Ashley Ann Cariño Barreto (born August 3, 1994) is a Puerto Rican-American model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Universe Puerto Rico 2022. She represented Puerto Rico at

Miss Universe 2022 Miss Universe 2022 will be the 71st Miss Universe pageant, to be held at the New Orleans Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States on January 14, 2023. Harnaaz Sandhu of India will crown her successor at the end of the e ...

, and is the second Afro-Puerto Rican to win the title, placing at the Top 5. Previously, Cariño was crowned Miss Florida USA 2021 and placed as the second runner-up at

Miss USA 2021 Miss USA 2021 was the 70th Miss USA pageant, held on November 29, 2021, at the Paradise Cove Theater of River Spirit Casino Resort in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The competition was hosted by Zuri Hall and Patrick Ta, while Nicole Adamo served as a lounge ...

Early life and education

Cariño was born in

Fajardo, Puerto Rico Fajardo (, ) is a town and municipality -Fajardo Combined Statistical Area. Fajardo is the hub of much of the recreational boating in Puerto Rico and a popular launching port to Culebra, Vieques, and the U.S. and British Virgin Islands. It is ...

to parents José Cariño and Olga Barreto, as the eldest of five children, and later moved with her family to

Kissimmee, Florida Kissimmee ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Osceola County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 79,226. It is a Principal City of the Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, Florida, Metropolitan Statistical Area, wh ...

when she was five years old. Her mother had previously competed in pageantry in Puerto Rico. Cariño attended the Professional and Technical High School in Kissimmee, graduating in 2012, where she received certification to work as a psychosocial rehabilitator, specializing in working with children with cognitive diversity. She had been inspired to pursue psychosocial rehabilitation after having overcome childhood

attention deficit hyperactivity disorder Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by excessive amounts of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity that are pervasive, impairing in multiple contexts, and otherwise age-inap ...

(ADHD) herself. Cariño later enrolled in

Valencia College Valencia College is a public college in Orlando, Florida. It is part of the Florida College System. The college was founded in 1967 as Valencia Junior College and changed its name in 2010 because the academic scope of the school had expanded to i ...

in Orlando, Florida, and afterwards transferred to the

University of Central Florida The University of Central Florida (UCF) is a public research university whose main campus is in unincorporated Orange County, Florida. UCF also has nine smaller regional campuses throughout central Florida. It is part of the State University ...

, studying aerospace engineering. Prior to competing in

, Cariño had hoped to work for

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil List of government space agencies, space program ...

after graduating.

Pageantry

In 2021, Cariño began her pageantry career after registering as a contestant in Miss Florida USA 2021, her first pageant ever. She was inspired to take part after encouragement from her family, and competed alongside her sister Joyce Barreto. Representing South Kissimmee, Cariño went on to win the title in July 2021, becoming the first woman from Kissimmee to be crowned Miss Florida USA. As Miss Florida USA, Cariño was qualified to compete in

. The final of Miss USA was held on November 29, 2021 in

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with ...

, where Cariño went on to place as the second runner-up, behind winner

Elle Smith Ellen Elizabeth "Elle" Smith (born June 19, 1998) is an American model, journalist, and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss USA 2021. As Miss USA, she represented the United States at Miss Universe 2021 where she was placed in the top ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

and first runner-up Caitlyn Vogel of

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minnesota to the east, So ...

. This was only the third time that Florida had placed in the top three of the competition since

Miss USA 1980 Miss USA 1980 was the 29th Miss USA pageant, televised live on May 15 from the Gulf Coast Convention Center in Biloxi, Mississippi on CBS. The pageant was won by Shawn Weatherly of South Carolina, who was crowned by outgoing titleholder Mary Th ...

. Cariño later completed her reign as Miss Florida USA after crowning Taylor Fulford as her successor in May 2022.

Miss Universe Puerto Rico

After completing her reign as Miss Florida USA, Cariño moved back to Puerto Rico in order to claim eligibility for the upcoming Miss Universe Puerto Rico 2022. In June 2022, Cariño was announced as one of the 28 finalists set to compete in the competition, representing the municipality of

Fajardo Fajardo (, ) is a town and municipality -Fajardo Combined Statistical Area. Fajardo is the hub of much of the recreational boating in Puerto Rico and a popular launching port to Culebra, Vieques, and the U.S. and British Virgin Islands. It is ...

. The final was later held on August 11 in Santurce, San Juan. Cariño advanced from the initial pool of 28 finalists into the top fifteen, top ten, and top five, before ultimately being crowned the winner of the competition. With her win, she became the second Afro-Puerto Rican to be crowned Miss Universe Puerto Rico, following her predecessor

Michelle Colón Michelle Marie Colón Ramírez (born September 1, 2000) is a Puerto Rican model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Universe Puerto Rico 2021 and represented Puerto Rico at Miss Universe 2021 where she finished in the Top 10. She ...

. As Miss Universe Puerto Rico, Cariño represented Puerto Rico at

, and placed among the Top 5.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Carino, Ashley 1994 births American people of Puerto Rican descent American beauty pageant winners Female models from Florida Hispanic and Latino American female models Living people Miss Universe 2022 contestants People from Fajardo, Puerto Rico People from Kissimmee, Florida People of Afro–Puerto Rican descent Puerto Rican beauty pageant winners Puerto Rican female models University of Central Florida alumni Valencia College alumni