Miss New York 2006, Bethlene Pancoast, was crowned on July 1, 2006 at the State Office Building in Watertown, NY. Bethlene competed with 21 other young ladies who represented various regions of New York State. Bethlene was a double preliminary winner, winning Talent and Swimsuit on Thursday, June 29 and Friday June 30 respectively. Bethlene is from Brooklyn, NY and works in Manhattan for United Realty Management Company. Bethlene is a property manager and manages about 25 shopping centers on the East Coast. Bethlene’s educational accomplishments include an undergraduate degree from New York University with a double major in Mathematics from the world renowned NYU Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, and Musical Theater from the world class Tisch CAP-21 Musical Theatre Studio. She graduated Magna Cum Laude and received one of NYU’s most prestigious awards, the NYU Founder’s Day Award. She is now pursuing a Master of Science degree in Real Estate Finance from NYU’s Real Estate Institute, where she is a member of WREN (Women’s Real Estate Network) and REISA (Real Estate Institute Student Association).

During her year of service as Miss New York, Bethlene will promote her platform, Teen Task Force – “Helping Teens Help Themselves.” Bethlene helped to create the first Teen Task Force and during her year of service intends to start a Teen Task Force in every area of New York State. Teen Task Force consists of two parts. First, the Teen Task Force consists of a board of teens and adults who help advise local officials about issues facing teens in their local area, and arrange after school activities for teens. The second part is Bethlene’s Five Point Program:

T – Teach teens about the resources available to them.
E – Educate teens about the issues they face.
E – Empower their voice.
N – Nurture their talents so they can find their niche.
S – Success through self-sufficiency.

Bethlene speaks about her Five Point Program in schools, youth centers, places of worship, and other public venues. Bethlene is also a volunteer with Y.E.S. – Youth Empowerment for Success and the Children’s Aid Society, and she is on the Young Executive Board for CampInteractive. Bethlene tutors many students in Math in her spare time, and successfully prepares them for their Regents Exams and SATs.

Besides being very active in the community, Bethlene is also an accomplished performer and tap dancer. She studied Broadway-style tap dance, as well as ballet, jazz, modern, acro and hip-hop, since the age of three. At the age of ten, Bethlene became fascinated with the truly American Art Form of “hoofing,” or street-corner style á cappella tap dance. She has studied tap dance with many tap masters, including Savion Glover, Lisa Hopkins, Gil Stroming, Lavaughn Robinson, and her mentor, Robert F. Burden, Jr. Bethlene has performed in various venues in New York, including the Tribecca Performing Arts Center, The Kaye Playhouse, the Monroe Theater, Steps on Broadway and even in a window on 42nd Street. She performed with the á cappella tap dance group, Tap Team Two and Company, for seven years. Bethlene has won numerous awards for her tap dancing, including Petite Miss Dance for Dance Masters of America. Bethlene was also Pennsylvania’s Junior Miss in 2000 when she competed in Mobile, Alabama on National TV for the title of America’s Junior Miss.

Bethlene’s next stop is Miss America. She filmed the reality show, “Pageant School: Becoming Miss America” for the 2007 Miss America pageant in September in Los Angeles, CA. The Miss America Pageant Preliminaries and Finals will be in January 2007, in Las Vegas at the Aladdin Hotel. So, stay tuned and watch for Miss New York, Bethlene Pancoast, and root her on as she attempts to become Miss America 2007, on January 29, 2007 8pm on CMT!