On August 5, 2017, fourteen Northwest Florida teens were named Distinguished Young Women of their respective counties during the local Class of 2018 Distinguished Young Women of Northwest Florida At-Large program held at Pace High School in Pace, Florida. The Distinguished Young Women of Northwest Florida program is a local level for Distinguished Young Women which is a national scholarship program for upcoming high school senior girls. The 14 participants consisted of high school senior girls from across the Florida panhandle: 9 from Santa Rosa County, 3 from Escambia County, 1 from Leon County, and 1 from Bay County.
Each young lady participated for the ability to qualify to represent their counties at the weeklong 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of Florida state program this upcoming February 18th through the 24th in Destin, Florida. Participants were evaluated in the categories of Scholastics (25%), Interview (25%), Talent (20%), Fitness (15%), and Self-Expression (15%).
All 14 participants qualified to move on to the state level and will represent the follow areas:
Escambia County Representatives
• Randi Avery - 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of North Escambia County
• Alena Swango - 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of West Escambia County
• Louise Harris - 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of East Escambia County
Santa Rosa County Representatives
• Lexi Luker: 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of North Santa Rosa County
• Reagan Docherty: 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of South Santa Rosa County
• Kari Campbell: 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of Central Santa Rosa County
• Jewelia Bradley: 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of West Santa Rosa County
• Alexis Van Norman: 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of East Santa Rosa County
• Elizabeth Ames: 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of Northwest Santa Rosa County
• Marcella Plog: 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of Northeast Santa Rosa County
• Madison Dunn: 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of Southwest Santa Rosa County
• Alyvia Waite: 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of Southeast Santa Rosa County
Leon County Representative
• Jamie Johnson: 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of Leon County
Bay County Representative
• Caroline Hanson: 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of Bay County
Throughout the next six months, the young ladies will represent their counties and the Northwest Florida At-Large program at various public events and serve as role models to young people by spreading the program’s national outreach message of “Be Your Best Self.” The outreach program is designed to encourage self-esteem and excellence in all young people through its five principles: Be Healthy, Be Involved, Be Studious, Be Ambitious, and Be Responsible.
Once at the state program, the young ladies will be competing for over $15,000 in cash scholarships along with being eligible for numerous college-granted scholarships across the nation. One participant will be selected as the 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of Florida and will move on to represent the state at the 2018 Distinguished Young Women of America National Finals. The 61st National Finals will take place on June 28, 29, 30, 2018, in Mobile, Ala. The state representative will travel to Mobile, along with 51 other representatives from across the country to participate in personal development activities and community service projects before competing for the opportunity to become the Distinguished Young Woman of America for 2018 and for additional cash scholarships. The District of Columbia’s Skye Bork, who is attending Columbia University, was named the Distinguished Young Woman of America for 2017.
For more information on the Distinguished Young Women of Northwest Florida At-Large program or to set up an interview with one of our representatives, please contact Caitlin Mosley, Northwest Florida At-Large Chair (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).
About Distinguished Young Women
Founded in 1958 in Mobile, Alabama, Distinguished Young Women is the largest and oldest national scholarship program for high school girls. During its 60 years of operation, the program has provided life-changing experiences for more than 765,000 young women. Distinguished Young Women provided more than $106 million in cash scholarships and $1.5 billion college granted scholarship opportunities to program participants at the local, state and national level. Previously known as America’s Junior Miss, the program announced its new name in June 2010.
The mission of Distinguished Young Women is to positively impact the lives of young women by providing a transformative experience that promotes and rewards scholarship, leadership and talent. National sponsors include Mobile County, City of Mobile, Wintzell's Oyster House, Encore Rehabilitation, Alabama Power Foundation, Master Boat Builders, The Barbara Barrington Jones Family Foundation, Regions Financial Corporation, Evonik, and The Alabama Media Group.
For more information about Distinguished Young Women, contact Adrienne Rea, National Headquarters Marketing and Communications Director (251-438-3621, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) or visit www.DistinguishedYW.org. Find us on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. www.facebook.com/distinguishedyw; www.twitter.com/distinguishedyw; www.youtube.com/user/distinguishedyw