The two University of Arkansas at Little Rock students who are competing in the Miss Arkansas Pageant have both won scholarships for their fundraising efforts on behalf of the Children’s Miracle Network. 

Miss Greater Little Rock Brooke Cornelius and Miss Grand Prairie Taylor Jaggers received $500 scholarships from the Miss America Foundation for being two of the top five fundraisers for the Children’s Miracle Network, according to a press release from the Miss Arkansas Pageant.

Cornelius received second place in the Children’s Miracle Network Miracle Maker Finalists, while Jaggers received fifth place.

Children’s Miracle Network is the official national platform for both the Miss America and Miss America’s Outstanding Teen pageants. Since 2007, contestants on a local, state, and, national level have raised funds for the more than 170 children’s hospital that make up the Children’s Miracle Network.

Arkansas Children’s Hospital serves as the state’s Children’s Miracle Network hospital. In May, the Miss Arkansas contestants toured the Little Rock hospital to see how the money raised is used to help children. Altogether, the 44 Miss Arkansas contestants raised over $34,000 this year.

Cornelius, 23, of Hope, is a student at the William H. Bowen School of Law. She has held several pageant titles, including Miss Central Arkansas, Miss Henderson State University, and Miss South Central Arkansas. Her platform is “Protect Our Youth: Bullying is Not Ok!”. Her talent is a tap dance performance to the song, “Sandstorm.”

Jaggers is a 20-year-old student from Rison. Her platform is “A Chance to Dance: Working to Achieve a Sound Body and Mind.” Her talent is a jazz dance performance to the song, “Big Spender.”

This year’s Miss Arkansas Pageant celebrates the 80th year of the pageant. Forty-four contestants from around the state are competing for more than $167,000 in scholarship funds.

The crowning for Miss Arkansas 2017 is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Saturday, June 17, at the Ron Robinson Center in Little Rock. Reigning Miss America Savvy Shields will be on hand to help crown the winner. The competition can be watched at www.missarkansas.org.