Colleen Ward is an American

beauty pageant A beauty pageant is a competition in which the contestants are judged and ranked based on various physical and mental attributes. Per its name, beauty pageants traditionally focus on judging the contestants' physical attractiveness, sometimes sol ...

titleholder from

Wolcott, Connecticut Wolcott ( ) is a New England town, town in New Haven County, Connecticut, New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, Connecticut, Naugatuck Valley Planning Region. It is primarily reside ...

, who was crowned

Miss Connecticut The Miss Connecticut competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Connecticut in the Miss America pageant. Connecticut has won the Miss America crown once (Marian Bergeron, 1933), and is the only New England sta ...

2015. She competed for the

Miss America 2016 Miss America 2016 was the 89th Miss America pageant, held at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on September 13, 2015. Kira Kazantsev of New York crowned Betty Cantrell of Georgia as her successor at the end of the event. Accordi ...

title in September 2015.

Pageant career

Early pageants

Entering her hometown pageant, Ward vied for the Miss Wolcott 2011 title in November 2010 and for the Miss Wolcott 2012 title in November 2011 but failed to claim the crown both times. On December 3, 2011, Ward won the Miss Greater Waterbury 2012 title. She competed in the 2012

pageant with the platform "Promoting Childhood Literacy: Encouraging a Healthy Mind for a Healthy Body" and a dance performance in the talent portion of the competition. She was not a finalist for the state title. She did not participate in the 2013 or 2014 Miss Connecticut pageants.

Miss Connecticut 2015

On January 17, 2015, Ward was crowned Miss Windham County 2015. She earned a $250 scholarship prize plus a package of prizes designed to help her prepare for the state pageant at the

Mohegan Sun Mohegan Sun is a large casino and entertainment complex located on 240 acres (97 ha) of the Mohegan Indian Reservation in Uncasville, Connecticut, along the banks of the Thames River (Connecticut), Thames River. It is owned and operated by the fe ...

Uncasville, Connecticut Uncasville is a village in the town of Montville, Connecticut, United States. It is located in southeastern Montville, at the mouth of the Oxoboxo River where it flows into the Thames River. The name is now applied more generally to all of the ...

. She entered the

pageant in June 2015 as one of 13 qualifiers for the state title. Ward's competition talent was traditional

Irish stepdance Irish stepdance is a style of performance dance with its roots in traditional Irish dance. It is generally characterized by a stiff upper body and fast and precise movements of the feet. It can be performed solo or in groups. Aside from public ...

. Her platform is "Promoting Childhood Literacy: Encouraging a Healthy Mind for a Healthy Life". Ward won the competition on Saturday, June 27, 2015, when she received her crown from outgoing Miss Connecticut titleholder Acacia Courtney. She earned more than $8,500 in scholarship money and other prizes from the state pageant. As Miss Connecticut, her activities include public appearances across the state of Connecticut.

Vying for Miss America 2016

Ward was Connecticut's representative at the

pageant in

Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, sometimes referred to by its initials A.C., is a Jersey Shore seaside resort city (New Jersey), city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Atlantic City comprises the second half of ...

, in September 2015. In the televised finale on September 13, 2015, she placed outside the Top 15 semi-finalists and was eliminated from competition. She was awarded a $3,000 scholarship prize as her state's representative.

Early life and education

Ward is a native of

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, and a 2010 graduate of Wolcott High School. Ward is a May 2015 graduate of

Central Connecticut State University Central Connecticut State University (Central Connecticut, CCSU, Central Connecticut State, or informally Central) is a public university in New Britain, Connecticut. Founded in 1849 as the State Normal School, CCSU is Connecticut's oldest publi ...

where she earned a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

degree in

elementary education Primary education is the first stage of formal education, coming after preschool/kindergarten and before secondary education. Primary education takes place in ''primary schools'', ''elementary schools'', or first schools and middle schools, de ...

References

External links

Miss Connecticut official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ward, Colleen Living people 1990s births American beauty pageant winners Miss America 2016 delegates People from Wolcott, Connecticut Central Connecticut State University alumni Year of birth missing (living people)