Nina Davuluri - Miss America 2014

Nina Davuluri (born April 20, 1989) is an American beauty pageant titleholder who was named Miss New York 2013, subsequently winning Miss America 2014. She is the first Indian American to be chosen as Miss America.

Davuluri was born in Syracuse, New York, but moved to Oklahoma at age four and later to St. Joseph, Michigan, where she would go on to attend college at the University of Michigan. Along with her family, she moved back to the Syracuse suburb of Fayetteville in the mid-2000s, where her father is a gynecologist affiliated with St. Joseph's Hospital.

Davuluri was born to Telugu parents. Her mother Sheila Ranjani, software engineer, and father Davuluri Koteshwara Choudhary both hailed originally from Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India. In 1981, they left for Missouri (United States), where her father worked as a gynecologist. Her maternal aunt and uncle in India are also doctors and run a nursing home, while her father’s siblings are doctors in the United States. Following the family trend, she wishes to become a cardiologist. To honor her Indian roots, she became a trained Kuchipudi and Bharatanatyam danseuse during her yearly visits to India. Davuluri has learned to play piano as well and she regularly watches Telugu films (Tollywood) to stay connected with India.

Davuluri attended the University of Michigan and has won several scholastic honors including the Dean's List, Michigan Merit Award, and National Honor Society Award. She graduated with a degree in Brain Behavior and Cognitive Science. In 2006 she placed Runner-up for Miss Teen America. She prepared herself a whole year for the Miss America competition. According to her grandmother Koteswaramma support came from "her mother, most importantly she has strong attachment to India and the city of Vijayawada," where she spent 2 years as a baby girl.

Davuluri was crowned as Miss America on September 15, 2013, the second Miss Syracuse to win the competition after Vanessa Williams in 1983. Congresswoman Grace Meng congratulated Davuluri and compared her win with the first Jewish-American title won by Bess Myerson in 1945. Several commentators noted that the title was a milestone for the Indian-American and the Asian-American community as a whole. Davuluri was left on stage with first Runner-Up Chinese-American Miss California Crystal Lee when she said, "We’re making history standing here as Asian Americans."

The title announcement was met by a backlash of anti-Indian sentiments in social media.  News agencies cited tweets which misidentified her as Muslim or Arab and associated her with terrorist groups such as Al Qaeda. Davuluri responded to this criticism, "I have to rise above that, I always viewed myself as first and foremost American.