asian Atlanta Scholarship Pageant this past Friday, Jan. 26.
The purpose of the Miss Asian Atlanta Scholarship Pageant, an annual student volunteer-organized event, is to recognize the top Asian American women in Atlanta. The contestants are chosen by their scholastic achievements, leadership and volunteerism.
The production of this event, now in its fourth year, was co-directed by Tech students Gina Lee, a fourth-year Industrial Engineering major, and Grace Liang, a third-year Industrial Engineering major.
"We have worked so hard for this event all year long, and the process has been amazing. We hope that we have equipped these young women with professional skills they can apply even after their college careers. We [also] hope that everyone that came out enjoyed the beauty of different Asian cultures," Lee said.
Ethnic dances and performances from the Atlanta Chinese Dance Company, Kruti Dance Academy and Arjho Carino-Turner were featured throughout the evening.
Lee further clarified the reason for including these performances.
"As well as celebrating the top fifteen women this year, another goal for this year's pageant was to celebrate cultural diversity," Lee said.
Tech was represented in the pageant by five young ladies from diverse backgrounds: Cailyn Cui, a Chinese first-year Industrial Engineering and International Affairs double major; Lina Lee, a Korean first-year Biomedical Engineering major; Shemoni Sheth, an Indian-American fourth-year Industrial Engineering major; Julia Bunch, a Japanese-American third-year Nuclear and Radiological Engineering major; and Lori White, a Taiwanese-American first-year Industrial Design major.
Julia Bunch, Shemoni Sheth and Cailyn Cui were named in the top eight.
During the deliberations for the top five, contestants participated in a personality walk. Ciu displayed her "beach babe" personality while Sheth transformed into a "Bollywood sophisticate" in an Indian outfit. Bunch demonstrated her "all things nuclear" personality by wearing a lab coat and goggles and carrying an atomic model.
The announcement of the top five, which included Bunch and Sheth, was followed by the talent portion of the pageant.
Bunch demonstrated her aptitude at playing the flute while Sheth performed a classical Indian dance styled with a fusion mix.
Participants were then asked to speak about how they would use the title of Miss Asian Atlanta to bring Asian awareness to the community if they were so crowned.
Bunch stressed the importance of dispelling stereotypes and communicating with others.
"In the Asian community, there is a soft-spoken stereotype since it is not a very outward community. As Miss Asian Atlanta, I would be able to go to anyone in America to explain Asian awareness because of my diverse background," Bunch said.
Sheth shared a more educational and political view in her response.
"[I would use the title] not only to bring Asian awareness, but to tell youth that Asians have excelled in economics and academics, but we need to be represented in politics and our own voice needs to be heard," Sheth said.
At the conclusion of the pageant, the Tech ladies walked away with many of the top prizes.
Bunch and Sheth placed second and first, respectively (pictured at far left).
Bunch also won Miss Community Service and the First Honorary Scholar Awards.
"My initial reaction [to winning] was absolute excitement. I am very proud to represent Tech as a half Japanese student who is dedicated to scholarship, leadership and service," Bunch said.
Sheth won Miss Talent in addition to the 2007 Miss Asian Atlanta title and $4000 scholarship.
"My immediate reaction was definitely one of surprise [since] I was not able to hear any of the other final five contestants answer the last question, so it was hard for me to predict what the outcome would be," Sheth said upon hearing the news of her win.
This is the second year in a row that a Tech student has been named Miss Asian Atlanta.
Last year's winner was Bao To, a fourth-year Biomedical Engineering major.
