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09/08/2019
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By Bill Kirby Jr.
Posted Aug 9, 2019 at 5:30 PM
Nia Imani Franklin remembers the excitement of her freshman year at East Carolina University, and the reigning Miss America hopes to inspire the Fayetteville State University freshman class at a lapel pinning ceremony scheduled for Sunday at J.W. Seabrook Auditorium.
Here she is, Miss America.
Nia Imani Franklin may not be walking on air, as the late Bert Parks once sang about America’s annual sweetheart, but the reigning queen certainly will be walking across the campus of Fayetteville State University, where Franklin is scheduled Sunday to address the incoming freshman class at a lapel pinning ceremony in J.W. Seabrook Auditorium at the historic black university.
“Freshman year is a time of hope and endless opportunities,” says Franklin, 25, who will deliver her remarks at 11 a.m. to 700 freshmen. “It’s a chance to reinvent yourself and to see what is ahead. I am thrilled to be speaking to Fayetteville State University’s incoming freshman class.”
A Winston-Salem native, Franklin was crowned as the 92nd Miss America on September 9, 2018, in the pageant held in Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, and where she competed as the 2018 Miss New York. But before she became this nation’s queen, Franklin, too, was a college freshman in 2011 and moving into her dormitory at East Carolina University.
“It’s so exciting to step on campus as a freshman and to start moving in just a few days before class officially starts,” Franklin says about just what the FSU freshman were doing Saturday as part of Operation Smooth Move at Harris, Renaissance, Hood, Smith, Joyner, McLeod and Hackley residence halls. “I remember being so excited that I actually had a new friend take a photo of me in my ‘First Day of School’ outfit.”
Franklin earned her undergraduate degree in music composition from ECU in 2015 and her masters in music composition in 2017 from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. Franklin found her way to New York when selected as a 2017 William R. Kenan Jr. fellow with the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts’ education division.
Today, Nia Imani Franklin is America’s queen, and the campus along Murchison Road is abuzz in anticipation of Franklin’s arrival.
“It’s a big deal, and we are excited to have her, ” Jeffery Womble, associate vice chancellor for communications at the university, says about Franklin, a composer and classically-trained opera soprano. “We submitted our request and heard back in half an hour, and we were thrilled when they informed us she accepted our invitation.”
It’s not what you know, you likely have heard, but who you know.
“I served on the executive board for the Miss North Carolina organization for years,” says Lorna Ricotta, who not only is vice chancellor for institutional advancement at FSU, but the 2000 Miss North Carolina. “As a former Miss North Carolina, I am active in the sisterhood. Our annual reunion culminates during the selection of a new Miss North Carolina. In 2016, Nia was a top 10 finalist at Miss North Carolina.”
Not what you know, remember, but who you know.
“The Fayetteville State Institutional Advancement division plans homecoming activities, including the parade,” Ricotta says. “We contacted the Miss America organization to invite Nia to participate in the events. Soon, we learned of another opportunity that would allow FSU students to meet Miss America and be inspired by her visit. We agreed that the pinning ceremony would be an ideal event to welcome Nia to the university and kick off a new semester for students.”
Voila, here she is, Miss America.
“We are excited to host Nia and welcome her back to North Carolina,” Ricotta says. “Surely, the Bronco family will delight in her visit.”
Oh, yes, for sure.
“I am pleased and honored that Miss America will be addressing the newest class of Broncos,” says Peggy Valentine, who assumed duties Wednesday as interim chancellor after James Anderson stepped down in June after 11 years. “Not only is she a talented and accomplished young woman, but also a great speaker who I am certain will impart a wonderful and impactful message on our students and guests. I look forward to meeting her and having her on our campus.”
Valentine isn’t alone in anticipation of meeting Franklin.
So is the Fayetteville mayor.
“I am very excited,” Mitch Colvin says, “and I am looking forward to welcoming Miss America to the All American City.”
Here she is, Nia Imani Franklin - Miss America.
“I am thrilled to be speaking to Fayetteville State University’s incoming freshman class,” Franklin says, “and to offer them words of encouragement as they embark on this new journey.”
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