Fresh off the pageant stage, HC had the pleasure of chatting with the newly crowned, Miss Phi Beta Sigma, Rhian Collier. Rhian is a sophomore, psychology major from Houston, TX. Outside of her new title, Rhian is also a member of the Grier Dawson Student Leadership Program.
HC: How do you plan to balance the demands of SLP and your new position as Miss Phi Beta Sigma?
RC: That’s a good question. Spencer Heath, coordinator of the Miss Phi Beta Sigma Pageant, informed me that I will be competing in the regional Miss Phi Beta Sigma Pageant this year. I think I’m capable of balancing the two because I am used to balancing SLP with my school work. I also balanced it with pageant preparation this semester. I know I will really need to focus on time management, focusing on what’s really important to me. Those important things include my studies, of course, as well as SLP events, and perfecting my pageant skills.
HC: Wow! You are definitely very busy. How did you prepare for the pageant?
RC: Once I learned all of the different categories and how long every section was supposed to be, I created this vision and I knew it would take a lot of hard work to make it come to life. When it came to things like my introduction walk, I took pointers from previous pageant winners that I knew of, and they showed me how to do my pageant stances, how to keep my posture correct, and how to project when I speak. When it came to my talent portion, I already knew what song I wanted, and I knew I wanted my friends Jasmine and Tayllor to be a part of the storyline.
HC: What sparked your interest to enter in the Miss Phi Beta Sigma Pageant?
RC: Honestly it was Spencer Heath. He is a member of the Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity as well as SLP, and he convinced me to do this particular pageant. He would always tell me he could see me in a pageant. I knew it was already going to be an eventful and fun week for the Sigmas because it’s their first time having a week dedicated to them in a while and I just wanted to help support him. That was my first reason initially, but once I started the pageant my sisters are the ones who made the experience even better. Once we formed a bond, we started growing together and that inspired me to continue with the pageant.
HC: Career Goals?
RC: After I get my degree from Hampton, I would like to go to graduate school and possibly even get my doctrine. I’m not sure what school I want to get those at though. I can do a lot with a psychology degree so I’m not really sure as to which field I want to go into. I know I like working with people but I don’t like counseling people. I could see myself working in human resources or industrial and organizational psychology. I don’t have a direct path but I kind of know which way I want to go.
HC: What are you most excited for being the new Miss Phi Beta Sigma?
RC: I am excited to watch my platform grow and expand within the community. I’m really passionate about diabetes. My mother and my grandmother both have diabetes, and I am prone to have it too. I just want to help bring awareness to it because a lot of people don’t know about it, especially in the African-American community. I want to do more than just tell people to work out more, or eat healthier, I want to inform them of the seriousness of the situation and how it can mean life or death.
HC: If you could give advice to anyone looking to enter a pageant, what advice would you give?
RC: I just say, DO IT! Just try it. No matter what, put your best foot forward. One thing I can say is that, at the beginning of pageant prep, we started with nine girls, and none of us had ever done a pageant before. Then we ended up with six, but it was a journey for all of us. It was a fun experience for everyone whether they placed or won, we kept the energy up for each other.
HC: If you could go back in time what would you tell your freshman self?
RC: That’s hard, freshman year was great! I’d probably tell myself to keep up the hard work. Don’t be afraid to try new things, and don’t do things just because your friends are doing it. Make sure you are doing it for yourself.
HC: What’s something you enjoy doing in your free time?
RC: I like reading, listening to music, and hanging out with my friends, and I love shopping, love it, love it, love it, haha! I also love embracing life, and learning things and gaining new knowledge. I love feeding my mind by finding new things out and being inspired to try new things.
HC: You just celebrated your 20th birthday, what do you hope to gain from year 20?
RC: Twenty!!!! Twenty needs to be good to me. I hope to gain knowledge and guidance because even though my teen years are over I’m not grown yet. I might think I am but I’m not. I still have a lot to learn and I don’t want to grow up too fast. I just want twenty to do me right.
Get to know Rhian even better! Follow her on IG: @rhianelyse_