Charlize was princess for Alexis Hilts in 2017 and that was her first ever time being around the Miss America/Miss Nevada Organizations. She went to the princess camp at state with one of her best friends at the time and it was loads of fun. She also has friends who have competed in the Miss America Teen Competition in other states and here in Nevada as well and she has loved watching the Miss America and Miss America Teen Competition with my mom at home and it’s always been something that she’s wanted to give a try.
Charlize is a recent high school graduate and was involved in student council for 3 years. She was in FCLA (Family Career and Community Leaders of America) during her sophomore year and went to state and nationals. She now plans to further her education focusing on special education and possibly interior design. She plans to use her scholarship money to attend college and get the proper education to start her future career.
Her Service Initiative “Inclusion in Action” works to teach about the importance of inclusion towards people of all abilities. She has worked with people with special needs since she was 8 years old. Every year she volunteers at a special needs pageant where she is able to help do their makeup, hair, teach them how to model, and then after showtime, everyone leaves with a crown and banner. She also was a student aide in 8th grade in an IEP math classroom and did a lot of work with students teaching them different material and helping with math problems. She has helped with special needs carnivals at her school hosted by student council where they play games and have a dance party. She plans to get into classrooms as a volunteer to gain hands-on work experience with special education students and also be able to learn from the teachers more insight on these programs and how to handle certain situations. Her ultimate goal is to become a special education teacher one day and be able to turn this passion into her career. She also plans to get into general education classrooms to teach more about the importance of inclusion.
Charlize and her family and share a love for Disney and they enjoy going to the parks together in California and Florida. Her parents are some of her biggest supporters and are the backbone to anything and everything that she does. Charlize has 2 brothers named Cohan and Adrian who have also been big parts of her life. Adrian is a firefighter for the City of Las Vegas and Cohan is in South Carolina in the Navy. Her friends are some of her most favorite people ever and have helped her through some very low points in her life. She has been a dancer since she was 5 years old and is very passionate. Especially as she’s gotten older because dance has become a safe place and a release to get things off her mind.
Charlize wants to leave behind a positive impression of the person she is. She want people to know her as a nice and outgoing person who was always willing to meet new people and make new friends. Charlize plans to attend as many events as she can both big and small. She wants to be able to talk about the Miss America/Miss Nevada Opportunity and the effect it can have on people. She wants to further her Service Initiative and become more involved with more programs as well. She plans to talk to the younger generation so as they grow up, the Miss America/Miss Nevada Opportunity can be something they think about and want to consider doing when they are old enough.
