After being named Miss Pennsylvania, Samantha competed in
the Miss America competition which she said was an exciting
experience. She performed a gymnastics routine in the talent
portion, and one of her highlights of the competition was
meeting Olympic gold-medal gymnast Gabby Douglas, who
was one of the judges.
Following her yearlong reign as Miss Pennsylvania, Samantha
plans to continue to work as a gymnastics instructor and to
accomplish another dream – finishing her degree in industrial
engineering at the University of Pittsburgh.
Being Miss Pennsylvania is a job of service, Samantha told her
young audience. As a part of her yearlong
duties, she is the state ambassador for
the Children’s Miracle Network and
makes guest appearances at the six
children’s hospitals throughout the state.
The Miss America program partners
with the Children’s Miracle Network,
she explained. She also continues to
be involved with an organization that
is close to her heart, the Brain Injury
Association of Pennsylvania which is
part of the national organization. “The
title and crown draw attention to me,
and I hope to use the attention that I
have during my year to highlight these
meaningful causes.”
After the assembly, Samantha met with
some of her former teachers who are
still at Fairview, and she also visited her
Fourth grader Mary Ann Frauenholz was so excited, she rushed
to meet her idol, Samantha, in person following the assembly.
“This was probably the best time of my life. I love who she is.
This made me feel fabulous,” Mary Ann said. Also a gymnast
and a fan of Gabby Douglas, she added, “We’re kinda alike.”
Her message to students was clear, “Always work hard and keep
going… Try something outside of your comfort zone. You
never know what you can accomplish.”
Samantha shares a laugh with the student who sits in her old spot in teacher Mary Jo Bisceglia’s
classroom.
DMS STUDENTS CREATE E-BOOKS & READ TO
HARTWOOD STUDENTS
D
orseyville Middle School students from Team
8C recently visited Hartwood Elementary
School fourth graders. The older students
shared astronomy e-books that they had written
themselves on their iPads using the Book Creator app.
The books, specifically geared to fourth graders, included
words, illustrations, and pictures. Prior to creating their
books, the middle school students studied astronomy as part
of their science class.
Fox Chapel Area | Winter 2016 | icmags.com 17
FOX C HAP E L ARE A SC HOOL N E WS
fourth grade classroom. There, she and Ms. Bisceglia looked at
her old class photo still posted on the wall, and she sat at her
former desk.
Fox Chapel Area
In fact, those two women were the final two standing that
year at the Miss America competition that she watched on TV.
Again, the path to becoming Miss Pennsylvania was not easy. It
wasn’t until she competed for the third time that she won the
title. “Not once was I upset,” she said about not winning the
first two times around and she observed the top contestants in
the competition. “I looked at other people’s success and I was
happy for them and learned from them.”