SPRINGFIELD — The first heads to wear the Miss Springfield crown have yet to be determined.

Originally set Aug. 6, the inaugural Miss Springfield Scholarship Competition has been postponed until Oct. 30. The event, featuring two categories, will be conducted in the Mars Theatre.

“We’ve had difficulty getting girls to commit to community service, which is the most important part, I think,” Mars Theatre Director Regina Clontz said.

Miss Springfield is affiliated with Miss America, which dropped the swimsuit portion of its pageant in 2018. Today, the organization’s focus is on the contestants’ community service, talent, stage presence and interview skills.

The local pageant needs four contestants in the Miss category (18-26) to send its winner to the next Miss Georgia Pageant in Columbus. 

“We don’t have four girls who have stepped up who want to compete,” Clontz said. “We’ve got tons of girls in the teen (13-17) division.”

Clontz is hopeful more older contestants will emerge.

“These girls are required to attend seminars to have the opportunity to learn about etiquette, stage presence, and tips and tricks for the interview process,” she said. “They have to show up. They have to treat this almost like a job if the really want to have it be a transformative experience.”

The current Miss Georgia is Karson Pennington, an Augusta native who advanced to Columbus by winning the Miss University of Georgia Pageant. Her social impact initiative is ROAR: Reach Out and Read.

For more information, call Barbara Edwards at 954-609-3334 or e-mail scholarship01@comcast.