When Haleigh Tomlin takes the stage this week as Miss Lander in the Miss South Carolina competition, she will bring with her more than poise and years of pageant experience. She will carry the lessons learned from a journey that has taken her from the show ring of 4-H competitions to international study abroad experiences and a university community where she discovered a place to thrive.
A transfer student from Gray Court who found her academic niche at Lander, Tomlin said she has enormous pride in representing Lander, which she credits for her growth personally and academically.
While she is no stranger to competition — her competitive spirit first emerged as a young 4-H member showing chickens — her recent semester at the University of Winchester in England broadened her perspective in ways she never expected. The experience challenged her to step outside her comfort zone, embrace new cultures and gain a deeper understanding of the world, opportunities she said were made possible through the encouragement and support she received at Lander.
“My study abroad experiences totally changed my life for the better,” she said, noting that she was able to travel in England and France during her time abroad, including Paris and Omaha Beach in Normandy, France, where Allied forces landed on D-Day in 1944. “I highly encourage any student interested in studying abroad to pursue this opportunity. Lander walked me through every step of the process and made this dream a reality for me.”
After winning the title of Miss Lander in November, Tomlin knew that spending time away from home could hinder her pageant preparation. But she decided that the experience of studying abroad was one that she couldn’t miss, and she looked at how she could balance her life as a student and pageant competitor.
The winner of the talent competition in the Miss Lander pageant, Tomlin will again perform “I Dreamed a Dream” from Les Miserables. “Before I left, I made sure that I had as much in place as I could for the pageant. My mother and I both believe that ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,’ so we decided to make this easier by keeping my same talent and clothes from Miss Lander for Miss South Carolina. The only thing that is different is my outfit for the interview portion of the competition.”
In England, she practiced her song daily. “I tried not to disturb my flat mates with my practices,” she said. “They were intrigued by what I was doing. They thought Miss America was something in a movie. They didn’t realize that it was real or know someone who was competing.”
Since her return, she’s met regularly with veteran pageant coach, Joyce Glenn Wagster, who has advised her in other competitions. “My focus has been on being as prepared as I can be and feeling at peace,” she said.
For the Miss South Carolina competition, contestants choose a platform – a social or community cause – to champion. For Tomlin, her cause is “Let’s Grow Some Leaders.” As a second-generation 4-H participant, Tomlin once focused her efforts on a program called “Let’s Grow Some Leaders: Educating Youth about 4-H.” She adapted this initiative for her current platform to help young people navigate a challenging world of social media and artificial intelligence (A.I.).
“A.I. can only do so much,” she said. “I want young people to realize the importance of developing critical thinking skills and using their own talents and abilities for their creative and intellectual endeavors.”
Tomlin said representing Lander at Miss South Carolina is an experience that she never imagined as a transfer student. “When I came to Lander, I found my home. I found where I belong,” she said. “The students, faculty and staff truly have made the campus a home for me. They are my Bearcat family.”
A member of Gamma Phi Beta sorority and a Dean’s List honoree, Tomlin said, “Lander has changed my life. And now that I’m in my senior year, I hope that I have made our Bearcats proud and that I can make them proud when I compete.”
The Miss South Carolina competition is held in conjunction with Miss Teen South Carolina. Tomlin will compete in the fitness competition on Wednesday night, as well as the evening gown competition which includes an onstage question. Her talent competition is Thursday night. Preliminary and final competitions can be viewed via live streaming by registering at this link: https://tinyurl.com/39cmvym4.
Looking back, Tomlin is proud of the milestones that brought her to the Miss South Carolina stage -- from showing chickens as a 4-H competitor to studying abroad in England and finding a home at Lander. Together, these experiences have taught her that growth begins by taking deep breaths and pursuing the challenges of unfamiliar territory, a lesson that she will carry with her long after the pageant lights fade.