Nineteen year old college freshman, Lisa Drouillard, was crowned Miss New York recently but now the daughter of Haitian immigrants has her eye set on the larger prize of winning Miss Teen USA, a title that hasn’t been held by a New Yorker for 30 years.

Drouillard brought her Haitian flavor to the competition and wants to use her relative celebrity to encourage the young people of Haiti.

Drouillard said, “I have a sense of pride being Haitian. I feel like I haven’t gotten there yet, but I do know that I inspire every child in my neighborhood.”

Check out the rest of Drouillard’s story over at Black Voices.