Rising Lakeside High School senior Mady Rottinghaus accumulated more than $2,000 in scholarship rewards in this year's state teen pageant.
The 12th annual Miss Arkansas' Outstanding Teen pageant was held June 9-11 at The Center for the Arts in Russellville. Private interviews were conducted on June 8.
Rottinghaus earned third runner-up and won the Overall Interview Award. She first competed at the state level in 2015, but was not among the top 15 out of the 33 contestants and decided to revise her approach, especially in the interview.
"It was amazing because I knew I had worked so hard for that," Rottinghaus said. "Honestly, when I got the award, I thought, 'What in the world is this?' Because I was not expecting it at all. In fact, I came out of my interview crying because I thought it was so bad."
Rottinghaus represented Hot Springs after she won Miss Greater Hot Springs Outstanding Teen in the fall. The pageant was held at the Five Star Dinner Theatre and the private interviews were held at The Greater Hot Springs Chamber of Commerce.
Stoni Butler, of Camden, won Miss Greater Hot Springs to compete in the Miss Arkansas Scholarship Pageant. Bank of the Ozarks Arena will host the Miss Arkansas competition July 6-9.
Rottinghaus, 16, first competed in the Junior Miss Lakeside pageant when she was 14 and finished as the runner-up. She is the daughter of Michael and Amber Rottinghaus, a kindergarten teacher at Lakeside Primary School.
"I thought, well, I could do this," Rottinghaus said. "My mom was in pageants and I could see all of the benefits from it."
Greater Hot Springs marked the fifth crown for Rottinghaus. She won Miss Arkansas Valley Outstanding Teen in Clarksville two summers ago to qualify for the 2015 state pageant.
"That was kind of hard because I couldn't always go to Clarksville every weekend," Rottinghaus said. "So I would just go when I could, but getting Miss Greater Hot Springs is so much easier. I love it because I can just go out, put my banner on and do anything here in town. I do like being able to be a hometown girl and represent it."
Rottinghaus felt the interview portion was her weakest component. She decided to focus on the interview and take a different approach.
"This year, I worked really hard at making sure people knew that I was actually intelligent," Rottinghaus said. "That is why I did so well this year because I find it easy to talk to people, but this year I was a lot more serious about it."
The private interviews account for 25 percent, the second-most of the five components, of contestants' scores. Rottinghaus worked with Gina Cate, executive director of the Miss Greater Hot Springs pageant, and private coaches to improve her interview.
Rottinghaus was not confident after her interview due to the topics raised by the judges. She was asked about Donald Trump, transgender rights and the upcoming 2016 Summer Olympics in Brazil.
A panel of judges conducts interviews with each candidate for eight minutes. They are accompanied by top pageant officials and video personnel. Contestants only have a podium available to them.
"I don't go near the podium at all," Rottinghaus said. "That's a no-no."
Rottinghaus used footage from each of her pageant interviews to study herself. She took part in several mock interviews to prepare for this year's state pageant.
"I basically revamped everything this year and I really worked hard on my platform," Rottinghaus said.
Her platform, Helping Others Practice English, has been a program at Lakeside for the last two years. She and faculty volunteers, as well as volunteers from local service groups, work with English as a Second Language students and their families every Tuesday.
Rottinghaus said the program has been rewarding for the growth shown by its participants. She lived in Brazil for a year, learned Portuguese and discovered the importance of language and communication.
Changes were made to Rottinghaus' talent performance as well. She dropped any accompanying music during her performance of "Stormy Night" on the piano.
The changes garnered early rewards as Rottinghaus won the interview and talent portion at Miss Greater Hot Springs. She received a $100 cash scholarship sponsored by Clay Combs State Farm and a prize package of more than $3,000.
The Miss Arkansas Outstanding Teen Scholarship Organization presented Rottinghaus with $1,250 for third runner-up. Every participant received $200, increased from $100 in 2015.
Emily Brewer, of North Little Rock, won $5,000 as 2016 Miss Arkansas' Outstanding Teen. Brewer qualified through the Miss Greater Little Rock pageant.
Aubrey Reed, of Russellville, qualified through the Miss Ouachita River pageant and earned $2,000 for first runner-up. Katie Gardner, of Fayetteville, qualified through Miss White River and received $1,500 for second runner-up. Camille Cathey, of Wynne, finished as the fourth runner-up after she qualified through Miss River Delta.
A new white evening gown seemed to pay off for Rottinghaus. All five finalists wore white.
Talent accounts for 35 percent of the final scores. Evening wear and onstage questions account for 20 percent together. The lifestyle and fitness in sportswear component and scholastic achievement each account for 10 percent.
Rottinghaus received $500 for the Overall Interview Award from Laura Leigh Turner, 2012 Miss Arkansas' Outstanding Teen, of Sherwood. She was a finalist for the Teens in Action award and received another $100 from the MAROTeen Scholarship Organization.
Sixteen local businesses and organizations sponsored Rottinghaus at the state pageant. National Park Medical Center and Chantilly Boutique provided the most significant local sponsorships.
Contestants can compete in Miss Arkansas Outstanding Teen until the age of 17, but seniors in high school are not eligible. Rottinghaus is unsure if she will compete in more pageants. Qualifiers for the 2017 Miss Arkansas Scholarship Pageant will begin this summer.
"I have everything ready right now," Rottinghaus said. "So why not try it out for a year, but I also want to play volleyball in college. I have to balance both of those."
Rottinghaus has been an all-conference volleyball player for the Lady Rams. She may attend Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia to play volleyball. She hopes to become an orthodontist or an oral surgeon.
Lakeside selected Rottinghaus and seven other rising seniors for the 74th session of the American Legion Auxiliary Girls State program. Harding University in Searcy hosts the program.
Rottinghaus wants to keep HOPE alive. She plans to continue to volunteer with ESL students and would like to develop similar programs in other local school districts.
Local on 06/22/2016