The next contestant to be featured as part of our series, The Road to Miss Connecticut’s Outstanding Teen 2018, is Miss Southern Connecticut’s Outstanding Teen, Ashlyn Manuel – a 15-year-old & competitive dancer, who currently attends Litchfield High School. Continue reading to learn more about Ashlyn and her journey to MAOTeen CT!

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For those who may not be familiar with you, tell our readers a bit about yourself and your background within the pageant world.
I am 15 years old and attend Litchfield High School. I am a part of my club “interact” and love to help out around my school. I am a competitive dancer at “Triple Threat Dance Company”. I attend dance 4 days a week and my favorite styles of dance are hip hop, jazz, lyrical, and musical theater. I am also an assistant at my dance studio and I love it! Getting to work with kids is one of my favorite things. When I am older I want to earn my master’s in education and become an elementary school teacher.

The four points of the Miss America crown represent: service, scholarship, style, and success. Which one is the most important to you and why?
The most important point of the crown to me is definitely service! I love that the Miss America organization allows me to be able to get out in my community and be a part of many service projects. Also, through this experience I have learned to use my voice more and speak up about what I believe in to be able to make a difference.


During Brooke Cyr’s reign, what is one characteristic you’ve seen her bring forth as Miss Connecticut’s Outstanding Teen, and which do you hope to emulate if you were to win the title?
Throughout Brooke Cyr’s reign she has shown her genuine passion for making a change in our state of Connecticut and advocating for what she believes in. She inspires me to want to work even harder and want to do even more for the community. If I were to win the title of Miss Connecticut’s Outstanding Teen, I would want to be someone who inspires other titleholders.

What have you learned from our current Miss Connecticut, Eliza Kanner, that can help you be a better outstanding teen?
Eliza gives off such positivity and kindness when she talks to someone. She is always giving out compliments and just trying to make someone’s day a little bit better. She is an amazing representative for our state of Connecticut and she has done an incredible job this year as Miss Connecticut!

Please share with our readers your platform and why you’ve chosen to advocate for it.
My personal platform is Stranger Danger, fighting childhood abduction. I chose to advocate for childhood abduction because every time I hear a story about another child going missing it makes me so upset and makes me want to do something about the issue. According to the FBI’s National Crime Information Center missing person file, there are 32,121 active reports of people 18 and under that are missing. I decided that I wanted to do everything I could to lower these statistics. I am an advocate for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. This organization uses donations to help search for missing children and help the families of the children.


If you were to win the title of Miss Connecticut’s Outstanding Teen, how do you hope to better educate your generation about your platform and the importance it holds?
I would love to have a school tour all around the state of Connecticut to be able to go to classrooms and teach children safety for out on the streets, and teach basic self-defense moves to be able to protect themselves if ever put into a dangerous situation.

Tell us about your talent and the decisions you made in proceeding with this talent.
I will be performing a musical theater piece to the song “I can hear the bells” from Hairspray. It is a very fun number and I am so excited to perform it!

Having been in pageants and after winning a local title, what advice do you have for those who want to start competing in the MAO system?
I would tell them that the MAO system is filled with such positivity and just all around amazing people. We get to make a difference in our community which is such a great feeling.


Because of the way media and certain television networks have portrayed the lifestyle of pageantry, there is a preconceived notion of what a pageant girl is like. How do you think that being a part of the Miss America Organization you are able to break that barrier?
Being a “pageant girl” is so much more than wearing dresses. The Miss America Organization allows all of the titleholders to use their voice to make a change for what we believe in, which is truly amazing. I am forever grateful for being a part of this organization because it has made me an overall better person.

Regardless of who wins the title of Miss Connecticut’s Outstanding Teen, what is one goal which you have for them, which you hope they will accomplish during their reign?
I hope whoever earns the job of being Miss Connecticut’s Outstanding Teen does everything she can to make a difference in her year of service. I have become friends with all of the titleholders throughout this journey and I know that whoever wins is going to be an amazing representative for our state!


Bravura is an artistic word for exceptional. What makes you a “bravura” candidate for Miss Connecticut’s Outstanding Teen?
I think that I am a bravura candidate because I am unique and true to my beliefs which I won’t change for anyone.  I believe in being fair in life and treating people equal and non-judgmental. Being a genuinely good person is being a bravura candidate.

Where can people follow you on social media?
@ashlynxtaylorr – Instagram, and Ashlyn Taylor – Facebook.

What final words do you have for the readers of Bravura Magazine and those following you on social media?
Thank you so much to everyone for reading my article! I cannot wait to compete for the job of Miss Connecticut’s Outstanding Teen in June!