Today, Miss America Organization’s Chairman and CEO, Sam Haskell, Miss America 2014 Nina Davuluri and newly elected Mayor of Atlantic City, Don Guardian announced the date of the world’s most famous scholarship competition for young women in its New Jersey birthplace, Atlantic City. Haskell announced the date for the beloved competition will be Sunday, September 14, 2014, live on ABC at 9 PM EST. The official announcement was made with Casino Reinvestment Development Authority’s (CRDA) Executive Director, John Palmieri, the Atlantic City Alliance's (ACA) President, Liza Cartmell, and Miss America Organization’s President, Sharon Pearce.

Miss America 2014 Nina Davuluri had the distinct honor yesterday morning of sitting on the panel of discussion at the White House Forum on Minorities in Energy Initiative. Nina came together with representatives from community organizations, academia, business, and industry to provide their individual perspectives on shared challenges in the areas of energy economic development, STEM education, and climate change. Not only was this event a perfect forum to discuss The Miss America Organization's position on STEM education in the classroom, but it also sheds light upon diversity in these areas.

Miss America 2012 Laura Kaeppeler has a huge week of events in celebration of Independence Day. To kick off the week, Laura will spend the day with media today and will participate in the closing bell ceremony with Macy’s at the New York Stock Exchange.

Wednesday, July 4, Laura will join Macy’s Star Spangled Sing Off winner, Kory Leigh Glattman, to sing a special rendition of the National Anthem prior to the start of the New York Mets vs. Philadelphia Phillies baseball game at Citi Field. After the game, Laura and Kory will attend Macy's Thirty-Sixth Annual Fourth of July Fireworks Celebration. Laura served as a vocal mentor to Kory, who recorded a special rendition of the National Anthem, which will be played during the finale of the fireworks spectacular.

The Thirty-Sixth annual Macy’s Fourth of July Fireworks will fire more than forty thousand pyrotechnic shells during an approximate twenty-five-minute synchronized display. Designed in collaboration with SOUSA Fireworks, the show will be set off from barges positioned on the Hudson River from 18th to 48th streets. With an average of sixteen hundred shells launched per minute, Macy’s Fireworks show is truly a dazzling spectacle.

Independence day revelers from coast-to-coast will have a front row view of the pyro in the sky by tuning to NBC’s national broadcast of Macy’s Fourth of July Fireworks Spectacular beginning at 9 p.m. (check local listings).

Viewing, and other show information is available here!

Source and photo: MAO

Last week, Miss America 2012 Laura Kaeppeler received the Courage Award from the Care Plus Foundation for her platform work in advocating for children of incarcerated parents. She received the award at the Care Plus Foundation's annual Courage Awards in Garfield, New Jersey.

The foundation, in its fourteenth year, honors and celebrates individuals, groups, and corporations that work on behalf of others who face the daily and lifelong challenges of mental illness and substance abuse. Other honorees in attendance at the event include David L. Ganz, Bergen Country Freeholder, and HOMECorp of Montclair, New Jersey.

Source and photo: MAO Photo: Laura Kaeppeler embraces Samira Chapman, a 13-year-old client of the Care Plus Foundation, after they sang "One Moment in Time" together on stage.

Royalty gathered last week for the 2012 Duke of Edinburgh's Award presentation. Miss America 2012 Laura Kaeppeler and the Duke of Edinburgh His Royal Highness The Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex joined MAO Board Chairman Sam Haskell in Alabama to award those with upstanding community service, physical fitness, special skill, and adventurous journey.

The event was hosted by the Miss Alabama Scholarship Organization and coordinated by Executive State Director Nan Teninbaum. The organization hosted a tea for this year's award recipients. Among the pageant winners awarded were Bronze Award Recipients Miss Maine 2011 Julia Furtado, Miss Wyoming 2011 Catherine Brown, Miss North Carolina 2011 Hailey Best, Miss Florida 2011 Kristina Janolo, Miss West Virginia 2011 Spenser Wempe, and Miss Connecticut 2011 Morgan Amarone. The 2012 Bronze and Silver Award Recipient was Miss Alabama 2011 Courtney Porter. This year's Gold Award Recipients were Miss Ohio 2011 Ellen Bryan, and Miss South Carolina 2011 Bree Boyce.

Miss America 2012 also attended the Duke of Edinburgh-Royal Gala the evening of the awards ceremony. The gala is an organization fundraiser. Laura and other state title holders performed at the event and welcomed Miss America 2005 Deidre Downs Gunn.

Watch a video slideshow of the events on the fourpoints homepage!

Source: MAO Photo: The Birmingham News

Miss America Laura Kaeppeler is in New York today kicking off the 2012 Great American Cleanup. Laura will take the stage in Military Square with members of the Keep America Beautiful organization and other city officials. The group will recognize National Volunteer Week and encourage the entire city to focus on environmental cleanliness and sustainability through recycling and volunteering.

There are more than thirty thousand community improvement events throughout the United States made possible by millions of volunteers. Today's event will put these workers in the spotlight and celebration their dedication to keeping the earth clean and green.

Laura will sing the National Anthem tonight at Yankees Stadium. Tune in to your local station to see her and the game! It will air on YES Network and MLB Network.

Source: MAO

Rebecca King Dreman, Miss America 1974, tells fourpoints about seeing her daughter compete on the Miss America stage!

fourpoints: What was it like to be the first Miss America to see her daughter compete on the Miss America stage?
Rebecca King Dreman: When Diana won at the state level, I was excited for her. I knew this was history in the making. Then at Miss America, when she was on stage, I had so many emotions because I had been there competing. I knew what she was going through. Diana is a wonderful young woman and…she is a great Miss Colorado. I am so proud of her many and varied accomplishments.

fpts: How did you help Diana make the right decisions about competing? How much did you influence her choice?
RKD: As parents, we always mentored our children, helping them find their moral compass, helping them make good life choices. However, I didn't encourage her to be in pageants at a young age. The first time she competed was the first year of Miss America's Outstanding Teen. I told her at that point I would support her–with her guidance.

fpts: On stage, Diana mentioned that being there was so special for her. What do you think made it so special?
RKD: She knows and understands what being on that stage has meant for thousands of young women, so she couldn't help but be proud of her accomplishment–to be one of fifty-three special young women. Friday night, she wore one of my dresses, the gown I gave up my crown in. It was very touching for me. The entire experience had a lot of meaning for her, one that I lived to share with her.

fpts: How did you help her with her platform?
RKD: I'm a living example of the value of the American Cancer Society. Diana has lived with cancer, with me, as one of my care givers. She remembers the day we were told I would likely live for only a few more months. But she has done all of the work for her platform. She has done all of this is her own way, made her own contacts, promoted research and legislation, participated in fundraising events, and when she speaks to people, she can say, "The research of the American Cancer Society, the scientific progress, has helped my mother survive."

To read more about Miss America 1974 Rebecca King Dreman and her mother-daughter pageant experience, subscribe to fourpoints.

Spray tanning and its many facets is a wonderful way to give your skin a healthy glow while avoiding the harmful UV radiation in tanning beds. Kelly Richardson, president of Be Bronze, thinks so too, in fact, she sat down with fourpoints to give us (and you!) the scoop on spray tanning know-how.

How you look onstage is the end result of months of training and preparation for your pageant. Unfortunately, the harsh lights of the stage "wash out" everyone's skin tone, and highlight flaws, scars, and imperfections. Getting a spray tan as part of your pageant prep will not only even out your skin tone, but will also make your skin look tan and healthy when you are in the spotlight. An added bonus: getting a spray tan make you look as if you lost ten pounds, and most professional spray tanning products have caffeine, which temporarily constricts the skin, making it appear firmer.

If you are doing a local pageant, definitely get your spray tan a day or two before the pageant. Make sure you wax/shave beforehand and that you get your tan AFTER your manicure, pedicure, massage, or any other spa treatment that might possibly exfoliate the skin. State pageants are usually a week in length and usually the spray tan you get pre-pageant is not going to last the entire time. Most of the girls we work with get spray tanned the evening before swimsuit/physical fitness and then again before the final night.

Not even the best spray tanners can spray themselves at home. You will always need help with your back. There are many great at-home tanning systems made by professional companies that are lower in cost than a salon/pro system. Another option is an aerosol mist, which many contestants used this year at Miss America. Whether or not you are getting a professional tan, or getting one done at home, there is a lot you can do to ensure you get an even tan.

The first and most important thing is to make sure your skin is not wet. A lot of us jump in the shower before we get sprayed or apply a self-tanner. Having skin that is still moist can cause a spray tan or self-tanning lotion to run on our skin and will result in streaks.

Make sure you have exfoliated with a "water based" body polish or scrub.

Lastly, make sure that you shave or wax before your spray tan. Doing this afterward actually removed the layer of skin that has been tanned, and can create splotchiness.

To read more tips and tricks to spray tanning, subscribe to fourpoints!

More than 70 percent of students play a role in cyberbullying, whether they be the bully, the victim or a witness, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. For Miss West Central Ohio, Elissa McCracken, the number is too high, and she is using her platform to fight it.

Elissa was a victim of cyberbullying in middle school, an experience that shook her confidence and made her doubt her ability to compete in pageants. But now that she has overcome the terrors of cyberbullying, she is promoting her platform throughout her home state.

"I have devoted myself to the commitment that I would help others avoid the intimidation, humiliation, and embarrassment that I endured," Elissa said.

Elissa is traveling throughout Ohio to promote her platform and attend cyberbullying workshops. At a recent event, she addressed educators, mental health professionals, and law enforcement personnel. The event was called "Cyberbullying 101," and was sponsored by the Ohio Attorney General, Mike DeWine.

"Several attendees requested my contact information, and I am very excited about the possibilities such networking can provide me for spreading my important message to help other young people," Elissa said.

Elissa's platform, "Stop Cyberbullying," is being received by a wider audience thanks to her public service announcements. She recorded the announcements for the Attorney General's Office, and they will be broadcast, one on radio, and one on television, throughout the state.

Elissa is in her third year of pharmacy school at Ohio Northern University. She plans to continue spreading the message of anit-cyberbullying in the near future and for years to come.

"I plan on attending the conferences and workshops to which I was invited, participate in webinars devoted to continued education about safety online, and continue my diligent pursuit of spread the important message of my anit-cyberbullying platform message," Elissa said.

Source: Leslie Townsend

Tuesday is IHOP'S National Pancake Day! Visit any International House of Pancakes Tuesday from 7 a.m.-10 p.m. to get a free short stack and support the Children's Miracle Network.

Guests attending the pancake smorgasbord will be asked to provide a donation to Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, the official platform of the Miss America Organization.

Pageant winners including Miss America Laura Kaeppeler will be in attendance to help serve and to promote the platform. Laura will visit a Hollywood, California IHOP tomorrow.

IHOP National Pancake Day has raised approximately $8 since its first year, 2006. Proceeds support local charities, including the Children's Miracle Network.

Sources: Dine Equity and MAO Photo D. Sharon Pruitt