ST. GEORGE — Newly-crowned Miss Washington County Alyssia Johnston is teaching dance classes as part of her social impact initiative to provide opportunities for low-income children.
Johnston won the title and a $2,000 scholarship at the annual scholarship competition at Snow Canyon High School April 2.
Johnston said she was surprised at how good the young women she competed with were.
“It’s insane and not even just in the sense of competitions, they’re just genuinely kind people,” she said.
Johnston moved to Southern Utah from Pocatello, Idaho, last August. She said she loves the weather in St. George and that there is a family-based community.
The Monthly Move Project
Johnston met with St. George news at Town Square Park for an interview. As Johnston walked through the Park wearing her tiara and sash, several girls approached her, asking to take a picture with a “real princess.” Johnston agreed, kneeling down to their level with a smile each time.
Town Square Park is home to the St. George Children’s Museum where Johnston teaches dance classes as part of her Monthly Move project. Johnston works on the project in partnership with Switchpoint Community Resource Center’s Circles program, where 18 families participate in a six-month course to learn how to move out of poverty, she said.
Johnston partnered with Circles while competing for Miss Dixie last October after learning she would need to create a pitch for a social impact initiative.
She was named second runner-up and even though she didn’t win the title, she said she still wanted to move forward with her initiative. She currently teaches dance classes once a month.
“I continued on doing it because that was my passion,” she said. “And … I finally get to do it and make the most out of it. I’m so excited.”
Johnston said the idea was based on her experiences with abuse and dance.
“My biological father was an abusive figure in my life,” she said. “And so, dance really helps me just forget about everything and so I wanted to do that for those little kids, just so they didn’t have to stress about anything. Because they’re kids, I want them to be kids and not have to stress about anything poverty-wise.”
Johnston said she’s been dancing since she was 9-years-old. She danced recreationally for three years before moving into the realm of competitive dancing, which she’s participated in for 10 years.
She said dancing helped her get through tough times and gave her opportunities to travel, participate in events and receive scholarships.
Preparing for competition
Johnston said preparing for Miss Washington County was more stressful than in previous competitions.
“We were there, (preparing for Miss Dixie), every Tuesday practicing our opening number, getting ready, getting prepared for interviews, everything like that,” she said. “But this time, we only had a week to prepare and it was all in crunch time.”
Johnston said she did mock interviews and studied current events in preparation for onstage questions.
“And also I try to find time to just like relieve some stress because it’s definitely a lot sometimes,” she said. “But I know I have so many supporters through it all, so I’m just super happy about it.”
Johnston said she enjoyed working on “crunch time” because it kept her on her toes, adding that she loved participating in the competition.
“I love meeting new people through it,” she said. “I think I’ve made some of my lifelong friends through the Miss America organization.”
Competing in scholarship competitions has been a “confidence booster” for Johnston. She said it’s always been hard for her not to compare herself to others.
“The main thing is not getting in my head about it so much and just truly believing in myself,” she said.
What’s next?
Johnston is a student at Dixie State University. Next fall, she plans to change her major from psychology to nursing with a minor in psychology. She said her dream job is working as a pediatric nurse at Primary Children’s Hospital, Salt Lake City.
She will begin her year of service as Miss Washington County at the Washington County Fair, which begins April 15. Then she will compete in Miss Utah in June 2023. She said she is “super excited” to prepare while serving the community through her social impact initiative.
“I’m a very hard worker and I want to accomplish everything that I have in my mind, all my goals I’ve wanted to achieve for myself ever since I was a little girl,” she said. “And I want to serve this title well and to just get the community to come together more.”
Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.