When Teresa Scanlan was crowned Miss America 2011 she became the youngest woman to wear the crown in over 70 years and the very first Miss Nebraska to become Miss America. Teresa is the daughter of Mark and Janie Scanlan and is from Gering, Nebraska. As the middle child of seven, Teresa was homeschooled through her junior year of high school and then graduated a year early from Scottsbluff High School in 2010.

She has now deferred enrollment to Patrick Henry College in Purcellville, Virginia, where she is set to attend in the Fall of 2012 and plans on majoring in government and then attending Harvard Law to become a criminal prosecutor. Hoping to become a judge and eventually be involved in the political arena, her highest career goals are to become President or a Supreme Court Justice. As a Christian in the political arena, she hopes to break down the stereotype of crooked and dishonest politicians, operating instead under character and integrity.

As Miss America 2011, Teresa worked to promote the Miss America Organization and the scholarships it provides, the national platform of Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, and her personal platform on eating disorders, as well as serving our nation’s military and working with the USO and being an advocate for agriculture and working with The Hand That Feeds U.S. Additionally, she spent time as a spokesperson and advocate for many other organizations and causes including the Heart Association, the American Cancer Society, Youth Service America, the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, the Taste of the NFL, Keep America Beautiful, Produce for Kids, Special Olympics, and more.

In her spare time, Teresa enjoys singing, acting, dancing, playing piano and guitar, composing songs, baking, hiking, participating in activities with her local church, and making clothes out of duct tape, among many other hobbies. She continues to travel as a motivational speaker and spokesperson and is also in the process of recording an album with composer and pianist Calvin Jones.

For news and updates, you can follow her at @TeresaScanlan on Twitter and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TeresaMScanlan

View Teresa's photo album