Back in January, Myla Cox outshined seven other Petal High School juniors to earn the title of Distinguished Young Woman of Petal, the first step on her way to winning college scholarships and a spot in DYW’s Life Skills program.
That win earned her a spot in the statewide Mississippi Distinguished Young Women competition in Meridian, where Cox is vying this week to carry her journey on to the nationwide level.
“This competition, for me, was a huge learning experience and an encounter of coming out of my shell and knowing more about myself,” Cox said in an earlier story. “At the moment of my hearing my name announced, it felt surreal.
“I felt the urge to pinch myself, then (there was) a huge whirlwind of hugs from family, a ton of photo ops, and congratulations soon came.
“Later, after reflecting … I was completely filled with pride to know that I am the first girl of color to earn the title of Distinguished Young Woman of Petal. I made history and this is bigger than me. I want to make my city proud and all young women of every race even prouder.”
Preliminary competition will be held Thursday and Friday, with the final Top 10 contest held on Saturday. A total of 29 participants from across Mississippi will compete in talent, physical fitness and self expression before going through an interview.
Cox, who is a rising senior at Petal High School, will compete in self expression and physical fitness on Thursday evening, complete her interview Friday morning and compete in on-stage talent Friday evening. For her portion of the talent show, Cox will attempt to wow the crowd with a basketball performance.
“It’s incredible – think Harlem Globetrotters for 90 seconds,” said Nicole Ruhnke, program director for Petal Distinguished Young Women.
The event will also feature an autograph party at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday at Belle G in Meridian; community service at Aldersgate Retirement Community and Brookdale Retirement Community; “A Distinguished Night on the Red Carpet” social event; and dinner with the judges at the Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Experience.
More than $28,000 in cash tuition scholarships will be awarded at the Meridian program, and the winner will advance to the Distinguished Young Women National Finals in Mobile, Alabama, in June 2019 following her high school graduation.
Cox, who is the daughter of Tamikia Hartfield and Markus Cox, is a member of the Petal varsity girls basketball team, the varsity volleyball team, Beta Club and Lu Alpha Theta. She plans to play basketball at a Division I school and pursue a career in engineering.
