Kiʻilani Arruda
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Kiʻilani Arruda (born April 13, 2002) is an American beauty pageant titleholder who won
Miss Hawaii Teen USA The Miss Hawaii Teen USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Hawaii in the Miss Teen USA pageant. Although Hawaii has made the cut fewer times than many states, they have achieved a number of high p ...
2020. Arruda had previously won
Miss Teen USA 2020 Miss Teen USA 2020 was the 38th Miss Teen USA pageant. Originally scheduled to be held in spring 2020, the competition was postponed indefinitely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was later rescheduled for November 7, 2020, at the Exhibition Cent ...
; she is the second competitor from Hawaii to have won Miss Teen USA.


Early life and education

Arruda was born on April 13, 2002, in Kapaa, Hawaii. She is half Filipino. She has two siblings, one with
autism Autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by differences or difficulties in social communication and interaction, a preference for predictability and routine, sensory processing d ...
, that led her to became an advocate for
autism awareness Autism-friendly means being aware of social engagement and environmental factors affecting autistic people, with modifications to communication methods and physical space to better suit individuals' unique needs. Overview Autistic individ ...
. Arruda attended Island School in
Lihue Līhue () is an unincorporated community, census-designated place (CDP) and the county seat of Kauai County, Hawaii, United States. Līhue is the second-largest town on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, following Kapaa. As of the 2010 census, the ...
, where she was elected
student body president The student government president (sometimes called a student body president, student council president, or simply a school president) is generally the highest-ranking officer of a student union. While a student government group and a class presi ...
and graduated in 2020. While at high school, she was a member of her school's varsity volleyball, swim, and track and field teams. Prior to becoming Miss Teen USA, she was a freshman at the
University of Puget Sound The University of Puget Sound is a private liberal arts college in Tacoma, Washington, United States. It was founded in 1888. The institution offers a variety of undergraduate degrees as well as five graduate programs in counseling, education, oc ...
, studying
molecular A molecule is a group of two or more atoms that are held together by attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions that satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemistry, ...
and
cellular biology Cell biology (also cellular biology or cytology) is a branch of biology that studies the Anatomy, structure, Physiology, function, and behavior of cell (biology), cells. All living organisms are made of cells. A cell is the basic unit of life th ...
on a
pre-medical Pre-medical (often referred to as pre-med) is an educational track that undergraduate students mostly in the United States pursue prior to becoming medical students. It involves activities that prepare a student for medical school, such as pre-med ...
track, with a minor in Spanish.


Pageantry

Arruda won Miss Kauai Teen USA 2018, which allowed her to compete in
Miss Hawaii Teen USA The Miss Hawaii Teen USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Hawaii in the Miss Teen USA pageant. Although Hawaii has made the cut fewer times than many states, they have achieved a number of high p ...
2019, where she was second runner-up and Miss Congeniality. She returned to the competition the following year, and was won Miss Hawaii Teen USA 2020. As Miss Hawaii Teen USA, Arruda represented Hawaii and won
Miss Teen USA 2020 Miss Teen USA 2020 was the 38th Miss Teen USA pageant. Originally scheduled to be held in spring 2020, the competition was postponed indefinitely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was later rescheduled for November 7, 2020, at the Exhibition Cent ...
. Originally planned for the spring of 2020, the competition was postponed due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, and later held on November 7, 2020, at
Graceland Graceland is a mansion on a estate in Memphis, Tennessee, United States, once owned by American singer Elvis Presley. Presley is buried there, as are his parents Vernon and Gladys, paternal grandmother Minnie Mae, grandson Benjamin, and daugh ...
in
Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...
. She was crowned by the outgoing titleholder Kaliegh Garris. Arruda became the second competitor from Hawaii to win the competition, following
Kelly Hu Kelly Ann Hu (born February 13, 1968) is an American actress. She starred as Dr. Rae Chang on the American television soap opera '' Sunset Beach'' and as Michelle Chan on the American television police drama series '' Nash Bridges''. She has st ...
who won
Miss Teen USA 1985 Miss Teen USA 1985, the 3rd Miss Teen USA pageant, was televised live from the James L. Knight International Center Arena in Miami, Florida on 22 January 1985. At the conclusion of the final competition, Kelly Hu of Hawaii was crowned by outgoi ...
.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arruda, Kiilani 2002 births American beauty pageant winners American people of Filipino descent Autism activists Hawaii people of Filipino descent Living people Miss Teen USA winners People from Kauai County, Hawaii University of Puget Sound alumni