Laura Kaeppeler Wins the 2012 MISS AMERICA Crown

Miss Wisconsin Laura Kaeppeler was crowned Miss America 2012 on ABC's THE 2012 MISS AMERICA PAGEANT live from the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas on Saturday, January 14th. The pageant was hosted by Brooke Burke-Charvet and Chris Harrison.

Kaeppeler used the competition to reach out to children of incarcerated parents to make them feel less alone and to encourage mentoring in order to make a relationship with their parents a possiblity. The newly crowned Miss America's father recently served jail time for mail fraud. "There are many of you out there – and I was one of them – but it doesn't have to define you," Kaeppeler told The Associated Press. Along with competing in the bathing suit and evening gown competitions, she also sang an opera song in the talent portion of the show. 

As winner of Miss America, Kaeppeler will receive a $50,000 scholarship

About the Miss America Organization

The Miss America Pageant and the scholarship program are among the most enduring endeavors in modern American history. Celebrating 91 years of remarkable achievements when it first began with its humble beginnings as a "bathing beauty'" contest in the 1920s, the Miss America Organization today is one of the nation's leading achievement programs and the world's largest provider of scholarship assistance for young women. Last year, the Miss America Organization and its state and local organizations made available more than $45 million in cash and scholarship assistance, helping young women all across the country to reach their dreams and goals. For more information, go to www.missamerica.org.

Photo credit:Craig Sjodin/ABC