The next Miss Miami Gardens will be crowned tonight as the Miss Miami Gardens Scholarship Program returns to the stage at the Betty T. Ferguson Recreational Complex on Saturday, March 14. Doors open at 6 p.m. and the pageant begins at 6:30 p.m., bringing the community together for an evening that celebrates scholarship, service, talent and leadership.
But the Miss Miami Gardens Scholarship Program represents more than a crown. It represents opportunity.
The pageant was originally created in 2007 by then–Miami Gardens Councilman Melvin Bratton Sr, who served as a judge within the Miss America system. After witnessing the scholarship opportunities and career doors the program opened for young women in other communities, Bratton believed Miami Gardens — a predominantly Black city — deserved access to the same platform.
At the time, women of color were significantly underrepresented in the pageant world, and Bratton saw the scholarship competition as a way to expand access to education, leadership development and professional opportunities for young women in the community.
The pageant ran successfully from 2007 through 2011 under the diretion of Tamilla Mullings and Ula Zucker, but the economic downturn eventually forced the City of Miami Gardens to discontinue funding for the program. When Bratton termed out of office, there was no longer a sitting elected official advocating for the city-funded initiative, and the pageant quietly went dormant.
For more than 12 years, the Miss Miami Gardens crown sat vacant. That changed in 2023, when WSVN Anchor Taveres Jones, who has roots in the pageant industry, stepped in to revive the scholarship program and bring the opportunity back to the city.
Since its return, the pageant has once again become a platform for young women to showcase their voices and leadership while competing for scholarship funding and the chance to advance to the Miss Florida stage.
Contestants competing tonight will be judged across multiple areas of competition including On-Stage Conversation, Fitness Wear, Talent and Evening Gown, while also highlighting the community service initiatives they have championed throughout their preparation for the pageant.
Each delegate has spent months preparing not only for the competition itself, but also for the responsibility of serving as a community ambassador.
According to Dr. Niesha Mack Massingill, the new Executive Director of the Miss Miami Gardens Scholarship Program, the pageant repesents more than fancy gowns and pretty faces.
“The Miss Miami Gardens Scholarship Program is about far more than crowns and titles,” Massingill said. “It is about investing in young women who demonstrate leadership, compassion, and a commitment to serving others. These delegates represent the brilliance, talent, and promise of the next generation.”
The evening will also feature a spoken word performance by acclaimed poet Rebecca Phoenix Vaughns, adding a creative element to the program.
The City of Miami Gardens, under the leadership of Vice Mayor Robert L. Stephens III, serves as the Title Sponsor, helping provide scholarship support for the young women participating in the program.
Tonight’s pageant will also crown Miss Miami Gardens’ Teen along with additional titleholders.
For many contestants, tonight marks the beginning of a journey that could take them all the way to the Miss Florida stage — and potentially to the Miss America crown.
For Hy-Lo News Founder Janey Tate, the pageant holds a special place in her personal story. Tate was crowned Miss Miami Gardens in 2011 and remains the only titleholder in the pageant’s history to place in the Top 15 at the Miss Florida Pageant, the statewide competition local winners advance to. The Miss Florida Pageant is part of the Miss America Organization, meaning this local competition represents the very first step on the journey toward becoming the next Miss America. The pageant provided Tate the chance encounter to network with then CBS 4 Miami Reporter, Sharrie Williams, who emceed the pageant in 2009. From that connection, Tate was given a reccomendation from Williams. It allowed her to gain one of her first news internships at CBS 4 Miami, which helped to launch her career in journalism.
Hy-Lo News Founder, Janey Tate, as then Miss Miami Gardens 2011. Photo Credit: J Love Photography.
Hy-Lo News is proud to serve as a media partner for this year’s scholarship pageant, and we’ll be on the ground tonight covering the competition and introducing the community to the young women competing for the title. To help bring the community into the experience, Hy-Lo News also gave away seven tickets to the pageant, giving local residents the opportunity to attend and support the contestants as they take the stage. We’ll help introduce the community to the young woman who will carry the Miss Miami Gardens title into the next chapter of the program’s legacy.
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