Franklin inspires youth with poise and grace

 BriAna Franklin represented the city of Prairie View in the Miss Black Texas pageant this past weekend.
 Franklin, who is not new to pageants, was named the fourth runner-up.
 "My first pageant was the Miss Freshman Attendant Scholarship pageant at Florida A&M University," said Franklin. "Since then I have been in three other pageants and I hope to one day go on to be in the Miss Texas USA pageant that Donald Trump sponsors."
 Franklin is a senior communication major who spent the first two years of her undergraduate studies at FAMU.
 "I was on a partial academic scholarship and departmental scholarship, but I was still paying out-of-state tuition fees," said Franklin. "One day my dad was like, 'You can do the same thing in Texas that you are doing in Florida,' so I transferred back home to Texas."
 Franklin registered for the Miss Black Texas pageant immediately after competing in the Miss Prairie View pageant in the spring.
 "I chose to do this pageant for the same reason that I did the Miss PV pageant," she said. "Beauty is rated highly among young women and girls, and I want to be in a position to show other young people what beauty really is."
 To compete in the pageant, Franklin had to complete the application process, pay the competition fee, and sell $500 worth of ads.
 The competition consists of five categories.
 "Saturday night was the interview and talent portions, and they were worth 50 points together," Franklin said. "The fitness and evening gown portions were worth 30 points and were held on Sunday."
 The top five contestants make it to the question and answer portion of the competition that is worth 20 points. Franklin made it to the final round.
Franklin's platform for this competition and others she will compete in is helping women understand the meaning of beauty.
"I understood that I was beautiful when I understood that beauty had nothing to do with my outside appearance," said Franklin. "I want to help other girls understand that, and being in pageants has reiterated this fact for me. I have met so many beautiful people."