When Gonzalez, a College of Arts & Sciences freshman, and her family moved from Puerto Rico to the United States five years ago, she barely spoke any English, causing her to struggle not only with adapting to a new culture, but to a new language as well.,”Almost all 13 year olds face struggles with insecurity and identity. Geysha Gonzalez had to do so in a foreign country with limited knowledge of the language.

When Gonzalez, a College of Arts & Sciences freshman, and her family moved from Puerto Rico to the United States five years ago, she barely spoke any English, causing her to struggle not only with adapting to a new culture, but to a new language as well.

With time, Gonzalez eventually began to adjust to her new surroundings, but also insisted on maintaining her cultural pride and identity. Three years after moving to the United States, Gonzalez was crowned Miss Teen U.S. Latina 2005, becoming a role model for millions of girls that were going through the same problems and confusions that she had once experienced herself.

Although she had wanted to compete in pageantry for some time, Gonzalez said the Miss Teen Illinois Latina competition that preceded her rise to Miss Teen U.S. Latina was the first pageant in which she had ever participated.

Gonzalez first became involved in the pageant after her dad heard about it on the radio and decided to sign her up. She was then selected out of a group of 300 girls to be one of 25 to compete in the pageant, which she went on to win, she said.

Gonzalez then rode her victory to nationals in Cancun, Mexico, where she was judged on a multitude of factors, both on-stage and off.

"There were judges everywhere," she said. "Everything you did was judged—what you did, how you talked to people, everything."

Gonzalez said she was also judged on the typical beauty pageant criteria as well, such as interviews, evening gown and bathing suit competitions and speeches, but with a cultural twist that focused on Latina identity.

After being crowned the winner, Gonzalez said she was flooded with opportunities as well as obligations. Gonzalez's prizes included free travel, television appearances, media exposure and a $1,000 scholarship. Gonzalez also had many responsibilities that accompanied her title, the most important of which she said was becoming a role model for Latina youth.

"I had to go to high schools and talk to the kids," she said. "I wanted to let them know that the youth does have a voice."

Another change Gonzalez had to deal with in the wake of her victory was the reaction of her family and friends. Although her family was supportive, Gonzalez said she was hesitant about telling her friends.

"I didn't tell any of my friends that I did the pageant in the beginning‐I wanted to do it for myself," she said. "Also, I knew that their first reaction would be like 'oh, world peace.' . People watch 'Miss Congeniality' and they have an image of how they think pageants are, but they're nothing like that."

Reflecting on her time as Miss Teen U.S. Latina, Gonzalez said her experience was an undeniably positive one.

"It's good to have people listening to you," she said. "It's not like you don't have a voice without the crown and sash, but it adds worth."

She also said one of the things she valued most as Miss Teen U.S. Latina was her ability to reach out to people experiencing the problems with culture and identity that she once faced.

"For Latinas, when we come to the U.S. it's so different from home that we don't know where we stand," she said. "That's what I think my main role was, I was a role model for identity . not just for Latinas, but for every culture that needed it."

Gonzalez's close friends and family agree that she is an ideal role model for people of all cultures.

"Geysha really has a positive attitude," said friend Yuliana Salinas, a freshman in the College of Communication. "She's really friendly. She talks to everyone and she's really easy to talk to."

Another one of Gonzalez's close friends, Sandra Venegas, a freshman in the College of Communication, said Gonzalez still highly values her Latina culture.

"She is really proud of her culture and heritage," Venegaz said. "She talks about her customs and traditions a lot, and she really strongly believes in them."

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