Emma Leigh Broyles (born July 25, 2001) was crowned

Miss Alaska The Miss Alaska competition is a scholarship pageant that selects the representative for the state of Alaska in the Miss America pageant. Unlike most state-level pageants in the Miss America system, Alaska allows any eligible woman to enter th ...

2021 and

Miss America Miss America is an annual competition that is open to women from the United States between the ages of 17 and 25. Originating in 1921 as a "bathing beauty revue", the contest is now judged on competitors' talent performances and interviews. As ...

2022 on December 16, 2021, its 100th anniversary. She is the first Miss Alaska to be crowned Miss America. She is also the first titleholder outside of the

contiguous United States The contiguous United States (officially the conterminous United States) consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the Federal District of the United States of America. The term excludes the only two non-contiguous states, Alaska and Hawaii ...

since

Angela Perez Baraquio Angela Perez Baraquio Grey (born June 1, 1976), known professionally by her birth name of Angela Perez Baraquio, is an American educator. She was crowned Miss America 2001 on October 14, 2000 in Atlantic City, New Jersey, becoming the first ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

Miss America 2001 Miss America 2001, the 74th Miss America pageant, was broadcast from on the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey on Saturday, October 14, 2000 on ABC Network. This was the first time that the pageant took place outside its traditional mo ...

. During the Miss America competition, Broyles highlighted her vulnerability and openness on social media about having

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 ...

and dermatillomania (the repeated urge or impulse to pick at one's own skin), as well as her history with volunteering for the Special Olympics. Before the competition, she planned to become a

physician assistant A physician assistant or physician associate (PA) is a type of Mid-level practitioner, mid-level health care provider. In North America PAs may diagnose illnesses, develop and manage treatment plans, prescribe medications, and may serve as a pri ...

due to financial concerns over the cost of medical school, though she stated her circumstances changed due to winning the competition's scholarships. She was awarded a record $100,000 in scholarships and succeeded

Camille Schrier Camille Thomasina Schrier (; born June 30, 1995) is a Miss America titleholder and previous pageant titleholder. On June 22, 2019, she was crowned Miss Virginia 2019. On December 19, 2019, she was crowned Miss America 2020 in Uncasville, Connecti ...

Early life and education

Broyles was born in

Anchorage, Alaska Anchorage () is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska by population. With a population of 291,247 in 2020, it contains nearly 40% of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolitan area, which includes Anchorage and the neighboring Ma ...

to Julie and Ronald Broyles. She has an older brother Brendan and a younger brother Benjamin. Her maternal grandparents immigrated from

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

. On January 25, 2022, Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy invited Broyles as an honored guest to

Juneau, Alaska The City and Borough of Juneau, more commonly known simply as Juneau ( ; tli, Dzánti K'ihéeni ), is the capital city of the state of Alaska. Located in the Gastineau Channel and the Alaskan panhandle, it is a unified municipality and the se ...

for the 2022 State of the State address. Broyles was honored for becoming the first Alaskan to win the title of Miss America in the 100-year history of the competition. On April 7, 2022, Alaska U.S. Senators

Lisa Murkowski Lisa Ann Murkowski ( ; born May 22, 1957) is an American attorney and politician serving as the senior United States senator for Alaska, having held that seat since 2002. Murkowski is the second-most senior Republican woman in the Senate, after S ...

and

Dan Sullivan Dan, Danny, or Daniel Sullivan may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Daniel J. Sullivan (born 1940), American film and theater director * Daniel G. Sullivan, American screenwriter * Dan Sullivan (musician), indie rock musician * Dan Panic, Amer ...

introduced Senate Resolution 584, "Congratulating Miss Emma Broyles of Alaska for being crowned Miss America 2022." Broyles graduated from Anchorage's

Service High School Robert Service High School is a public high school in Anchorage, Alaska. It had an enrollment of 1,779 students as of August 2, 2016. Serving grades 9 through 12, the school was named for the poet Robert W. Service. Part of the Anchorage School D ...

in 2019, where she was co-president the

Special Olympics Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities and physical disabilities, providing year-round training and activities to 5 million participants and Unified Sports partners in 1 ...

-sponsored Partners Club due to her personal connection with her older brother with

Down syndrome Down syndrome or Down's syndrome, also known as trisomy 21, is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21. It is usually associated with physical growth delays, mild to moderate intellectual dis ...

. She is currently attending

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

Barrett, The Honors College Barrett, The Honors College at Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one ...

. Broyles is majoring in

Biomedical Sciences Biomedical sciences are a set of sciences applying portions of natural science or formal science, or both, to develop knowledge, interventions, or technology that are of use in healthcare or public health. Such disciplines as medical microbio ...

with a minor in Voice Performance. She plans to attend medical school and become a dermatologist.

Pageantry

Miss Anchorage's Outstanding Teen 2017

In January 2017, Broyles won the title of Miss Anchorage's Outstanding Teen at the Miss Anchorage 2017 pageant at the age of 15.

Miss Alaska's Outstanding Teen 2017

In June 2017, Broyles won the title of

Miss Alaska's Outstanding Teen The Miss Alaska's Teen competition is the pageant that selects the representative for Alaska in the Miss America's Teen pageant. Lynciemae Adams of Anchorage was crowned Miss Alaska's Outstanding Teen on June 8, 2023 at the UAA Wendy Williamson ...

at the Miss Alaska 2017 pageant at the age of 15.

Miss America's Outstanding Teen 2018

Broyles competed for the title of

Miss America's Outstanding Teen 2018 Miss America's Outstanding Teen 2018 was the 12th Miss America's Outstanding Teen pageant held at the Linda Chapin Theatre in the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida on July 29, 2017, the same date as Miss Teen USA 2017 Miss Te ...

in July 2017 at the age of 16. She did not advance to the finals or win any preliminary or non-finalist awards.

Distinguished Young Woman of Alaska 2019

Broyles won the title of Distinguished Young Woman of Alaska 2019 at the Distinguished Young Woman competition in November 2018 at the age of 17.

Miss Alaska 2021

Broyles was crowned

on June 17, 2021, winning on her first attempt at the age of 19. She did not hold a local title, but was able to compete as an at-large candidate since Alaska doesn't require candidates to hold a local title to compete at the state level. Broyles won the Talent Phase and People's Choice awards.

Miss America 2022

On December 12, 2021, Broyles won a $1,000

scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholarsh ...

as the social impact pitch winner from the first preliminary night of competition. On December 16, 2021, Broyles won the

Miss America 2022 The Miss America 2022 competition was held on December 17, 2021. This was the 94th Miss America competition and was held at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut, as the Miss America Organization celebrated its 100th anniversary. It was the ...

competition at the age of 20, winning a $100,000 scholarship. The competition was held at the Mohegan Sun Casino and Resort in

Uncasville, Connecticut Uncasville is an area in the New England town, town of Montville, Connecticut, Montville, Connecticut, United States. It is a Administrative divisions of Connecticut#Village, neighborhood, section of town, village in southeastern Montville, at the ...

Reign as Miss America 2022

During her Miss America reign, Broyles has advocated for the Special Olympics program and

Asian-American Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants). Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous people ...

and

Alaskan Native Alaska Natives (also known as Alaskan Natives, Native Alaskans, Indigenous Alaskans, Aboriginal Alaskans or First Alaskans) are the indigenous peoples of Alaska and include Iñupiat, Yupik, Aleut, Eyak, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and a number ...

media representation. She also participated in the 2022 Macy's Thanksgiving Parade, flew with the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds in an F-16 airplane, and was honored as the "Alaskan of the Week" by Senator Dan Sullivan on the floor of the

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

. During the 2023 Miss America competition, Broyles wore a gown created by

Project Runway ''Project Runway'' is an American reality television series that premiered on Bravo on December 1, 2004. The series focuses on fashion design. The contestants compete with each other to create the best clothes and are restricted by time, mater ...

alum Aaron Michael that featured portraits of former Miss Americas.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Broyles, Emma 2001 births Living people American people of Korean descent Miss America winners People from Anchorage, Alaska