For Stephanie Finoti, who currently wears the Miss Ohio 2024 crown, setting her sights on becoming the next Miss America is not just about glitz and glamour.
The Miss America competition has the reputation of being little more than a beauty pageant, but to Finoti, like beauty, that reputation is only skin deep.
“There’s a big misconception that it’s just about flaunting, about beauty and being very vain,” said Finoti, who has performed more than 500 hours of community service during her reign as Miss Ohio.
“(My job) is to truly be a community servant. It’s always been about giving back.”
Columbus native Stephanie Finoti waves during her emotional win at the Miss Ohio competition last June. The University of Cincinnati grad is now making a run for Miss America.
Giving back is the 22-year-old Columbus native’s reason for being, especially when it comes to reaching marginalized youth in economically challenged communities, something she knows about firsthand.
“I come from a very poor background. My parents immigrated from Brazil right before I was born. As a Latina, first-generation college student and daughter of immigrants, I faced many challenges,” said Finoti, who recently graduated from the University of Cincinnati with a degree in biomedical science and public health.
“Growing up in a community where (many) students are minorities and live in poverty, there was little expectation for me, and I was often underestimated.”
Knowing the damage that low expectations can do to youngsters’ self-esteem, Finoti is dedicated to building up instead of tearing down, unless it’s breaking down the obstacles that deter young people from success.
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That’s why her personal mantra is, “My dreams are bigger than my fears. I won’t let stigmas define me or barriers confine me.”
“My parents ingrained in me that I could be anyone I wanted to be, I just had to work hard and push past those barriers.
“I tell young people that the circumstances they’re in, whether facing poverty or even homelessness — I have faced homelessness, I lived in a group home — these circumstances are only temporary. They do not define your future success,” she said.
“If you have perseverance and drive, you can be able to overcome all barriers and stereotypes. I try to use my platform to encourage young women by telling my story.”
From Little Miss Whitehall to Miss Ohio
Finoti’s story begins when she began competing in pageants at age 4. A hit from the beginning, she not only won Little Miss Whitehall, but also the city’s Young Miss, Junior Miss and Miss Whitehall contests.
“When I won my first title, I loved it and wanted to keep competing. I’m in awe looking back and seeing those competitions I did just for fun and how they impacted my life,” she said.
“Without them, I wouldn’t be as well-spoken and confident as the woman I am.”
Columbus native Stephanie Finoti, front row center, is all smiles after winning the title of Little Miss Whitehall. She is now Miss Ohio 2024 and competing for Miss America 2025.
Even while doing pageants and representing her community, Finoti held jobs such as cleaning ballet studios and teaching in exchange for free classes.
In addition to her parents, Finoti was fortunate to have several supporters and role models, including librarians who taught her to speak and write English.
A mentorship at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Care Center-Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC–James) taught Finoti the importance of having someone to help her navigate the road to her dreams.
“I gained a mentor who was a physician. They helped me find scholarships and guide me down the path to becoming a doctor,” she said.
“Students from marginalized communities often don’t go into medicine because we don’t have those physicians in our community, we don’t have those mentors. There’s a disparity in bringing that education into those communities.”
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After graduating from Whitehall-Yearling High School, she decided to hang up her crown. But it was only temporary.
“I went to college and didn’t think about pageantry for a while because I was studying really hard. Then I met a girl who was competing for Miss Ohio, and she encouraged me to do it,” she said.
“The way she sold it to me was that it was a way to get college scholarships. In my senior year, I needed a couple more and this was an opportunity to win $10,000 in scholarships.”
On her first bid for the title, she made the top 10. The second time turned out to be the charm and Finoti walked away with the crown, sash and bouquet of roses. “I ended up winning $15,000 in two years of competing,” she said.
Miss Ohio 2024 Stephanie Finoti, whose platform for the Miss America competition is a STEM initiative aimed at youngsters in marginalized communities, takes a photo with a pair of students.
Finoti’s platform in run for Miss America
Finoti’s platform, That STEM Girl, is a nonprofit initiative devoted to empowering and preparing the next generation of marginalized young women to enter the STEM-medical workforce.
“I want to advocate for more equitable treatment and diversity in health care and inspire students to become emerging leaders,” she said.
To that end, Finoti’s work with young women in disadvantaged communities is based on the three Rs: resources, representation and recruitment.
Resources come in the form of teaching students how to apply to and write essays for college, as well as applying for scholarships.
Representation is provided through such outlets as Finoti’s podcast, “Breaking Down Barriers: Insights and Impact.”
Recruitment involves working with STEM organizations such as hospitals and engineering companies to increase internships.
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“Working in the schools, I’ve reached about 10,000 students this year. I travel to schools all over Ohio and give keynote speeches about the power of perseverance,” Finoti said.
“People are always going to underestimate us. Sometimes it will feel there’s not a place in the room or seat at the table, but that doesn’t mean they can’t create it. It will not only allow them to forge their own path, but to lay the groundwork so others can follow in their footsteps.”
Miss America on a shoestring budget
Finoti’s wardrobe for the competition may look like a million bucks, but you’ll have to subtract a few zeroes for the actual cost.
“Most of my wardrobe for Miss Ohio was thrifted, handmade or borrowed. The heels I’m wearing at Miss America are thrifted. They cost $6. For my evening gown, I chose liquid beading because it’s the most affordable. You can look equally as elegant for $200,” she said.
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Additionally, Finoti and her mother are making the costume she’ll wear for her ballet en pointe during the talent competition.
“One of my main goals in doing this is to show women in marginalized communities that they can hold the title of Miss Ohio or Miss America,” she said.
“Pageantry isn’t about how much your wardrobe is or wearing designer shoes. It’s about who you are. Rather than telling them, I can show them.
“You don’t need to have all the money and all the frills. You just need to have a message to share.”
The demands of the crown
When she steps on the stage at the Miss America competition in Orlando, Florida, in a week, Finoti will be thinking of her fellow Buckeyes back home.
“Not only do I get to compete for the chance to compete for scholarship dollars, I get the chance to compete to represent the state of Ohio on the national stage,” she said.
The winner of the competition will receive a $50,000 scholarship and become a brand ambassador to advocate for a social issue of her choice.
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Brand ambassadors use their terms to inspire, promote, engage and represent women in their demographics across America by sharing their goals, ambitions and dreams. This could mean being on the road for up to 200 days during the year.
But Finoti is up to the challenge, having already balanced pageant life with the duties of being a student. In fact, she’ll be reprising that rigorous schedule if she wins.
She’s currently a patient care assistant in the neonatal intensive care unit at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and a research assistant in the fetal therapy center at the Children’s research building. Her long game is to pursue a master’s degree in public health, then a medical degree.
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Until then, Miss America isn’t the only goal she has her sights on next month. She’ll be reaching another longtime goal.
“I’m presenting my published research at the Society of Maternal and Fetal Medicine national conference in Denver, Colorado, the last week of January,” she said.
Stephanie Finoti, Miss Ohio 2024, shows her sash to a young admirer. The Columbus native is set to compete in the Miss America competition.
The face of Miss America continues to change
Finoti is heartened by the Miss America pageant becoming a bit more racially diverse over the years, though there’s still work to be done.
“The Miss America organization has grown in its diversity and more acceptance, but there’s so much room to grow,” she said.
“One of my favorite Miss Americas, Nina Davuluri, the first Indian American to win, made big impact on me. It changed the game.”
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As Miss America 2014, Davuluri said in an interview with British Vogue, “I really wanted to help effect a change in beauty standards … Miss America’s branding is so associated with the girl next door, which has always meant blonde hair and blue eyes with only a few exceptions, but the girl next door must evolve as the country evolves.”
Finoti, who has heard, “We don’t see you fitting in here,” at pageants, said Davuluri’s victory allowed people to realize that the girl next door doesn’t have a particular “look.”
“The girl next door is a girl who’s passionate about her community and about being an American. That’s how Miss America should be,” she said.
Finoti emphasized that she loves the sisterhood that exists among all pageant contestants and winners, regardless of their racial or ethnic background.
“I don’t discredit any Miss America or Miss Ohio. These women are remarkable and amazing, and I love them all,” she said.
“I feel I have something I can bring that can do a lot for the little girls who don’t feel represented and the little girl in me. If we don’t continue to diversify the playing field, we don’t get to see the beauty of all the women who represent America.”
How to watch the Miss America 2025 competition
The Miss America organization will hold the competition at the Walt Disney Theater at the Dr. Phillips Center for Performing Arts in Orlando, Florida, beginning Tuesday with three days of personal interviews and preliminaries.
The crowning of Miss America 2025 and Miss America’s Teen 2025 will take place Jan. 5. The finals will be livestreamed for free on missamerica.tv and available after the ceremony on YouTube.
Miss America’s people choice voting is live until Jan. 3. From Jan. 1-3, all votes are doubled for $1 per vote. Voting can be done online at missamerica.org.
bpaschal@dispatch.com
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus native, Miss Ohio Stephanie Finoti vies for Miss America
