Miss USA

Nancy Randall

Nancy was born in Brazil, her mother was a Brazilian model & Carnival Celebrity, her father an American mathematician. The early years were spent in Ipanema, then at age 8 she moved with her family to New Orleans and graduated high school at 18. New Orleans is an exciting place, the birthplace of Jazz. Creole and Cajun culture and the excitement of Mardi Gras, a stunning city with both with Spanish and French influences. After her graduation from University she worked as a managing editor on the Journal of Latin American Anthropology and held a position at Chicago’s main history museum organising exhibitions. Her long term ambition is to become a cultural anthropologist, eventually earning her PhD and teaching at a major research university.


Where did you grow up? Tell us a little about your home town/city, and family.
I was born in Rio de Janeiro to a Brazilian model and Carnival celebrity and an American mathematician. As a little girl I grew up on the beaches of Ipanema, the neighbourhood made famous by the song "Girl from Ipanema". At age eight my father, a university professor, was invited to spend one year as a visiting professor in New Orleans, Louisiana in the United States. Surprisingly, one year turned into two, then three, and suddenly I was 18 years old and graduating from high school in New Orleans. I grew up in the birthplace of jazz, the land of Creole and Cajun cultures, and the excitement of Mardi Gras.

What Jobs have you done? What was the most interesting/bizarre?
I have focused heavily on work within the academic world, for I intend to one day become a university professor and researcher. Following my graduation from university, I worked as managing editor of the Journal of Latin American Anthropology. During my studies, I was the primary research assistant to a well -renowned political scientist. At that time, I also held a position at Chicago’s main history museum where I organised exhibitions. The most interesting of all my academic jobs was a research assistantship with a professor who studied children and adolescents living in Chicago who translates between Spanish and English for their parents, who do not speak English. During my first years in New Orleans, I did the same for my mother, for she was still learning English. Translating for a parent is a major responsibility for a child, so it was highly fulfilling to have the opportunity to interview the children, their families, and write about their experience, which is so similar to mine.

What are your career ambitions, how do you plan to realise them?
My long-term objective is to become a cultural anthropologist, travelling to different parts of the world, undertaking fieldwork within distinct cultures, and using the fundamental concept of cross-culture research to better understand the human race. During my university years, my research focus was discrimination: why it exists (in any and all forms of it) and how to eradicate it. In the coming years I plan to begin a graduate program in anthropology, eventually earning a PhD and teaching at a major research university. As the child of two parents from different cultures and of different races, cultural anthropology is particularly appealing to me. I hope to use my future research to show that our differences should not divide us. It is the diversity of the world that makes life fascinating.

What is the proudest moment of your life? (Not including winning your National Title)
Four years of intense hard work, sleepless nights, and hundreds of hours of reading and writing culminated with my graduation from North-western University. I was overjoyed on the day I received my university diploma, for not only had I performed excellently during my university career, but on that day I also received the award for best honours senior thesis and I was awarded a prestigious scholarship by the Rotary Foundation. My sense of achievement was heightened by the presence of U.N. Secretary-General Mr Kofi Annan at the graduation ceremony. He gave the commencement speech, telling us graduates to venture into the world not to become financially successful, but to change the status quo of the world order so that the underprivileged may lead better lives. I plan to follow his example.

What was the funniest/most embarrassing moment of your life?
I will never forget the "Fourth-Grade Spelling Bee". I spent months studying for the big night so that I would be that year’s spelling bee champion. I was one of 20 students competing in the spelling bee. I was seated on stage anxiously awaiting my turn. The moment finally arrived. They called my name and I walked to the microphone excited to spell my first word, expecting to impress the whole audience of 500 kids. Then it hit me from nowhere. The announcer said please spell the word vowel. Vowel! Vowel I thought, they are not supposed to ask me easy words. What about the difficult words I spent weeks studying: acclivity, perambulator, at least yammer! But not vowel! So I began "V" and then I stopped. Was it an "A" next? Could it be an "O"? No, definitely "A". "V-A-"Then what? Definitely "O - L". Ok I thought I did it. I couldn’t have been more wrong. My yearlong dream was suddenly destroyed when the announcer said, "No that is incorrect. Please step off the stage". As I stood there in disbelief that I had failed on my big night, I saw the laughing faces of the crowd. For the rest of the school year, I became known as "the girl who can’t spell vowel"!

How has your life changed since winning your National Title?
As I sit here writing, it has only been a few hours since my crowning! In all honesty, the full reality of the situation has not yet "sunk it", but I am exhilarated and very honoured.

Tell us about an interesting event you have attended, or a person that you have met.
In February of this year I paraded in Rio de Janeiro’s Carnival, the largest carnival celebration in the world. For one hour, I sang, danced, and jumped up and down, waved at the thousands of people who attended the live event and the millions who watched on television. It was one of the most joy-filled nights of my life. I hope to parade for years to come.

What would you like to do, if you became Miss World 2004?
The Miss World title would offer me a year-long opportunity to focus on effecting positive change in the world by highlighting issues that must be resolved, including illiteracy among children and adolescents worldwide, high rates of homeless in the world’s urban centres, the devastating problem of street children, and the urgent need to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS. For these and various other social problems, I would employ my title to seek philanthropic funding and especially to direct the public’s attention toward these issues.

If you had a personal motto what would it be?
The key to personal fulfilment is a balanced life.

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