Miss Iowa, Clarissa Kroese, will be competing for the title of Miss U-S-A in the pageant broadcast tonight from Gary, Indiana. The 22-year-old is a senior at Central College in Pella. Kroese says she’s already done the interview portion of the contest, which featured some challenging questions.Kroese, a Pella native, hopes to place well in the pageant to help pay for medical school, which she starts in the fall at Des Moines University. She says the organizers of this year’s pageant have tried to lighten up the various events for the audience and for the 50 contestants. The competition is judged based on the interviews, evening gown and swimsuit events. Each counts for one-third. The judges include decorating maven Martha Stewart, “Loveline” host Dr. Drew Pinsky and M-T-V VeeJay Ananda Lewis. Kroese has been in Indiana preparing for the pageant for two weeks now and says the whole process is rather surreal. The pageant airs at 8 p-m on C-B-S. For more information, surf to “www.missiowausa.com” on the Internet.
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