Austin Community College students have the brains. Add looks and you’ve got Atia Willis, a 19-year-old studying communications who was recently crowned Miss Austin 2008.

Willis is no stranger to beauty pageants, having won Miss Texas United Nations last year and then first runner-up in the nationals. But she still gets nervous beforehand.

“It’s nerve-wracking,” she says. “You try not to look at your competition, but they’re all so beautiful and intelligent.”

The Miss Austin pageant is similar to Miss America, where contestants compete in categories such as swimsuit, evening gown, and a panel interview. Winning the crown was especially memorable to Willis, as she was only the second African American woman bestowed the honor. “I just couldn’t stop crying,” she says.

Willis hopes to someday become a special education teacher, and is grateful to ACC for helping her fulfill that dream.

“ACC is an opportunity to become the best educated student,” she says. “The professors work with you; they want you to succeed. I’m so happy to be there. I just want to represent my school the best way I can.”

Willis will compete in the Miss Texas pageant on June 29 in Laredo.