You know how those Miss America folks always insist that the annual high-heels-and-swimsuit extravaganza is really a "scholarship program?"
They’re not kidding.
Why else would the Miss America Foundation just have created a brand new scholarship solely for women who once wore the crown?
The “Former Miss America Discretionary Scholarship” will award up to $10,000 to winners who are at least 10 years beyond the night they sashayed down the runway in Atlantic City to the tune of “There she is …”
Yep, that's right. The first runners-up are out of luck. Again.
"When Miss America 2017 is crowned this September in Atlantic City, she will receive a $50,000 scholarship to further her education for the decade ahead," said Sam Haskell, Executive Chairman of the Miss America Organization and Trustee of The Miss America Foundation, the separate 501(c)3 non-profit that supports the organization's education mission. "However, many of our Miss Americas wish to further their educational goals after their 10-year scholarship window has expired."
Only 89 women have ever been Miss America (Mary Katherine Campbell of Columbus, Ohio, won back-to-back titles in 1922 and 1923, and Suzette Charles replaced a scandal-plagued Vanessa Williams in 1984). Among them are the current Miss America, Georgia's own Betty Cantrell, whose post-reign plans include moving to Nashville and becoming a country music singer, according to Rolling Stone.
[ Video: Miss America Betty Cantrell answers AJC readers' questions ]
And Miss America 1989, Gretchen Carlson, the ex-Fox News host who recently fired a sexual harassment lawsuit against her boss there, Roger Ailes (He’s denied harassing her, but left the network last week).
But just because there’s almost no competition doesn’t mean every ex-queen automatically gets one of the scholarships. To qualify, she must be enrolled in an accredited academic institution, fill out a detailed four-page application that includes questions about her high school GPA and every contest in the Miss America system she competed in, and provide two letters of reference (personally, we’d start with Miss Congeniality).
[ Gallery: Miss America Betty Cantrell flips pancakes at Chamblee IHOP ]
The next Miss America will be crowned on Sept. 11 in Atlantic City.