October 24, 2022
Go Trojans! Mister and Miss HBCU Earn VSU’s First National Pageant Titles
The birth of a new HBCU dynasty is shining a light on the powerful legacies of HBCUs everywhere.
This year, Mister and Miss HBCU hail from Virginia State University (VSU), where the incomparable Trojan pride runs deep and the crowns stack high.
Isaiah Matthews-Braxton and Joy Watson, who competed in separate pageants against HBCU students nationwide, earned VSU’s first national pageant titles from the National Black College Alumni Hall of Fame, WTVR reported.This opportunity not only honors VSU in a grand way, but it allows the king and queen to represent all HBCU students.
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In 2021, Matthews-Braxton, a humanities and social sciences major, earned VSU’s 31st Mister Virginia State title and was named Mister HBCU in January 2022. His journey is a testament to the Trojan’s orange and blue that illuminates in his blood and the family he’s gained in the Land of Troy.
“HBCUs are extremely important, for Black and Brown kids [as] we go into this scary world,” Matthews-Braxton said, per the news outlet. “We’re dealing with so much adversity, whether it’s police killings or systematic oppression, but when you go to an HBCU you gain a family. ”
“Being Mister HBCU is probably the greatest thing I’ve done in my whole college experience,” he continued.
Voted 94th Miss Virginia State University in April, Watson is a Senior Presidential STEM Scholar from Newburgh, NY. The mission behind her reign is to serve her ambassadorship by inspiring and educating students about HBCUs.
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“When people see us they’ll want to go here. When people see us, they’ll want to send their students, their kids, and maybe even become a professor at our university,” Watson said.
“The goal is to continue to have people from our school, more Virginia State University kings and queens to hold these titles,” she continued.