By LILLIAN GLAROS
The head that wears the crown must belong to a young woman committed to community service, full of maturity and confidence.
That sparkly crown belongs to Maddie Bronk, a 22-year-old Calvert County resident, who won the title of Miss College Park 2025 on Sept. 29 over eight other 17- to 24-year-old competitors.
The pageant does not require contestants to be residents of College Park.
“I’m excited to get into the community, get active, meet all the different kinds of people, and just see what everyone would like me to do,” Bronk said.
Bronk, who graduated from the University of Maryland (UMD) last spring with a family science degree, attends the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, where she is in the diagnostic medical sonography program.
The new Miss College Park won multiple prizes, including a $2,000 scholarship, personalized stationery and a photo shoot.
Bronk said she hopes to spread autism awareness as part of her new role.
A former feature twirler at UMD, she said she also hopes to host baton twirling camps to share her skills.
The new Miss College Park said she appreciates the skills she has learned as part of the pageantry world.
“I’ve grown up kind of doing pageants and I love the communication aspect of it and how it really preps you for the real world,” Bronk said.
That real-world-preparation is a key part of the pageant, Angie Rodriguez, who has been the executive director of the pageant since its beginning in 1991, said.
Rodriguez said skills displayed in the pageant, such as application writing and interviewing, are critical for a young woman’s success.
“We kind of wrap all of that into a nice, neat little bow here and do it, and hopefully they have fun and earn scholarship money in the process,” Rodriguez said.
To begin the process, competitors must submit a resume, community service essay, transcript and photo. They give a short introduction, or elevator speech, to pageant judges, Rodriguez said. A more in-depth personal interview follows.
“We’re really looking for a girl who embodies what College Park is all about, which is growth, enhancement, fun and personality,” Kristena Stotts, one of the judges, said. “College Park has a lot of personality, so judging this conversation is always really, really fun.”
Another element of the competition is overall appearance and poise. An adaptable, approachable Miss College Park is what the competition seeks, and the winner must be confident enough to make appearances on her own, Rodriguez said.
Miss College Park 2024, Elena Argueta, made more public appearances than any previous titleholder, Rodriguez said.
The lifelong College Park District 1 resident said she loved making appearances during her reign.
“I felt like people were happy to see me, and I was just as happy to see them, maybe, if not happier,” Arguetta said.
Community service is also important to the competition.
“As a pageant competitor, you want to be able to give back to your community and let people know that you’re there for them,” John A. Morris, who judged the community service essays, said. “You are representing their community.”
Contestants won several awards.
Victoria Ofori-Okyere, a Towson University student studying elementary education, won Miss Congeniality, an award Rodriguez said is for the “nice girl backstage” and is voted on by the competitors themselves.
Brock also won an award for highest GPA for a college student and the Symphony Dixon Elegance and Poise Award.
The winner of the highest GPA award for a high school student was Eleanor Roosevelt High School senior Alena Beckmann, who was first runner-up.
Nicole Rodriguez Soares, a junior at UMD studying aerospace engineering, won second runner- up.
And Liv Bacasnot, a senior at Arundel High School, won the Community Service Award.