Victoria Vespico, Miss Pennsylvania 2025, visited Luzerne County Community College about a week before she will compete in the Miss America pageant.
The competition starts Sept 2 in Orlando, Florida and a new Miss America will be crowned on Sept. 7.
Vespico, a Shavertown native, stopped by LCCC Thursday to host an ice cream social at the college to welcome prospective students signing up for the fall semester.
LCCC and the State Department of Education held the event as part of the college’s late summer application process.
The newly crowned Miss Pennsylvania called herself a “NEPA girl through and through” and said she wanted to support students as they embark on their next chapter in higher education. She was crowned Miss Pennsylvania last month after representing the region as Miss Northeastern Pennsylvania.
“Community college is one of the best opportunities available to students, and it's an underutilized resource that communities have and that students don't necessarily know [about],” Vespico said.
Vespico graduated from LCCC in 2019 and is working towards her master’s of arts in teaching from Wilkes University. She won a $12,000 scholarship through Miss Pennsylvania to continue her education and an additional $1,000 scholarship through the competition’s health and fitness award.
Vespico on empowering kids to protect the environment
She said she hopes to use her teaching degree to inspire the next generation and promoted her community service initiative, Sustainability Starts With You, which focuses on teaching people to make small changes in their lives that will have a positive environmental impact.
Vespico said her program follows the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals and focuses on environmental sustainability to combat climate change.
“[My program is] about finding ways to connect with people [and teaching them how] to make simple changes that improve their quality of life and help build out their communities in a way that's going to make the world a better place,” Vespico said.
Through her program, Vespico said she’s reached thousands of students in classrooms across the state to talk about how they can take their passions and use them for environmental change.
“So for example, if a student's really interested in animal welfare, they can get involved with the local ASPCA and volunteer there and help create a difference there,” she said.
Or if a student is worried about hunger in their community, she said she tries to help them volunteer at a local food bank to work towards fighting food insecurity.
Vespico said she also works on social media campaigns with companies who are making changes towards sustainability and is partnering with the NFL (National Football League) and MLB (Major League Baseball) to talk about how large event spaces are capable of creating sustainable change.
She’s currently working with the Lincoln Financial Stadium.
The stadium, home of the Philadelphia Eagles, was certified as a LEED Platinum Building last year. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), developed by the U.S. Green Building Council is one of the most widely used green building systems in the world.
“[It’s] really awesome and kind of unheard of in the sports space, but I believe visibility is accessibility. So, [I am] highlighting what they're doing … They are doing waste diversion. They're doing energy efficiency programs. They have urban education programs to talk about agriculture on the more local level,” Vespico said.
Miss Pennsylvania is a 'NEPA girl'
Vespico talked about how she wants to use her platform as Miss Pennsylvania, and hopefully Miss America, to show the nation how “when you have a community behind you, you can really achieve anything.”
“So, to be able to represent our area and show how Northeastern Pennsylvania is really leading the charge in a community of people who are strong-willed, strong-minded, but also have such support for each other, is something that I think is incredibly important,” she said.
She mentioned her Shavertown roots, a suburb of Kingston Township with a population of roughly 2,150 people.
“Big things start in small places. And I am hoping to be the next Miss America, and the very first Miss America from Northeastern PA to show that this region really is here to change the world,” Vespico said.
She said she’s excited to compete alongside 51 other women, including representatives from Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico, for the crown.
“I [have] met so many incredible, like-minded women who wanted to change the world through their own passions … Not only has [the pageant industry] changed me, but I feel like I've been able to play a part in changing it for the better. It's grown and has such an important relevancy nowadays to show how women can be female leaders, while also advocating for themselves, advocating for their communities and acquiring those scholarship dollars that help them make the world a better place and achieve their academic goals,” Vespico said.
Vespico on being in the spotlight and Miss America
Vespico also said her 13 years in pageants have taught her how to handle the stress of competition and how to make the most out every moment.
“I … know that I only get to do this one time. So, I want to enjoy myself and have as much fun [as I can] while I'm having this opportunity to hopefully become the next Miss America,” Vespico said.
She also addressed the challenges of becoming a public figure.
“There's an expectation of who you are and how you carry yourself, and that's not a bad thing,” Vespico said.
Vespico said she has faced harassment and bullying online from people who choose “to be mean for the sake of being mean,” but that she chooses to rise above it.
“I want to be that face showing how women can change the world. I want to be that face leading the charge in sustainability. So, it's either let those mean comments get me down, or keep going and ignore them and just show that the Miss America opportunity is for women who want to change the world,” Vespico said.
