Jamie Lynn Macchia (born October 24, 1991) is an American

beauty pageant A beauty pageant is a competition that has traditionally focused on judging and ranking the physical attributes of the contestants. Pageants have now evolved to include inner beauty, with criteria covering judging of personality, intelligence, ...

titleholder from

Eltingville, Staten Island Eltingville is a neighborhood in the Staten Island borough of New York City, United States. It is located on Staten Island's South Shore, immediately to the south of Great Kills and north of Annadale. The main commercial area of Eltingville ex ...

, New York, who was crowned

Miss New York The Miss New York scholarship competition selects the representative for the state of New York in the Miss America scholarship competition. In the fall of 2018, the Miss America Organization terminated the Miss New York organization's license ...

2015. She competed for the

Miss America 2016 Miss America 2016, the 89th Miss America pageant, was held at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey on Sunday, September 13, 2015. It was broadcast on ABC and streamed to mobile devices and Xbox 360 consoles via the WatchABC app. Tick ...

title in September 2015.

Pageant career

Miss Staten Island

Macchia began vying for the Miss Staten Island crown when she was 17 and a student at Staten Island Technical High School. In November 2008, she was second runner-up for the Miss Staten Island 2009 title. In November 2009, she placed first runner-up to Jennifer Scacco for the Miss Staten Island 2010 title and won a $2,000 scholarship. On November 12, 2011, Macchia won the Miss Staten Island 2012 title and received $3,000 in scholarship money. She later returned in November 2013 and won the Miss Staten Island 2014 title, becoming the first nd onlywoman in the pageant's history to win the title twice.

Vying for Miss New York

As Miss Staten Island 2012, Macchia then competed in the 2012 Miss New York pageant in June 2012. Macchia was top-11 semi-finalist. On March 30, 2013, Macchia won the Miss Greater New York 2013 title then, in July 2013, competed in the 2013 Miss New York pageant. She was not a finalist for the state title. In November 2013, Macchia won the Miss Staten Island 2014 title, the first woman to win the title a second time. In May 2014, she competed in the 2014 Miss New York pageant. She was named was second runner-up to winner Kira Kazantsev. When Kazantsev was elevated to

Miss America 2015 Miss America 2015, the 88th Miss America pageant, was held at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey on Sunday, September 14, 2014. Miss America 2014, Nina Davuluri crowned the winner, Miss New York, Kira Kazantsev, making it the thir ...

, both first runner-up Desiree Wiley and second runner-up Macchia declined the promotion to serve as Miss New York 2014 to preserve their chance to win the state title in 2015 and compete for

. Instead, third runner-up Jillian Tapper accepted the promotion and the crown. Macchia later accepted an invitation to participate in the

National Sweetheart Miss National Sweetheart is a United States beauty pageant created in 1941 where runners-up from the Miss America state pageants are invited to Hoopeston, Illinois to compete for the title of Miss National Sweetheart, and the name of the title held ...

2014 pageant at the Sweet Corn Festival in

Hoopeston, Illinois Hoopeston () is a city in Grant Township, Vermilion County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 4,915. History Hoopeston was laid out in 1871. It was named for Thomas Hoopes, one of the men who offered lan ...

. She placed first runner-up for the national title.

Miss New York 2015

Macchia was crowned Miss Greater New York 2015 which made her eligible to compete for the 2015 Miss New York title. Entering the state pageant in June 2015, Macchia's competition talent was dancing to " I Was Here" by Beyoncé. Her platform is "Inspiring Action Against Pediatric Cancer". Macchia chose this work in honor of a childhood friend who fought but ultimately died from

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ...

. Macchia won the competition on Saturday, June 6, 2015, when she received her crown from outgoing Miss New York titleholder Jillian Tapper. She earned more than $25,000 in scholarship money from the state pageant. She also won the Children's Miracle Network Miracle Maker Award and the Miss America Organization Academic Award. As Miss New York, her activities include public appearances across the state. Macchia was New York's representative at the

pageant in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in September 2015.

Early life and education

Macchia is a native of

, New York, and a 2009 graduate of Staten Island Technical High School. Her father is Anthony Macchia and her mother is Dawn Macchia. She has a younger brother, A.J. Macchia is a 2013 magna cum laude graduate of

Wagner College Wagner College is a private liberal arts college in Staten Island, New York City. Founded in 1883 and with an enrollment of approximately 2,200 students, Wagner is known for its academic program, The Wagner Plan for the Practical Liberal Arts. It ...

, earning a bachelor of science degree in arts administration and marketing. While a student at Wagner College, Macchia became a member of the Alpha Omicron Pi international women's fraternity.

References

External links

Jamie Lynn Macchia official websiteMiss New York official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Macchia, Jamie Lynn Living people 1991 births American beauty pageant winners Miss America 2016 delegates Miss New York winners People from Eltingville, Staten Island Wagner College alumni