As Miss Wisconsin's Outstanding Teen, Oshkosh's Evelyn Green hopes to promote inclusion for children with developmental disabilities
OSHKOSH – Oshkosh's Evelyn Green is a relative newbie in the Miss Wisconsin competitions, but that didn't stop her from shining on stage.
She took home the crown of Miss Wisconsin Outstanding Teen 2022 in her hometown June 17.
Green said she first found out about the Miss Wisconsin organization through a friend at her dance studio, Julie's Touch of Silver. Her friend won a competition as Miss Fond du Lac's Outstanding Teen and she encouraged Green to compete.
Green, an Oshkosh West High School senior, said her mom was initially a bit hesitant but, after watching her friend at a state event and learning about the scholarships available, Green started competing two years ago.
After winning Miss Oshkosh's Outstanding Teen and now becoming the Miss Wisconsin Outstanding Teen, Green is excited to give back to her community and represent the state in the nationwide competition in August.
"I'm excited to reach all of Wisconsin and get to travel and do as much as I can with my social impact," Green said.
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Green's social impact pitch, "You're Invited: Celebrating Different Abilities Through Inclusion," is about ensuring that children with developmental disabilities feel a sense of belonging in and outside the classroom.
One way Green has helped foster inclusion has been working with TRIO Academy, a therapy provider for children with autism spectrum disorders, to create a group called Volunteens, which pairs neurotypical teens and teens with developmental disabilities to do activities that foster meaningful friendships.
Green grew up with two close family members who have developmental disabilities, which is part of what inspired her.
"My compassion for seeing individuals with disabilities led to my passion to want to help them and stress the importance of inclusion," Green said.
Green's mother, Kimberly Nichols-Green, was also an inspiration. She's worked with individuals on the autism spectrum and other developmental disabilities her whole career and spent the last 12 years teaching in the special education department at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
Kimberly said while she didn't push Evelyn to follow in her footsteps, Evelyn was drawn to it early on.
"People who see her interact with kids with disabilities say how natural it comes for her," she said.
Besides her work with TRIO Academy, Green volunteered with Champions of Fond du Lac and The Arc. She said she has learned to be very patient, which will help her as she hopes to enter a caregiving field like teaching or nursing.
Green said she hopes, as Miss Wisconsin's Outstanding Teen, she'll be able to reach even more people outside of her volunteer work — even wanting to partner with the Special Olympics Wisconsin.
Between volunteering and school, Green also has given back to her dance studio by teaching 2- and 3-year-olds.
At the studio, Green learned and perform in jazz, ballet, tumbling and twirling, which is her talent while competing. She started twirling when she was 8 and had to work hard to catch up to her peers who started much younger.
But through her studio, Green got to compete and travel internationally in twirling competitions, traveling to Norway and winning a gold medal in 2018.
Green said she hopes to continue to twirl in college and has researched schools that have a feature twirler position.
But right now, she and her family are preparing for the competition for Miss America's Outstanding Teen 2023 competition in Dallas in August. Although she and her mom are sorting out lots of details, they said it's an exciting kind of stress as they get Evelyn new headshots, prepare travel plans and do all of the behind-the-scenes work.
Green said one aspect of preparation for the competition that's tough is the interview portion that takes place off-stage. She said the Miss Oshkosh organization has helped her prepare with a lot of mock interviews.
While she doesn't know what the next year will look like — trying to manage college applications, extracurricular activities and her new responsibilities — she said she's looking forward to serving the state, even if her mom is stressing for her.
"I’m not too worried about it, but (my mom) is," she said. "I know I’ll have a pretty packed schedule but I’m really excited."
Contact Bremen Keasey at 920-570-5614 or bkeasey@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @Keasinho.
This article originally appeared on Oshkosh Northwestern: Miss Wisconsin's Outstanding Teen Evelyn Green of Oshkosh giving back
