Meet Abigaille Batu-Tiako, your 22-year-old Miss Iowa 2024.
A recent college graduate, former student athlete, and Iowa’s Miss America 2025 competitor, the daughter of Congolese immigrants and sister to three is proud to represent Iowa in the competition Jan. 5.
Who is Miss Iowa 2024, Abigaille Batu-Tiako?
Born in Chicago, Batu-Tiako grew up on the East Coast, spending most of her life in upstate New York.
“Due to domestic violence with my Dad, we had to move from the Midwest,” she said. “We went to New York, upstate New York, a little bit in Vermont, even Montreal, Canada.”
While she loved the scenery on the East Coast, Batu-Tiako said what she loved most was that her Mom was happy and her siblings were all together. Hoping to stay in New York for college, Batu-Tiako said she had all her classes and even a roommate picked out at St. John’s University.
However, “The track scholarship they offered me just wasn’t enough,” she said. “I decided, financially, it just wasn’t a good idea for my family. We weren’t in a good spot. So I looked through my spam email.”
Right at the top? An offer from William Penn University’s head track coach. It was too good to turn down, and three days later, Batu-Tiako was on her way to Oskaloosa.
At William Penn, she ran track and played soccer, majoring in business management with a minor in news media and communications. She said she loved college, but more importantly, she fell in love with Iowa.
‘I’m doing this for more than myself’: Abigaille Batu-Tiako heads to Miss America 2025
Batu-Tiako said that at the age of 19, she began to feel empowered in her own skin. As a student athlete, she already knew she liked a little healthy competition, and she was ready for a new challenge. Why not showcase that?
“I love taking opportunities that are right in front of me and that’s exactly what Miss Iowa was for me,” Batu-Tiako said.
She said her first Miss Iowa competition in 2022 was mostly just for fun. But her mentor, Sophia Wollan, stopped her there to brag. Wollan said Batu-Tiako, a fellow staffer at Youth Hope, a camp for low-income kids in Davenport, not only was first runner-up in her first pageant ever, but she did it on a sprained ankle she’s suffered earlier that week at camp.
The same week as the competition, Batu-Tiako had become a counselor at Youth Hope.
“I literally went from wearing my camp clothes to dresses and gowns,” she said.
After winning runner-up, and some encouragement from other competitors, Batu-Tiako started taking pageantry more seriously, scouring the internet for advice, coaching and of course, more competitions. Soon, she was Miss Two Rivers, then, Miss Polk County. And as the current Miss Iowa, she’s shooting for Miss America next.
“I get to be in a position that not many girls do,” Batu-Tiako said. “I look at myself, and I see my future. But I also see the girls who want to be in the shoes that I’m in. I’m doing this for more than myself.”
Batu-Tiako said “honored” doesn’t even begin to cover it, as she was once just a college girl who decided to say yes to an opportunity.
How can I watch Abigaille Batu-Tiako in the Miss America 2025 competition?
The 2025 Miss America Competition will be streamed live on MissAmerica.tv at 6 p.m. Jan. 5 for free and will be available on YouTube after the event.
Victoria Reyna-Rodriguez is a general assignment reporter for the Register. Reach her at vreynarodriguez@registermedia.com or follow her on Twitter @VictoriaReynaR.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Miss Iowa is heading to Miss America. Here’s how you can support her.
