Sophomore Amber Ward is competing for the title of Miss Arkansas. Her current title is Miss Central Arkansas, and her goal is to raise funds in order to fully compete for the title of Miss Arkansas in July which would lead to competing in the Miss America Scholarship Program.

According to Ward, she was not a pageant child and did not start competing at a young age. She began competing because doors were opened and it became a way for her to serve God and her community.

“I never even considered pageantry to be something that I wanted to do because … there is a lot of stipulation that surrounds it, especially with people who don’t know anything about the organization and what they do,” Ward said.

Ward said she started getting involved in pageantry after a student retreat through her church.

“I had seen that verse in Proverbs that talks about how the faith of one believer can abolish strongholds of evil and I just really started addressing that,” Ward said. “(Then) doors started opening and I got in contact with people who said ‘I don’t understand why you shouldn’t go for a title.'”

Ward recently decided to connect with the Harding community through social clubs to raise funds for the Children’s Miracle Hospital Networks, a program that has partnered with the Miss America For Kids organization. Ward said she wants to raise $3,000 for the program. She has met with several men’s social clubs including Knights and Omega Phi.

“I thought it was really cool that Amber Ward chose Harding, specifically social clubs, to reach out and get funds for her community outreach,” senior Omega Phi member Geoff Davis said. “I thought it was a good decision, and it let us be part of her campaign.”

Sophomore Katie McDonnel said that Ward is a sweet, genuine girl who becomes a friend to everyone.

“(Ward is) obviously very dedicated,” McDonnel said. “She has strong character. After leaving for a semester, she knew that Harding was the place for her and just had to come back.”

Freshman Abby Loring said she admires Ward’s drive in this competition. Loring has competed in three different pageants including a national and an international junior Miss America circuit.

“Even when I was in high school while competing, it was very hard to balance doing appearances and hanging with my friends,” Loring said. “So for (Ward) to balance college and traveling all over the state is admirable.”

Loring said that this kind of ambition is exactly what judges look for in a title holder.

“(The judges) will see that not only is (Ward) striving to get a college career, but they’ll see that she still has dreams outside of college and is willing to pursue them,” Loring said.

Ward said that if anyone would like to donate to the Children’s Miracle Hospital Networks, they can find the necessary link on her Instagram page (@miss_amber_leigh).