Christina Yvette Ellington Pares, (born 1982), is a Charter school principal, beauty queen and entertainer in the tri-state area. Pares' first major beauty pageant title was

Miss New York The Miss New York scholarship competition selects the representative for the state of New York in the Miss America scholarship competition. In the fall of 2018, the Miss America Organization terminated the Miss New York organization's license ...

2004, which she won competing as Miss Southern New York. She had previously placed second runner-up in 2003 as Miss Manhattan, and second runner-up in 2002 as Miss Five Boroughs. Pares is an

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

singer who won a preliminary talent award in 2004, and tied for the award in 2002. She also won the

evening gown An evening gown, evening dress or gown is a long dress usually worn at formal occasions. The drop ranges from ballerina (mid-calf to just above the ankles), tea (above the ankles), to full-length. Such gowns are typically worn with evening ...

award in 2004. Pares represented her state at the Miss America 2005 pageant televised live from Atlantic City, New Jersey in September 2004. She was a top ten finalist in the pageant, which was won by Deidre Downs of

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

. Pares is known for her initiatives with childhood cancer and urban city education, which she incorporated into her pageant platform: "The Power of our Nation's Educators" Pares grew up in

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

and attended

Danbury High School Danbury High School is a public high school in Danbury, Connecticut, with approximately 3000 students. It is part of the Danbury Public Schools district. Despite Danbury's population of 86,518 (as of 2020), there is only one public high school, ...

. As well as Miss New York, Pares has held a number of other titles, including Miss Connecticut Teen America where she was 1st runner up to

Miss Teen America Miss Teen America is an American Beauty Contest, beauty contest that serves as a training ground for many young American girls, many of whom go on to win other titles. Winners have had ongoing columns in Supermodels Unlimited and Pageantry magazine ...

2001, Miss Southern New England Teen 1998, Miss Manhattan, Miss Five Boroughs, and Miss Southern New York. She went to the prestigious New York University

Tisch School of the Arts The New York University Tisch School of the Arts (commonly referred to as Tisch) is the performing, cinematic and media arts school of New York University. Founded on August 17, 1965, Tisch is a training ground for artists, scholars of the a ...

- Collaborative Arts Project 21 Musical Theatre Conservatory for her undergraduate studies. She has played leading roles from Maria in

West Side Story ''West Side Story'' is a musical conceived by Jerome Robbins with music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Inspired by William Shakespeare's play '' Romeo and Juliet'', the story is set in the mid ...

to a one-woman show as Ethel Waters. She continued her studies at New York University and earned a master's degree in May 2007. She resides in Danbury, Connecticut and is the Principal at Achievement First Bridgeport Academy Middle School in Bridgeport, CT.

External links

Miss New York official website

It's a wonderful state

Miss New York a local beauty
Living people 1982 births Miss America 2005 delegates People from Danbury, Connecticut People from Manhattan Tisch School of the Arts alumni Miss New York winners American school principals Danbury High School alumni {{US-pageant-bio-stub