The Imperial House’s Miss Guyana Teen Scholar Pageant (MGTSP) physically returns to the stage of the National Cultural Centre tonight with 12 young women competing for the title of Miss Guyana Teen Scholar 2022. The pageant commences at 8 pm.
The candidates are: 17-year-old Robeina Edinboro of the West Demerara Secondary School; Mya Saunders of St Stanislaus College, 16; Akeelah Jones of St Roses High School, 14; Carissa Vandoimen of Richard Ishmael Secondary, 17; Jayda Overton of the University of Guyana, 19; 18-year-old Curtela Lewis also of the University of Guyana; Lisa Hassan, 18, of St Joseph High School; Beyonce Nicholson of Golden Grove Secondary, 18; Trasmattie Dasrath, 17, of the Institute of Professional Learning; 17-year-old Olivia Stephen of Hope Secondary School; Ashanti Corlette, 19, of Charlestown Secondary and 18-year-old Chidima Nurse of the Bishops’ High.
The 12 candidates will compete in various segments, however, according to a release from Imperial House, it is not primarily a beauty pageant. Rather, it is a skills-based training programme for the social and gender development of adolescent girls. As such, the contestants have been taught four modules which are professionalism and life-skills, adolescent health and well-being, social and gender development, and stage presence and talent development. During their time of preparing and participating for the pageant, the candidates were eventually assessed on each module.
Along with the modules, each candidate was the beneficiary of an additional programme which included education and life-skills sessions, volunteerism/community advocacy, which is seasonal, networking opportunities, dance choreography, modelling and talent development, photo-shoots and public relations and media interviews; all of which will help them to prepare for a sturdy tertiary education.
The release said that upon completion of each programme, “the candidate who was voted in the People’s Choice Award category will be awarded with a course scholarship in computer studies, and the crowned scholar (the young woman who attains the most grades in the programmes) will be awarded with a scholarship and other resources to help her achieve her cause and academic goals”.
The MGTSP which is the flagship programme and the crown jewel of the Imperial House usually ends with a graduation ceremony in the style of a pageant which showcases what every contestant has achieved. This includes the way in which they identify themselves and how they are able to express themselves based on the skills taught.
The first programme was implemented under the supervision of the Imperial House and was hosted in the year 2020 where it saw a digital programme. Last year, the first pageant was introduced, however, it was done virtually.
Imperial House is managed by a committee which seeks to uplift and continue to maximise the full potential of young Guyanese. The committee is managed by Executive Director Wasim Khan, Finance and Operations Director Cindy Khan, Media and Public Relations Director Feliz Robertson, and Social Development Director Jairo Rodrigues.
