Miss IU. Miss Indiana. Miss America?

Just two days after being awarded her new title, IU graduate student Betsy Uschkrat stood outside the Sample Gates, her new sparkling crown replacing the old one she won just months ago as Miss IU. But now, instead of being the pageant's representative from a campus of almost 40,000, she will be now representing a state of more than six million. \nSaturday night Uschkrat was crowned this year's Miss Indiana, and perhaps more exciting, she is now given the chance to compete on the national stage in this year's Miss America pageant. \n"It's just amazing, it's a dream come true," Uschkrat said. "I still get really emotional just thinking about it."\nUschkrat credited her experience on the stage for a big part of the win. She has been involved in beauty pageants since her freshman year of college, winning a local Texas pageant before she moved to Indiana. \n"(The pageants) are just so addicting," she said. "I learn more and more every year I do them. It has been such an enriching aspect in my life."\nIn 2005 she placed sixth in the Miss Texas title, after claiming the Miss Houston title the same year. Then this February she was crowned as the first Miss IU after a 37-year absence of the competition on campus, and in turn was granted the automatic bid to compete in last weekend's state competition in Zionsville, Ind.\nDean of Students Richard McKaig, who was one of Uschkrat's judges during the Miss IU pageant, met briefly with her a couple days after the state competition to congratulate her.\n"This obviously reflects on all of her abilities," McKaig said. "But it is also great for the University to celebrate our students' accomplishments." \nEven when not competing on the pageant circuit, Uschkrat remains drawn to the stage. Pursuing a masters degree in music in vocal performance at the Jacobs School of Music, she is an accomplished opera singer, with credits including last year's performance of "Romeo and Juliet," and is scheduled to play the lead in an upcoming IU performance. After graduating she said she plans to pursue a career in opera performing and has already been to several auditions for roles. \nHer opera abilities benefitted her in the Miss Indiana pageant as well, as she invoked her singing skills in the talent competition and ended up taking first place in the category. \nWhile she said she really enjoyed the talent portion of the contest, her favorite part of the pageant was meeting and spending time with the other contestants. \n"These girls are people you just want to see tomorrow," Uschkrat said. "They were just so welcoming and supportive. They are really great."\nAll contestants are required to support a platform of some kind of social issue, and Uschkrat's philanthropy is one that she strongly believes in because she has personally taken a stand to fight hunger. She said that since about 600,000 impoverished Hoosiers go to bed hungry every night, she has founded the Heart and Soul Benefit Concert in order to raise awareness and funds for the cause. After the first concert in 1998, inspired by her parents, she said the group has raised more than $70,000 while putting on the event almost every year. In addition, she has been named the state spokesperson of Feeding Indiana's Hungry, an organization that links food banks across the state and in May appeared with Lt. Governor Becky Skillman at Bloomington's Hoosier Hills Food Bank to promote the cause. Uschkrat said she plans to continue supporting the campaign to end hunger as she moves on to compete in the Miss America pageant. \nIn addition she will be taking classes at IU during the fall, performing in opera events and spending significant time over the next few months preparing for the national pageant by practicing her interview skills, shopping for the right wardrobe and exercising constantly. \n"I will be working out a lot to get that swimsuit body exactly how I like it for the swimsuit competition," she said. \nLindsay Shipps Etienne, executive director of the Miss IU Pageant, said that like before the Miss Indiana contest, Uschkrat will prepare by working with a physical trainer, doing interview prep with various IU professors and will be working on her opera skills for the talent portion. \nIn addition Uschkrat will have to prepare for a brand new format for the Miss America pageant. The final contest, which is scheduled to be held next January, will now rely on viewers' votes for a significant portion of determining which contestants will move on.\n"We really need to put the word out now that our former Miss IU comes to play as a finalist," Shipps Etienne said. "We need to get the vote out American Idol style."\nAlso, prior to the competition a new reality series will feature all the contestants since they will live together for several weeks in the fall, and Uschkrat said she is very excited about it. \n"It will be like nothing I nor anyone else has ever known before," she said. \nUschkrat said she hopes her mom will visit her often during her run up to the contest. Karen Uschkrat, Betsy's mother, said that in the past she has supported her daughter by taking her shopping, conducting mock interviews with her, helping her work on her walk and just chatting to help ease her nervousness before a competition. She said that despite all the hard work it has been a lot of fun for both her and her daughter. Uschkrat said all the support has inspired her greatly in pursuing the title of Miss America. \n"I love my mom so much and I know it's just as much her dream as it is mine," Uschkrat said.