Winner of Miss USA 2017 (born 1991)
Kára McCullough Temple (; née McCullough) is an American beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned
Miss USA 2017 . As Miss USA, McCullough represented the United States at
Miss Universe 2017 , where she placed in the top ten.
Previously, McCullough had been crowned
Miss District of Columbia USA 2017, becoming the fourth woman from the District of Columbia to be crowned Miss USA. Additionally, McCullough and her predecessor
Deshauna Barber 's wins marked the first time a state had won back-to-back titles since
Courtney Gibbs and
Gretchen Polhemus of
Texas won
Miss USA 1988 and
1989 .
Early life and education
McCullough was born in
Naples , Italy to Betty Ann Parker and Artensel E. McCullough Sr.
[1]
[2] Her mother was a member of the
United States Navy for 23 years, and McCullough thus lived in various places such as
Sicily , South Korea, Japan, and Hawaii.
[3] She was later raised and completed high school in
Virginia Beach, Virginia .
[4] McCullough attended the
HBCU
South Carolina State University , where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry with a concentration in
radiochemistry and served as the school's 75th Miss South Carolina State University.
[5]
[1]
[6] While a student, she was a member of the
American Chemical Society , the
Health Physics Society , and the
American Nuclear Society .
[7] She has been inducted into the
Golden Key International Honour Society and the
National Society of Black Engineers .
[7]
[1]
Prior to becoming Miss USA, McCullough worked as an
emergency preparedness specialist in the
Nuclear Regulatory Commission 's Office of Nuclear Security and Incident Response.
[8]
[9]
Pageantry
Prior to winning
Miss District of Columbia USA 2017 , she was the first runner-up for
Miss District of Columbia USA twice, in 2015 and 2016, respectively, to Lizzy Olsen and Deshauna Barber. In 2017, she was crowned Miss District of Columbia USA 2017 by Miss USA 2016 Barber. On May 14, 2017, McCullough competed in the
Miss USA 2017 pageant in
Las Vegas . She went on to win the competition, beating out first runner-up Chhavi Verg of
New Jersey and second runner-up Meridith Gould of
Minnesota .
[10] During her time at Miss USA, McCullough received media attention and praise for deciding to compete with her
natural hair , which was seen as support for the
natural hair movement .
[11]
[12]
[13] McCullough was both criticized and praised
[14] for her conservative question answers, stating that health care was a privilege for the working and not a right, in addition to calling herself an "
equalist " as opposed to a feminist.
[4] She is the seventh Miss USA titleholder born outside the United States.
[8]
As Miss USA, McCullough represented the United States at
Miss Universe 2017 on November 26, 2017 in Las Vegas. McCullough reached the top ten of the competition before being eliminated. The winner of the competition was
Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters of South Africa.
[15]
[16]
[17]
On May 21, 2018, McCullough crowned
Sarah Rose Summers as her successor at the
Miss USA 2018 competition, held in
Shreveport, Louisiana .
[18]
[19]
[20]
[21]
Personal life
In 2020, McCullough married professional basketball player
Garrett Temple , in a private ceremony.
[22]
[23]
[24] They have one child.
[25]
[26] Temple's father-in-law is
Collis Temple ,
[27] a former professional basketball player.
References
^
a
b
c
"Kara Deidra McCullough crowned Miss S.C. State" . thetandd.com . The Times and Democrat. 3 October 2012. Archived from
the original on 7 July 2017. Retrieved 15 May 2017 .
^ Edwards, Ashley (14 May 2017).
"Miss District of Columbia, Kara McCullough, wins Miss USA 2017 pageant" . mic.com . Mic. [
verification needed ]
^
"Miss USA Addresses Controversial Health Care Answer & Importance of HBCUs | Sway's Universe" . YouTube . 19 May 2017.
Archived from the original on 2021-12-05.
^
a
b
"Miss DC Wins Miss USA, But Not Everyone Is Happy" . Romper.com. 15 May 2017. Retrieved 2017-05-15 .
^
"South Carolina State University" . South Carolina State University . June 27, 2012. Retrieved December 19, 2017 .
^ Feit, Noah (14 May 2017).
"New Miss USA is an S.C. State grad" . The State . Retrieved 16 May 2017 .
^
a
b Walsh, S.M. (14 May 2017).
"Miss USA 2017 Miss District of Columbia Kára McCullough: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know" . heavy.com . Heavy.
^
a
b Persio, Sofia Loretto (15 May 2017).
"Miss USA winner Kara McCullough is a scientist who has controversial opinions on health care and feminism" . Newsweek . Retrieved 15 May 2017 .
^ Heil, Emily (16 May 2017).
"Nuclear chemist Kara McCullough wins Miss USA" . Stuff .
^ Rogers, Christopher (14 May 2017).
"Kara McCullough: Miss District Of Columbia Crowned Winner Of Miss USA 2017" . hollywoodlife.com . Hollywood Life. Archived from
the original on 17 May 2017. Retrieved 15 May 2017 .
^ Cox, Lauren (14 May 2017).
"Kara McCullough: Everything You Need To Know About Miss USA 2017" . hollywoodlife.com . Hollywood Life. Archived from
the original on 24 August 2017. Retrieved 15 May 2017 .
^ Lebsack, Lexy (14 May 2017).
"Miss D.C. Shares The Inspiring Reason She's Wearing Her Hair Natural Tonight" . refinery29.com . Refinery 29.
^ Sciarretto, Amy (14 May 2017).
"Miss D.C. Kara McCullough Wore Her Naturally Curly Hair For Miss USA 2017 & Fans Are Here For It" . bustle.com . Bustle.
^ Gutfeld, Greg (15 May 2017).
"Commentator" . No. Miss USA. FoxNews Channel. Retrieved 15 May 2017 .
^
"South Africa's Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters wins Miss Universe 2017" . ABS-CBN News. 26 November 2017.
^ Domirez, Darren (26 November 2017).
"Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters wins first Miss Universe 2017 crown for Miss South Africa in 39 years" . Inquisitr.
^
"Miss Universe 2017" .
Amar Ujala . Retrieved 27 November 2017 .
^ Connor Coulston, John (21 May 2018).
"Miss USA Crowns Miss Nebraska Sarah Rose Summers as 2018 Winner" . Pop Culture.
^ Charles, Marissa; Rogers, Chris (21 May 2018).
"Miss Nebraska Wins Miss USA 2018: Sarah Rose Summers Takes Home The Crown" . Hollywood Life. Archived from
the original on 17 June 2018. Retrieved 19 June 2018 .
^ Vulpo, Mike (21 May 2018).
"Miss Nebraska Sarah Rose Summers Crowned Miss USA 2018" . E!.
^ Swift, Andy (21 May 2018).
"Miss USA 2018: And the Winner Is..." TV Line. Archived from
the original on 22 May 2018. Retrieved 19 June 2018 .
^ Lewis, Brian (July 5, 2020).
"Nets' Garrett Temple sees NBA restart as powerful social justice tool" .
New York Post .
^ Andrews, Malika (July 5, 2020).
"Nets' Garrett Temple has 'nervous anxiousness' about making trip to Orlando bubble" .
ESPN .
^ Goldberg, Rob (July 5, 2020).
"Nets' Garrett Temple Feels a 'Nervous Anxiousness' About NBA's Orlando Bubble" .
Bleacher Report .
^ Lewis, Brian (September 10, 2020).
"What Steve Nash's Nets offense is expected to look like" .
New York Post .
^
"Happy Birthday to me!!!" . Kára McCullough. September 9, 2020. Archived from
the original on 2021-12-24.
^ @KaraMcCullough (May 8, 2021).
"My dope a🤭🤭 father-in-law" (
Tweet ) – via
Twitter .
External links
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Miss USA Kára McCullough, District of Columbia