Morgan Romano

Morgan Romano
Morgan Romano
	Romano in 2023
Born	Morgan Renee Romano; July 19, 1998 (age 26); Johnstown, New York, U.S.
Education	University of South Carolina (BS)
	Beauty pageant titleholder
Title	Miss North Carolina USA 2022; Miss USA 2022;
Major; competition(s)	Miss North Carolina USA 2022; (Winner); Miss USA 2022; (1st Runner-Up; Assumed);

Morgan Renee Romano (born July 19, 1998) is an American beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss USA 2022. Previously crowned Miss North Carolina USA 2022, Romano placed as the first runner-up at Miss USA, and took over the title after its original winner R'Bonney Gabriel was crowned Miss Universe 2022. Romano is the fourth woman from North Carolina to be crowned Miss USA.

Early life and education

Morgan Renee Romano^[1] was born on July 19, 1998, in Johnstown, New York.^[2]^[3] She is a graduate of Johnstown High School.^[4] After completing high school, Romano moved to Columbia, South Carolina, to enroll in the University of South Carolina, graduating with a degree in chemical engineering in 2020.^[3] Romano had decided to relocate to the southern United States due to her dislike for the harsh winter weather in Upstate New York.^[3] Following her graduation, Romano relocated to Concord, North Carolina, where she began working as an application engineer for industrial equipment supplier RE Mason.^[3]

Pageantry

At the encouragement of her mother, Romano began competing in pageantry as a teenager, and was a runner-up at Miss New York's Outstanding Teen when she was in high school.^[5]^[3] After relocating to South Carolina in 2016, Romano decided to return to pageantry, due to her desire to make more female friends as a female student in a male-dominated field.^[3] She later won the title of Miss Midlands, and competed at Miss South Carolina three times and Miss South Carolina USA once, without winning a title.^[5]^[3]

Romano began competing in North Carolina pageantry after relocating there in 2020, and was the second runner-up at Miss North Carolina USA 2021.^[3] Romano returned the following year and won Miss North Carolina USA 2022, on January 29, 2022.^[6]^[7] Romano later crowned Jordyn McKey as her successor at Miss North Carolina USA 2023 on February 25, 2023.^[8]

Miss USA 2022

As Miss North Carolina USA, Romano entered Miss USA 2022. The competition was held on October 3, 2022, in Reno, Nevada.^[9] Romano was first runner-up, behind winner Miss Texas USA, R'Bonney Gabriel. During the competition, Romano promoted women in STEM fields.^[3]^[10]^[11]

Due to pageant protocol, Gabriel was unable to continue her reign as Miss USA after winning Miss Universe 2022 in January 2023, ^[12] and the Miss USA title was passed on to Romano.^[3] During her reign as Miss USA, Romano has worked with the nonprofits Project Scientist^[13] and Smile Train.^[14]

Notes

^ Romano was originally first runner-up, but became Miss USA after the original titleholder, R'Bonney Gabriel, won Miss Universe. Due to pageant protocol, Miss USA must resign her title in the event she wins Miss Universe.

References

^ "Morgan Renee Romano from Concord, North Carolina | VoterRecords.com".
^ "I don't know how anything can beat year 23… the best year of my life filled with growth, change, and gratitude. Here we go 24". Morgan Romano. July 19, 2022.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j Janes, Théoden (February 16, 2023). "Why did this Charlotte engineer leave her job? Because — surprise! — she's now Miss USA". The Charlotte Observer.
^ Ditsche, Ameara (2024-02-15). "Miss USA 2022 Morgan Romano returns to Johnstown High School". The Daily Gazette. Retrieved 2024-03-02.
^ ^a ^b "Engineering alumna uses beauty pageants, philanthropy to inspire STEM interest in young girls". University of South Carolina. January 26, 2023.
^ "Miss North Carolina USA". Miss North Carolina USA. Retrieved September 12, 2021.
^ "Miss North Carolina discusses tragic death of Cheslie Kryst". FOX 46. February 2, 2022.
^ "Miss North Carolina USA 2023 is Jordyn McKey". Local Today. February 26, 2023.
^ Hidalgo, Jason. "Reno secures 3-year Miss USA and Miss Teen USA deal". Reno Gazette Journal.
^ "Fil-Am beauty queen crowned Miss USA 2022". Manila Bulletin. October 4, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
^ Minevich, Mark. "Beauty, Brains, AI And Fashion: Miss USA And Chemical Engineer Morgan Romano Empowering Girls In STEM". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-03-02.
^ Tinoco, Armando (2023-01-15). "Miss Universe Winner: USA Representative R'Bonney Gabriel Takes Crown". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-01-15.
^ Ditsche, Ameara (2024-02-15). "Miss USA 2022 Morgan Romano returns to Johnstown High School". The Daily Gazette. Retrieved 2024-03-02.
^ "Concord native who won Miss USA breaking stereotypes and making a difference". wcnc.com. March 12, 2023. Retrieved June 13, 2023.

External links

Media related to Morgan Romano at Wikimedia Commons

Awards and achievements
Preceded by R'Bonney Gabriel, Texas	Miss USA 2022	Succeeded by Noelia Voigt, Utah
Preceded by Madison Bryant	Miss North Carolina USA 2022	Succeeded by Jordyn McKey