“This prestigious title gives me the opportunity to work with the Sophomore class president in planning activities for students,” Tashanta emailed The Anguillian. “I also work with our royal court planning events for students and the community.”

The second semester Anguillian student went on: “We took part in the Martin Luther King Jr celebration parades as a tribute to all he has done to provide opportunities for many of us. On January 14 we participated in the parades in Perrine and Homestead and on Monday the 16th, an official holiday, we took part in the bigger parades in Fort Lauderdale and Miami Dade. Thousands flocked the streets.

“The parades comprised troupes, costumes, various marching bands, community and church groups, Greek fraternities and others. A message from Dr. King was also played. The parades were a marvelous experience for me. I truly felt like a queen, especially when such a large gathering was telling me I was doing the Miss America wave and how pretty I looked.

“I thought that riding the parade of troupes when I became second runner-up in the Miss Anguilla Pageant was awesome, but I have never before witnessed a parade of this magnitude. The parades in Florida were carried on many local television stations. As a result, people I don’t know have been asking if I was in the parades.”

Tashanta obviously likes the show biz but, apart from that, she is a serious and committed student at Florida Memiorial University. She is pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice with a Minor in Social Work.

“I currently maintain a 3.6 on a 4.0 scale,” she wrote. “I intend to return home when I graduate in May 2008 and hopefully be employed by Government in the Department of Probation and Parole or with the Police. I hope to one day obtain my Masters and start a juvenile centre with rehabilitative and recreational facilities. Here at college I am part of the Caribbean and International Student Association, FMU Theatre Guild, the Student Government Association and the Criminal Justice Society.

“My Motto is the same as when I entered the Miss Anguilla Pageant in 2001: What the mind of a woman conceives and believes I can and will achieve.

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