Meridith Gould was crowned as Miss Minnesota USA 2017 during the state finale held on November 27, 2016 at Ames Center in Burnsville. Gould will head towards representing her state at the 66th Miss USA pageant, wherein Deshauna Barber of District of Columbia will pass on her crown to her successor.

Minnesota has not been a successful winner at the pageant and has only won the Miss USA title once back in 1976. Savannah Cole from Brainerd was their last placement in 2014.

The winner at the pageant was adjudged on the basis of three proportional segments: evening gown, swimwear/active wear and personal interview. Halima Aden, a Muslim woman made it to the semifinals of the competition over the weekend while wearing a hijab and a full-body outfit called a burkini during the swimsuit competition. And, reportedly, Aden’s swim outfit stood in contrast to those of the other 44 contestants, most of whom wore bikinis.

Miss Minnesota 2017 Meridith Gould is a student at the University of Minnesota and is originally from Sioux Falls, South Dakota and was Miss South Dakota 2014 & Miss SD's Outstanding Teen 2012.

Meridith, with her siblings, grew up on a small land in a one hundred and thirty year-old Victorian home. Her upbringing taught her the value of hard work and made her love everything historical. The delegate played the alto saxophone for eleven years while she was in school because her family had a strong emphasis on the fine arts and extracurricular activities. Learning saxophone eventually earned her the Semper Fidelis Award for Musical Excellence, and was a four year All State Choir delegate.

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Meridith’s athletic experience comes from her seventeen years of dance training in modern, jazz, lyrical, and classical Cecchetti Ballet and is a proud Cecchetti Council of America cardholder. Meridith has signed multiple modeling contracts based on her experiences.

Meridith is a previous nationally ranked public forum debater with the National Forensics League, which is the world’s largest academic competition. Meridith is currently pursuing her degree in apparel retail merchandising from the University of Minnesota, and aspires to become an apparel buyer for a lifestyle retailer and eventually, a successful businesswoman and entrepreneur.

Gould will go on to compete for the title of Miss USA. Do you think Meridith Gould can break this streak for her state at the Miss USA 2017 to be held in June, 2017?