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Miss Utah Promotes STEM Education

Kara Arnold, or as she is better known, Miss Utah, will head to Las Vegas next week to compete for a chance to become Miss America. But before she hits the bright lights of the Vegas Strip she spent the past year traveling across Utah to promote the importance of science education.

Serving as Miss Utah takes up a lot of time. There is the fundraising, and the events, and the charity work. And for Arnold there’s also the time spent traveling to schools across the state to promote Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math education or STEM.

“I think that’s the most important part is relating to kids why science is relevant in the world today and why they are learning math concepts and how those connect with science and what they can do with those skills in STEM careers,” she says.

Arnold says she chose to make STEM education her main platform because she realized how much it had influenced her own life. She just recently graduated from the University of Utah with a degree in chemistry. She was also just accepted into the University’s Medical school. She says she especially hopes to make an impact on other young girls who might not already be interested in science.

“So I realized I could be a role model that way and get more girls interested and excited about science because you didn’t have to shy away from it," she says. "There is nothing in the world telling you that you have to shy away from it.”

Arnold leaves for Las Vegas next week where she hopes to become only the third Miss Utah ever to be crowned Miss America. But even if that doesn’t happen, she says she’s grateful for the science education she hopes will propel her to a successful career.

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