W&M Student Competes for Miss USA Title Tonight

By Erin Zagursky, of the W&M Press Room Sunday, May 16, 2010

Samantha Casey, a student majoring in marketing at William & Mary, will compete in the 2010 Miss USA pageant tonight. The competition will be broadcast live on NBC at 7 p.m.

A native of Jeffersonton, Va., Casey was crowned Miss Virginia USA 2010 in November 2009.

"I am so excited and happy, and I feel so honored to be representing the State of Virginia," Casey said after her win last year. "I worked really hard to be both mentally and physically prepared and am very much looking forward to competing and representing Virginia at Miss USA."

During her year as Miss Virginia USA, Casey is traveling around the state and nation to promote the Miss Virginia USA pageant and her platform, Love146, which is an organization to prevent child sex trafficking. The cause is something that Casey is "very passionate about," she said.

Casey took the fall semester off from classes to prepare for the Miss Virginia USA pageant and the current semester off to train and prepare for the Miss USA pageant. Casey said she hopes to return to William & Mary this fall.

Though she has been away from campus, Casey said the William & Mary community has been very supportive as she prepares to compete at Miss USA.

"William & Mary has been incredible throughout my preparations to compete," she said. "The support that the community has shown me has truly been remarkable and I am so touched by it. Even professors have been Facebooking and e-mailing me!"

Casey thanked everyone at the College for their role in helping her earn the title of Miss Virginia USA.

"Thank you all so much for the incredible support and kindness you have shown me," she said. "Your words of encouragement have been inspiring, and I hope I make all of you at William & Mary proud at Miss USA."