Miss Florida Sunshine Outstanding Teen is open statewide 

Competition Rules

Eligibility
1. Contestant must be at least 13 by the first day of the local competition.
2. Contestant must not be older than 17 on July 31, 2010.
3. Contestant may not have graduated from high school before the start of the National Finals, except for 16 year-olds (or younger) who graduated early.
4. Contestant is not eligible to compete in the Miss America Pageant. (See Section 2.2.2, Miss America Contract.)
5. Contestant must be a citizen of the United States.
6. Contestant must be a young lady of the highest moral character, integrity, and standards.
7. Contestant must execute the Contestant Contract and abide by all the agreements and representations contained therein.

Presentation in Interview (35%)

1. Interviews at the local level will be a total of 6 minutes. This will be with a panel of at least five judges. There will be no opening or closing comments just questions and answers.
2. Questions will come from a variety of areas, including but not limited to the contestant’s application and fact sheet, moral/ethical issues, current events, etc. Contestants should be prepared to answer any type of question asked.
3. Contestant’s wardrobe should be age appropriate. Suits are not permitted as interview apparel. We are requesting that the contestant wear a dress, skirt and top, or pants and top, or anything that is young, fresh, and teen.

On-Stage Question (5%)
1. Contestant will be asked one question on stage. Questions can be over any topic.

Artistic Expression in Talent (35% )
1. Contestant’s talent must not be longer than 2 minutes. Only CD accompaniment is acceptable. Make sure the contestant’s name and title are on both the CD and the CD case. Please make sure only one track on CD.
2. “Live” accompaniment is not permitted. Only the contestant is permitted on-stage. No other person may be a part of her presentation though background vocals will be allowed as long as they don’t overpower the contestant.
3. Talent must be performed live; pantomime and lip-sync are not permitted.
4. Tap dancers may not have accompaniment CDs with pre-recorded taps or tap sounds.
5. The sound engineer will not stop and re-start an accompaniment CD as a part of the Contestant’s performance. If Contestant needs a ten second delay in her performance, then the CD should include a ten second silent spot.
6. No other tracks may be included on the accompaniment CD.
7. Background tracks will be approved by the Pageant.
8. Fire (fire ropes, fire batons, etc.), pyrotechnics, swords, knives or machetes, bow and arrow acts, and the use of live animals are strictly prohibited.

Presence and Poise in Evening Wear (15%)
1. Contestant should wear age appropriate attire that makes her feel beautiful and special.
2. Age appropriate full-length gowns are appropriate. Shorter attire may be worn, but must be age appropriate and non-revealing when worn on a stage.

Active Wear (10%)
1. The Contestant will wear an active wear item of her choosing. This does not include swimsuits. This can be what you would wear to the gym, attire you would wear to participate in a sport, etc. The contestant defines her own personality and style preference. This is to be something that you do in your personal life to stay physically fit.

Top Five Finalists
1. The Judges will be given the name of the top five finalists and rank them from 1st to 5th. A first place vote will receive 10 points, 2nd -5, 3rd – 3, 4th -2, and 5th – 1. The total of this scoring will result in the overall winner.

Areas of Competition

Contestants in the Miss Florida's Outstanding Teen Competition are evaluated in six areas:

Private Interview (30% of total score)
At the local level, each contestant participates in an individual 6-minute interview, which includes a 30-second opening. Interviews are 8 minutes at the state competition and 10 minutes at the national competition; both include 30-second openings and 30-second closings. There are typically 5 to 7 judges on a panel, and the interview is press-style, with the contestant standing at a podium. Contestants are questioned on their background as presented on their fact sheet, their educational and career goals, and their interests, hobbies and extracurricular activities.

Scoring is based on overall communication skills, including personality, intelligence, validated opinions, emotional control, overall first impression and personal appearance. Community Service (platform) is required.

Scholastic Achievement (5% of total score)
Academic Judges will review each contestant's resume and official transcripts. Scoring will be based on the following questions….
Has this student maintained at least a “B” average during the past academic year?
Would her academic achievements place her in the top 10% of your (the judges’) institution?
Is she taking Advanced, AP, or IB courses?
Does she hold leadership positions in her school and extracurricular activities?
Based on the information before you, do you believe this student would meet the description of an “outstanding student”?

On-Stage Question (5% of total score)
Questions will be of a general nature and will be neither platform-related nor something taken directly from the private interview. The objective is to evaluate the contestant's ability to think on her feet and answer a question of general interest to people her age, including, but not limited to, local, state, and national current events.

Scoring is based on overall first impression and extemporaneous response to an on-stage question, contestant's ability to answer the question in the context in which it was asked, contestant's ability to handle the pressure of speaking on stage in front of an audience, and if young people see her as a role model who is reflective of today's generation.

Lifestyle and Fitness (10% of total score)
Each contestant briefly appears on-stage (up to 30 seconds) modeling sportswear of her choosing that represents something she does to stay fit. The Executive Director of the competition must approve workout attire prior to competition. Workout attire must be age-appropriate, and typical of what a teenager would wear to workout at the gym. An example of workout attire includes sweats, leggings or shorts with a tank top or half top and tennis shoes. Swimsuits and clothing specifically for dance, such as a leotard are not permitted.

Scoring is based on overall first impression, statement of strong physical fitness and health, sense of attractiveness and presence, display of energy, charisma and expression, sense of confidence and composure. The fitness of the teen, by the shape of her body, is not being judged. Instead, her level of pursuit and dedication to maintaining a healthy lifestyle is being evaluated.

Talent (35% of total score)
Contestants perform a 90 Second routine of their own choosing. Some possible talents include all types of singing, dancing, gymnastics, instrumental music, dramatic or comedy monologues, baton twirling and ventriloquism. Other talents that can be performed solo on a stage are also possible. E-mail us if you have a question about your talent presentation.

Scoring is based on contestant's skill and personality, interpretive ability, technical skill level, stage presence and the totality of all elements, including costume, props, voice, use of body and choreography.

Personal Appearance/Poise in Evening Wear (15% of total score)
Each contestant appears on-stage in an outfit of her own choosing, representative of what she would wear to a prom or other formal event/ Although contestants typically wear ball or evening gowns, pantsuits, tea-length dresses and cocktail dresses are all appropriate for this phase of the competition.

Scoring is based on overall first impression, sense of confidence, personality and stage presence, walk, posture, carriage and grace, appropriateness of attire and sense of style, sense of attractiveness, beauty and charm.

Top Five - Final Ballot
From the above 100%, the Top Five Finalists will be named. The Top Five Finalists enter the final round of competition with zero points. The judges will then rank the contestants in the order they individually believe the contestants should finish on a Final Ballot.

Each judge will rank the Top Five contestants on a Final Ballot. A first place vote is worth ten points, a second place vote is worth five points, a third place vote is worth three points, a fourth place vote is worth two points and a fifth place vote is worth one point . The total of the Final Ballots alone will determine the outcome of the pageant. The high and low scores on the Final Ballot will NOT be dropped. All judges’ votes count on the Final Ballot

Miss Florida Sunshine Outstanding Teen 

All forms are available on our forms page or you may visit

www.missflorida.org

Teen Required Documents

6 photo's: (same pose/head shots) in color or black and white, no larger than 8 X 10    (5 x 7 is best)

6 copies of your fact sheet/resume

6 copies of your platform statement

Talent request form Talent cannot be longer than 2 minutes in length

Onstage introduction form

2 copies of talent music: (CDs only)

Proof of residence

Copy of Birth Certificate

Sealed copy of your last report card/official transcripts

Competition fee is $125.00

Checks are to be made payable to:

Lakeland Pageants

Mail to:

Lakeland Pageants

PO Box 6561

Lakeland FL 33807

Miss Florida Outstanding Teen 2009
www.fourpointsmagazine.com