Fort Mill girl vies for Miss Junior High School America title

Emma Marie Cook, 11, of Fort Mill, recently crowned Miss South Carolina Junior High 2016, will be traveling in July to San Antonio, Texas, to compete for the Miss Junior High School America title.

A fifth-grade student at Tega Cay Elementary School, where she is a straight-A High Honor student and member of the Gifted and Talented Program, Emma will be attending Gold Hill Middle School in August. A member of the TCES News Crew, Safety Patrol, Titan Tunes, she is also a Peer Mentor. In previous semesters, Emma participated in Chess Club, Green Team and Girls on the Run.

In her free time Emma spends her time dancing, reading, and volunteering. She is a member of Miller Street Dance Academy’s Performance Team and volunteers regularly at the Ronald McDonald House and at various assisted living homes with her dance studio.

In 2015, Emma founded an organization called Cards to Inspire. Her website, cardstoinspire.com, connects students and families with soldiers, children, and the elderly who are in need of an uplifting note.

The Miss Junior High School America Pageant competition was created to provide personal and professional opportunities for junior high school girls. The Miss Junior High School America Organization focuses on academic achievement and community service. National and state winners promote the organization’s national platform, “Building Respect and Values for Everyone” or B.R.A.V.E,. throughout the country. Each national winner will be awarded a $10,000 cash scholarship to be paid to the university/school of the winner’s choice.

Emma plans to attend Clemson University and double major in communications and marketing.

Since being crowned Miss South Carolina Junior High 2016, Emma has become actively involved with B.R.A.V.E. and launched her platform: “Emma’s Become BRAVE: Playing It Forward.” She believes it is important for students even as young as kindergarten age to become involved with bullying prevention and it’s her goal to help create awareness and to promote a bully-free environment so students of any age can learn.

More information about Emma’s program is available at emmasbecomebrave.com. To learn more about the pageant, visit americashighschoolpageant.com.

This story was originally published May 18, 2016 at 12:08 PM with the headline "Fort Mill girl vies for Miss Junior High School America title."