Miss Dogwood Peyton Bolling wins Miss Arkansas Teen title – The Free Weekly

BECCA MARTIN-BROWN

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Peyton Bolling is a 17-year-old high school senior and the new Miss Arkansas Teen, having won the title on June 14. But don't let the crown on her head fool you. Bolling is quick to dispel any pageant stereotypes.

“The smartest, most driven, most accomplished young women I know were competing with me in Little Rock,” said Bolling, daughter of Col. Ryan and Patrice Bolling of Rogers and a senior at Bentonville High School. “Our current Miss America is a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, and our new Miss Arkansas will be heading to law school right after her senior year.”

“As for me, I am on track to graduate from high school with almost a year of college courses completed, I have a GPA over 4.0 and I am a [Advanced Placement] Researcher with distinction.

“I am proud of all my accomplishments, but I am not the exception in this program: every young woman has impressive goals and accomplishments.”

Bolling said she didn't expect to win the Miss Arkansas Teen title in her first year of competing.

“Last year, I was sitting in the balcony of Robinson Auditorium watching the winners being crowned,” she said. “I never imagined I would be wearing the crown a year later.”

But the Miss America pageant system is a family tradition in the Bolling family. Her mother, Patrice Hargrave Bolling, was Miss Dogwood 1999, and Bolling was crowned Miss Dogwood winner this year, wearing her mother's evening gown.

“It was a breath of fresh air to see her wear my 1999 Miss Dogwood dress,” her mother said. “She had wanted to wear it since she was a little girl, and my heart skipped a beat when it fit her so well! My time in the Miss Arkansas system has been a very happy time, and I can’t wait to share the experience with her.”

Created in 2006 as a companion and introduction to the Miss Arkansas Pageant for young women ages 13 to 18, the Miss Arkansas Teen Pageant “mirrors the events, competition schedule, category and point distribution of Miss Arkansas exactly,” said Toni Lindsey, a spokeswoman for the Arkansas pageant system. “They had their official arrival ceremony together at the Arkansas State Capitol on Saturday, June 8; rehearsals and various events throughout the week; and a 10-minute private interview with the judges on Tuesday.” [Peyton] competed in Health & Fitness and Stage Interview on Tuesday, Evening Gown on Wednesday and Talent on Thursday during the preliminaries.

“The Miss Arkansas Teen crowning and closing night was held on Friday, June 14. Miss Arkansas 2024 was crowned on Saturday, June 15.”

Bolling's talent was a jazz dance to “Man of La Mancha,” sung by Linda Eder.

“I’ve been dancing since I was 3 years old. This is the competitive area I’ve been preparing for my entire life,” she says. “The talent portion is only a minute and 30 seconds long, but I managed to do tons of jumps, tricks, and turns. I spent time training in the gym to increase my endurance and stamina because it required such an explosion of power and energy from me. It’s hands down the hardest dance I’ve ever done!”

His community service initiative is called “Simple Acts of Citizenship.”

“It’s about building better communities through civic engagement and teaching young people about the role and importance of government,” she says. “It’s important for young people to understand that there’s a difference between politics and civics. Civics is about how we participate in our community and how we engage with each other.”

“I had the opportunity to work as a U.S. Senate Page in Washington, D.C., during the fall semester of my junior year,” Bolling continues. “Those five months of living and working on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol gave me a deep understanding of the importance of government. However, upon returning home, I discovered that many of my peers were not educated about all levels of government, which led me to start an Instagram show called “Glimpses in Government.” I use the platform to interview local elected officials and nonprofit leaders about the role of government. The goal is to educate people about the role and function of local and state government, particularly county clerks, justices of the peace, the mayor, and quorum courts. These local positions have such an impact on our daily lives.”

“Respected organizations across the state are also advocating for civic education,” she added. “The Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce launched the National Civics Bee program in Arkansas. The Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation founded Civics Arkansas and is currently hosting events across the state. Arkansas Secretary of State John Thurston developed the program for young voters. I am working to expand partnerships with these organizations during my year of service.”

As she tours Arkansas, Bolling also has her own future in mind. She won $20,000 in cash scholarships at the competition in Little Rock, as well as a full four-year scholarship to Arkansas State University and a $20,000 scholarship to the University of Central Arkansas.

“The benefit of being in this position during my senior year of high school is that I will be able to experience not only what these universities have to offer, but also their communities and local leaders,” she says.

Bolling says she particularly enjoys social studies and math classes and is very involved in student government, having been elected vice president of the student body next year. One thing she is looking forward to about college is a slightly later schedule for her classes.

“One thing I won’t miss is the 4:15 a.m. wake-up time,” she says. “My high school classes start at 7 a.m., and so I can get some exercise in before school, my alarm goes off at 4:15 every morning. In college, I’m hoping to schedule start times a little later—even a 5 or 6 a.m. wake-up would be better.”

Bolling will compete in the national Miss America's Teen pageant in Orlando shortly after the start of the year.

“I’m going to focus all of my energy on preparing for the Miss America’s Teen pageant this year and serving the state of Arkansas,” she said. “After my year is over, I’ll be heading off to college right away and I hope to take the time to absorb everything I’ve learned.”

“It would be an honor for me to one day become Miss Arkansas, but for now, I’m just excited to learn from our new Miss Arkansas, Camille Cathey,” Bolling said. “She was also Miss Arkansas Teen in 2018, and I’m lucky to have her as a mentor.”

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FOR YOUR INFORMATION

Miss Arkansas Pageant

To learn more about the Miss Arkansas and Miss Arkansas' Teen pageants, visit missarkansas.org.