Emma Broyles on Alaska representation, Korean heritage and empowering young

Anchorage’s Emma Broyles was crowned Miss America this week, becoming the first Miss Alaska and first woman of Korean descent to win the competition.

Broyles, 20, graduated from Service High School and is now a junior at Arizona State University, where she studies biomedical sciences and voice performance. Her victory Thursday night comes with $100,000 in scholarship money, which she said will help her pay for college and medical school as she studies to become a dermatologist.

The Miss America competition, which celebrated its 100th anniversary this year, has evolved away from an emphasis on looks to focusing on leadership, talent and communication skills — a change that Broyles says she appreciates.

“I’m so glad that Miss America puts this emphasis on what women have to say, rather than what they look like,” she said.

She joins a group of young Alaska women who achieved excellence on the national and global stage in 2021, including 17 year-old swimmer Lydia Jacoby of Seward, who took home gold and silver medals at the Summer Olympics, and 19-year-old model and activist Quannah Chasinghorse, from Eagle, who was featured on the covers of Vogue Mexico and Elle magazine this year and has used her platform to shine a light on Indigenous issues.

We caught up with Broyles on Friday to talk about her roots in Anchorage, representation in the Miss America competition and what her victory means for Alaska. This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

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ADN: Tell me what it feels like this morning. What went through your head when you woke up?

Broyles: I remember I woke up and I saw that Miss America sash and crown sitting on my bedside, and I remember thinking, “Whose is that? Whose is that? Is that mine?”

I am so in shock that that this actually happened. And I’m so grateful to be the first Miss Alaska to win Miss America, I think, because that’s just such a cool honor and especially at the 100th anniversary of Miss America. … Just the fact that I get to take home the crown and feel the support and the love from all of my fellow Alaskans has meant so much to me.

ADN: Tell me about growing up in Anchorage and how you got started on this competition journey.

Broyles: My parents actually both grew up in Anchorage, Alaska, as well. And I actually went to Service High School in Anchorage. And that’s kind of where I … got my start in Special Olympics, where I really started finding my passion for Special Olympics.

I was the president of the Partners Club at Service High School, which is a school program for Special Olympics. And at that time, Service High School was named a National Unified Champion School for Special Olympics. And we were also named one of the top 30 schools in the nation by ESPN for inclusion, which was a really cool thing.

And I think it was kind of at that moment…