Kiʻilani Arruda

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Kiʻilani Arruda
Ki'ilani Arruda on ThinkTech Hawaii.jpg
Arruda interviewed in 2020
Born (2002-04-13) April 13, 2002 (age 19)
Kapaa, Hawaii, U.S.
EducationUniversity of Puget Sound
Beauty pageant titleholder
TitleMiss Kauai Teen USA 2018
Miss Hawaii Teen USA 2020
Miss Teen USA 2020
Hair colorBlack
Eye colorBrown
Major
competition(s)		Miss Teen USA 2020
(Winner)

Kiʻilani Arruda (born April 13, 2002) is an American beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Teen USA 2020. Arruda had previously been crowned Miss Hawaii Teen USA 2020; she is the second entrant from Hawaii to have been crowned Miss Teen USA, following Kelly Hu who was crowned Miss Teen USA 1985.

Early life and education[]

Arruda was born on April 13, 2002, and is from Kapaa, Hawaii, on the island of Kauai.[1][2] She is half Filipino.[3] She has two younger siblings: a sister and a brother with autism, and Arruda became an advocate for autism awareness because of him.[4][5][2]

Arruda attended Island School in Lihue, where she was elected student body president and maintained a GPA of 4.0, graduating in 2020.[6] While in high school, Arruda was additionally a member of her school's varsity volleyball, swim, and track and field teams.[2] Prior to becoming Miss Teen USA, she was a freshman at the University of Puget Sound, studying molecular and cellular biology on a pre-medical track, with a minor in Spanish.[5]

Pageantry[]

Arruda began her pageantry career after winning Miss Kauai Teen USA 2018, which allowed her to compete in Miss Hawaii Teen USA 2019, where she placed as the second runner-up and was selected as Miss Congeniality.[7][8][9][10] She later returned to the competition the following year, and was crowned Miss Hawaii Teen USA 2020.[11]

As Miss Hawaii Teen USA, Arruda was awarded the opportunity to represent Hawaii at Miss Teen USA 2020. Originally slated for the spring of 2020, the competition was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and later held on November 7, 2020, at Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee.[6][12] She competed in finals, where she was ultimately crowned as the winner by outgoing titleholder Kaliegh Garris, besting first runner-up Shayla Montgomery of Oregon.[13] Following her win, she became the second entrant from Hawaii to win the competition, following Kelly Hu who had been crowned Miss Teen USA 1985, and the first winner to be born in the 21st century.[5][14][15][16]

References[]

  1. ^ "We wanted to wish our #teenqueen a very Happy 18th Birthday!". Miss Kauai USA. April 13, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c "KI'ILANI ARRUDA". Miss Teen USA. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  3. ^ Tuazon, Nikko (November 8, 2020). "Filipino-American Ki'ilani Arruda crowned Miss Teen USA 2020". PEP.
  4. ^ "About". Kiʻilani Arruda. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  5. ^ a b c "Hawaii's Ki'ilani Arruda Wins Miss Teen USA 2020". PEOPLE.com. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
  6. ^ a b Shinno, Stephanie (November 3, 2020). "Ki'ilani Arruda to compete for the 38th Miss Teen USA title". The Garden Island.
  7. ^ "Legacy". Miss Kauai USA. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  8. ^ "Miss Hawaii Teen USA". Kiʻilani Arruda. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  9. ^ "Kona resident crowned Miss Hawaii Teen USA". The Garden Island. January 17, 2019.
  10. ^ "Spotlight shines on Kauai beauties". The Garden Island. November 27, 2018.
  11. ^ Isl, The Garden; Tuesday, |; November 12; 2019; A.m, 12:05 (November 12, 2019). "Arruda wins Miss Hawai'i Teen USA 2020". The Garden Island. Retrieved November 7, 2020.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  12. ^ Beifuss, John (November 6, 2020). "Miss USA preliminary competition: Swimsuits, evening gowns, mini-bios and more". Memphis Commercial Appeal.
  13. ^ "Hawaii's Ki'ilani Arruda Wins Miss Teen USA 2020". Yahoo. November 7, 2020.
  14. ^ "Hawaii's Ki'ilani Arruda crowned as Miss Teen USA 2020". KHON2. November 7, 2020.
  15. ^ Beifuss, John (November 8, 2020). "Hawaii's Ki'ilani Arruda crowned Miss Teen USA during pageant at Graceland". Memphis Commercial Appeal.
  16. ^ Gerken, Marika (November 8, 2020). "Hawaii's Ki'ilani Arruda crowned Miss Teen USA 2020". CNN.

External links[]

Awards and achievements
Preceded by Miss Teen USA
2020 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Leimakamae Freitas
 Miss Hawaii Teen USA
2020 		Succeeded by
Tia Bustamante
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