Miss Southern University Ayanna Spivey

Miss Southern Ayanna Spivey and her royal court gears up for the 83rd Annual Coronation being held at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, October 23.

The coronation, held in the F.G. Clark Activity Center every year, is the crowing ceremony that officially initiates Miss Southern into the "Miss Southern Club."

The senior Social Work major said, "Knowing that there are 82 former Miss Southerns watching, makes me kind of nervous and excited, but I am honored."

"It's also bittersweet because homecoming is like the halfway mark of the semester," said Spivey.

 
Initially the theme for Spivey's coronation was planned to surround a garden to play off the meaning of Spivey's name, Ayanna means beautiful flower. Rethinking the theme, Spivey said, "I've decided to use a theme that is a reflection of where I'm from and choose Old Hollywood."

The Moreno Valley, Calif. native said the Old Hollywood theme represents "elegance of that time and a lot of African-American actors surfaced during that era," said Spivey.

She is hoping the coronation's production will attract more students to attend the ceremony this year and years to come.

Spivey often reaches out to pervious Miss Southerns like Chisolu Isiadinso, Erin Rogers, and sorority sister Kenya Warren for advice they learned from their journey being Miss Southern.

"Becoming Miss Southern and enduring the extra responsibility has changed my life", Spivey said. "It's very humbling because from the outside looking in you can't see the hard work."

Spivey hit her reign as Miss Southern wanting to make a difference and continue to boost the title of Miss Southern. She has revamped the "Up Til' Dawn" campaign now calling it the Community Outreach Programs Service, (C.O.P.S).

Under the new campaign, there are still some of the same initiatives and events such as raising money for the St. Jude's Foundation, which is traditional for Miss Southern, and event such as Zumba Night that Erin Rogers hosted last year.

This year Spivey has added causes that she holds dear to her heart such as kidney foundation, which her mother has suffered from kidney failure for most of Spivey's life. Spivey and her court also participated in the Sickle Cell walk/run that was held downtown Baton Rouge earlier in the semester.

The goal behind adding other causes and foundation is to education everyone and being able to touch on issues that others in her court and out deal with.

Last year's Miss Southern, Rogers, raise over $2,500 in one night with her haunted house held on campus. Sticking with the success from the event, Spivey plans to do another haunted house for two nights and she hopes to have the community to join in on the spooks.

Homecoming is always a great time on Southern University's campus. Spivey invites all to join in the many activities and to please join her in a production of Old Hollywood here in Baton Rouge.

The coronation is a black and/or white formal affair. It is free and open to the public.

For more info on homecoming activities visit www.subr.edu/homecoming2013