This past weekend, sophomore public relations major Amanda Calhoun was granted the title of Miss Jackson Hospitality after winning a highly competitive pageant.

The Miss Jackson Hospitality Pageant is a preliminary for the Miss Mississippi Hospitality Pageant, which will take place in Hattiesburg this summer July 20 – 26, featuring approximately 50 women from across Mississippi. The pageant is meant to promote hospitality in the state, as well as to promote tourism.

“My primary duties are to promote tourism and economic development for the city of Jackson, showing hospitality to everyone I meet,” Calhoun said. “I have also extended my platform to mentoring young girls and community service.”

When asked how she would fulfill the duties expressed in her platform, Calhoun said, “I will be participating and hosting many events located in Jackson. I will be attending many economic development workshops to gain a better understanding of Jackson’s economy so that I can be a well-educated and effective leader.”

Calhoun will be involved in many upcoming community programs including an Easter egg hunt fundraiser, the Miss Amazing Disabilities Pageant and a youth mentor group called YFOCUS that works with pageant mentoring. A full list of events can be found at visitjackson.com.

Calhoun will be competing in July for the Miss Mississippi Hospitality title. “I believe I deserve to be Miss Mississippi Hospitality because I am hardworking and I love meeting new people,” Calhoun said. “I am a servant leader, meaning I know that having this position gives me the opportunity to help people on a larger scale. I love my city and state, and being able to promote it and express my love of it is a dream come true. It also comes with a scholarship which I will apply to my education here at Southern Miss.”

For Calhoun, though, winning is not everything; simply the opportunity to reach out to help members of her community is enough. “I’m happy I have the opportunity to bring smiles to everyone I meet,” Calhoun said.