Local Girl a Rising Star in Youth Pageants

Although beauty pageants have been part of the American landscape since the 1920s, those showcasing school-aged children (6-12) were not introduced until 40 years later.

And today, organizers of youth pageants tout the positive influence participation yields such as promoting community service, improving public speaking ability, boosting confidence and elevating grades.

A'Maiya Allan, a fifth grader at Liberty Elementary School who maintains straight As, cheers for Trojan football and is a national is a national Pop Warner Little Scholar. She first became interested in pageants after watching one on television three years ago.

That hook was all it took.

But unlike the pageant tots portrayed on television, Allan's parents initially vetoed the idea.

"When A'Maiya first brought it up, her father and I immediately dismissed it. We told her that the area we lived in didn't have pageants and that they were only in the South," said her mother, Sharon Allan. "A'Maiya didn't take no for an answer."

A'Maiya Allan said it takes more to be a pageant girl than meets the eye.

"[To get in] you have to show your report card to prove you’re a good student, do community service, answer questions from the judges and recite a speech," she said. "I knew I could do all of that."

Last May, after finding the website for the Sunburst Pageant (held annually downstate in Springfield), A'Maiya Allan finally convinced her parents to allow her to compete.

Determined and committed, she has competed in four pageants within the past year.

Quickly learning what it takes to succeed, A'Maiya Allan has racked up two third-place finishes and a first runnerup spot before gaining the title of pre-teen Miss Northern Illinois in the Dream Girls USA competition last month.

"Youth pageants are platform based," her mother said. "Each contestant chooses their own platform to represent. A'Maiya had been bullied, so she chose an anti-bully platform. The hardest part is opening up about something so personal. Her father and I saw this as another way for her to work through it."

Since being crowned, A'Maiya Allan has been able to speak publicly on the topic of bullying by addressing the junior usher board at her church in addition to speaking at a Liberty Elementary assembly that was attended by more than 800 students.

Allan’s speech, encouraging peers to be proud of who they are, earned the respect of Liberty Principal Christy Frederick, who marveled at her passionate delivery, Frederick said.

Allan is naturally an introvert. Her parents also credit the pageantry world with helping her to "come out of her shell" and think about ways to help others.

Now Allan splits volunteer responsibilities between Harmony Baptist Church Food Pantry in Chicago, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated, collecting and taking toys to children’s hospitals and participating in numerous AIDS and cancer walk-a-thons.

To raise awareness for Feed My Starving Children food program in Aurora, Allan chose their facility as the site to host her birthday party with friends.

Next month, A'Maiya Allan will be competing in the Illinois American Coed Pageant. In July, she will travel to St. Louis representingd Illinois as she vies for the national title of 2011 Dream Girls Miss Pre-Teen USA.

A'Maiya Allan’s father, David, has a word of advise to parents that have a children interested in pageants. He said children should only compete in natural pageants, meaning no "glitz or glamour" and absolutely no makeup on contestants.

For the Allans, the pageant circuit has proved an effective means to instill personal discipline, enforce structure and introduce the concept of goal setting.

She also maintains a healthy balance enjoying her favorite activities reading, arts and crafts, dancing and listening to music.

For now A'Maiya Allan is focused on living in the moment and looks forward to someday attending Spellman College in Atlanta, opening a beauty salon which she will name "Just for You" and marrying Justin Bieber—in that order.