Camille Schrier
Schrier in 2021
Born
Camille Thomasina Schrier

(1995-06-30) June 30, 1995 (age 28)
Doylestown, Pennsylvania, U.S.
EducationHun School of Princeton
University of Michigan
Virginia Tech
VCU School of Pharmacy
TitleMiss Dominion 2019
Miss Virginia 2019
Miss America 2020[1]
TermDecember 19, 2019 – December 16, 2021
PredecessorNia Franklin
SuccessorEmma Broyles

Camille Thomasina Schrier (/ˈʃraɪər/; born June 30, 1995) is an American pageant titleholder.[2] On June 22, 2019, she was crowned Miss Virginia 2019.[3] On December 19, 2019, she was crowned Miss America 2020 in Uncasville, Connecticut.[4]

In May 2020, following the cancellation of the Miss America 2021 competition due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Miss America organization announced that Schrier would serve an additional year after her term as Miss America was due to expire in December 2020.[5][6]

Early life and education

Schrier was born in Doylestown, Pennsylvania to Thomas and Cheryl (née Camillo) Schrier. She has one older sibling. As a child, Schrier was diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome.[7][8] During the Miss America 2020 competition, Schrier also revealed that she was diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder and recovered from an eating disorder as a teenager.[9]

Schrier graduated with honors from the Hun School of Princeton in 2013.[10] During high school, Schrier was a multi-sport varsity athlete; participating in track and field, swimming, and field hockey.[10] Schrier briefly attended University of Michigan before transferring to Virginia Tech her junior year and graduating cum laude in 2018 with dual bachelor of science degrees, one in biochemistry and one in systems biology and a minor in chemistry.[7][11][12] At Virginia Tech, she was in Kappa Delta sorority.[11] She was accepted to VCU School of Pharmacy and had completed her first year of doctoral program before winning the Miss Virginia title.

Pageantry

Schrier performs on stage during the USO Summer Tour, July 1, 2021, at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas

Early pageantry

Schrier began competing in pageants at the age of 14.[12] She previously earned titles of National American Miss (NAM) Pennsylvania Teen 2012 and was named the 1st runner-up in 2012 national competition.[10][13]

Miss Virginia 2019 pageant

On June 22, 2019, she competed as Miss Dominion at the 2019 Miss Virginia pageant in Lynchburg, Virginia after a 6-year hiatus from competing in pageants.[14] For the talent competition, she completed a chemistry demonstration of the catalytic decomposition of hydrogen peroxide with potassium iodide (also known as "elephant toothpaste").[14][15] At the conclusion of the pageant, she was crowned Miss Virginia 2019 and took a year off from pharmacy school to fulfill her responsibilities as Miss Virginia.[3][11]

Miss America 2020 competition

Schrier represented Virginia at the Miss America 2020 competition held at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut, on December 19, 2019, with a platform of "Mind Your Meds: Drug Safety and Abuse Prevention from Pediatrics to Geriatrics."[2]

She bested first runner-up, Miss Georgia 2019, Victoria Hill, for the 2020 Miss America title and was crowned by Miss America 2019, Nia Franklin, on December 19, 2019.[4] Along with the title of Miss America, Schrier also won a $50,000 scholarship and a $2,000 scholarship for her preliminary talent competition win.[citation needed] Schrier was the fourth Miss Virginia (and second Virginia Tech alumna) to win the Miss America title.[11]

Schrier's reign was originally scheduled to end in December 2020, but the planned 2021 competition was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the next pageant scheduled at the end of 2021.

References

  1. ^ "Miss Virginia - Miss Virginia". missva.org. Virginia, U.S.: Miss Virginia. Retrieved 2019-12-20.
  2. ^ a b Roberto, Melissa (December 20, 2019). "Miss America 2020 goes to Virginia biochemist Camille Schrier after on-stage science experiment". Fox News. U.S.: Fox News. Retrieved 2019-12-20.
  3. ^ a b "Richmond woman named Miss Virginia 2019 at Liberty University". The News & Advance. June 22, 2019.
  4. ^ a b Goldstein, Joelle; Maslow, Nick (December 19, 2019). "Miss America Is Now a Scientist! Camille Schrier of Virginia Wins Crown After On-Stage Experiment". People.
  5. ^ Goldstein, Joelle (June 1, 2020). "Miss America Will Be First to Reign for 2 Years Due to Pandemic: 'I Better Be a Jeopardy Question'". PEOPLE.
  6. ^ Bilinski, Molly (May 9, 2020). "Miss America postponed due to COVID-19 pandemic". The Press of Atlantic City.
  7. ^ a b Silvestri, Vivian (June 15, 2013). "Camille Works to Raise Awareness of Ehlers Danlos Syndrome". Chronic Pain Partners.
  8. ^ "Two students from Princeton's Hun School to attend National American Miss Pageant". NJ.com. November 14, 2012.
  9. ^ Haas, Susan (December 19, 2019). "Miss America crowns Camille Schrier of Virginia as fans pan changes: Everything you missed". USA Today.
  10. ^ a b c "Camille Schrier to attend National American Miss Competition". Patch.com. August 16, 2012.
  11. ^ a b c d "Virginia Tech alumna takes science to pageant stage". Virginia Tech. July 12, 2019.
  12. ^ a b Locker, Melissa (July 20, 2019). "Biochemist from Richmond Wins the Miss Virginia Crown". Southern Living.
  13. ^ "2012 National Results". National America Miss.
  14. ^ a b Parkar, Nabihah (July 4, 2019). "Scientist Camille Schrier wins Miss Virginia by 'breaking stereotypes'". BBC.
  15. ^ Willingham, AJ (July 3, 2019). "The newly crowned Miss Virginia did a science experiment for her talent performance". CNN.
Awards and achievements
Preceded by Miss America
2020 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Emili McPhail
 Miss Virginia
2019 		Succeeded by
Dot Kelly