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| UC's Aisha Berry competes for Miss USA. photo/courtesy of Miss Universe L.P.,LLLP |
Aisha Berry, a University of Cincinnati College of Business senior and recent Miss Ohio USA, traveled to Portsmouth, Ohio in July 2005, to crown her successor, Stacy Offenderger. During her reign, Berry says she most relished the opportunities she had to work with young people.
"I did a lot of mentoring and tutoring at various schools throughout Ohio," says Berry. "Even times when I had appearances that may not have directly related to kids, I was always able to meet children and impact them in some way. So that part was really, really great."
Berry, 24, is a long-time Cincinnatian. She attended Western Hills High School and will graduate from UC in August with a degree in business management. She plans to use her degree to pursue a career as an international fashion model, which may happen sooner than later. She appeared on the December cover of C magazine, has another editorial shoot next month, and has signed with modeling agency Newuvio.
The 2004 Miss Ohio winner, crowned Berry in November, but the contest date was moved to July this year, cutting Berry's reign five months short. During her time as Miss Ohio, she worked and attended classes at UC, taking one quarter off to compete in the 54th Miss USA pageant in April.
"I've always been interested in the Miss USA pageant. One day I got a postcard about the Miss Ohio contest. I decided to try it, and I finally won the title and was able to compete in the Miss USA pageant. It shows that if you're very persistent, you can achieve your dreams."
Berry competed in the Miss Ohio contest five times, winning second place in '01 and fourth in '04. Several previous UC students have reigned as Miss Ohio and three have won national pageant titles: Sarah Jane Everman, America's Junior Miss 1999, Heather Renee French Henry, Miss America 2000, and Kirsten Haglund, Miss America 2008.
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