On June 30, 2024, University of Denver master’s student Jessi Kalambayi, representing the City of Denver, walked away from the Miss Colorado USA pageant as Miss Colorado USA 2024.
She is a first-generation Congolese student who obtained her bachelor’s degree in psychology at the Metropolitan State University of Denver before deciding to study International Studies with a concentration in migration at DU.
Kalambayi was originally an avid pageant watcher. She felt represented by women who could show that they could be beautiful, educated and care about the world around them. Kalambayi recalls “shedding tears” in 2019 when Zozibini Tunzi, Miss South Africa 2019, won Miss Universe 2019. For context, in the pageantry world, this win was important as, along with Tunzi, Miss America 2019, Nia Franklin; Miss Teen USA 2019, Kaliegh Garris; and Miss USA 2019, Cheslie Kryst, were all Black women.
“Seeing [Tunzi] win did something to me. Someone who looks like me is getting this position and it’s incredible,” Kalambayi said.
Out of the many pageant systems, Kalambayi felt that the Miss Universe system resonated with her the most, as she feels it represents not only beauty but confidence and being bigger than yourself.
Before pageantry, Kalambayi was settled in modeling, humanitarian work and grad school.
“Last year I had this little epiphany where I was like, ‘Hey I don’t really know what else I’m doing right now outside of grad school and work. I kind of want to lean into these little dreams of mine,’” Kalambayi said.
Kalambayi wrote ‘Try Miss Colorado’ as a note and ended up applying in January. The rest is history.
“It was quite shocking for me because it was my first ever year in pageantry,” she expressed.
She went on to place in the top ten at the Miss USA competition, putting Colorado back in the top ten after twelve years.
Despite the initial shock of winning Miss Colorado USA, Kalambayi felt that the role of Miss Colorado USA was for her, because of the access to a bigger platform and the opportunity to mix her love for fashion and advocating for refugees and immigrants.
Kalambayi began her advocacy journey after graduating from MSU Denver. She began interning at the African Community Center, a refugee resettlement agency and got a full-time position after finishing her internship.
With her full-time position, Kalambayi got to work as a supportive staff with DU in 2022 via a partnership they had with ACC called ‘Ready for American Hospitality’ or RAH. The program connects refugee students with students within the Fritz Knoebel School of Hospitality Management and fosters a mentor/protege relationship surrounding the food industry. The proximity to DU made Kalambayi consider applying there for her master’s degree.
“When I got to know of DU, I really admired their structure, their curriculum, all the things DU stands for. Once I did get a full-time role here at DU, I was like, ‘I have the time, I have the opportunity, I’m going to take advantage of it,’” Kalambayi said.
Kalambayi’s passion for helping refugees stems not only from her work at DU, but also from her background of being born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and immigrating to the States. The terms ‘refugee’ and ‘immigrant’ mean two very different things, as refugees are forced to leave their homes, while immigrants have the choice.
“That [refugee] population comes with this very unique set of challenges that I found interesting, that I wanted to explore and most importantly support. The refugee population is very personal to me. I think they have taught me a lot, and I’m continuing to learn every single day through my job,” Kalambayi said.
Kalambayi now manages RAH. When she was originally being hired to support RAH, the manager at the time was looking for his successor. He trained Kalambayi for that role without her realizing it and passed the role on to her when he left to work for the state of Colorado.
“He believed in me way before I believed in myself. And really just [through] my own resilience and my hard work I was able to take on that position officially in 2023. I’ve been with the program for some time now and it’s just been such an honor and pleasure just being able to bring those worlds together, especially at DU, which is a PWI,” Kalambayi said.
As Miss Colorado USA, Kalambayi got to continue her refugee work with the Women’s Wilderness Outdoor Girls. Outdoor Girls works with refugee and immigrant girls to connect them with the outdoors of Colorado. Kalambayi got to go on an outdoor trip with a group of girls and connect with them over conversations about the “girl experience” and their experiences as first-generation students, refugees and immigrant individuals.
“For them to see me and see the possibilities that exist through me by holding on to this title was something that was beautiful. I felt like, ‘Oh my God, this is exactly why I’m here.’ I want to inspire little girls to see themselves in me. I was able to achieve this great dream because I tried; I believed, and I went, and I did it,” Kalambayi said.
Kalambayi is still figuring out her life after pageantry as she continues her graduate studies. She plans to finish grad school so that one day she can be a global ambassador for the United Nations and work with their refugee agencies. She also wants to expand her modeling career as pageantry has opened more doors for her.
She’s open to exploring pageantry, but only after she figures out her current goals. If Kalambayi were to compete again, she’d love to compete in the Miss Universe system, but she’s open to the idea of competing in Miss Grand International.
If you are interested in competing in the Miss Colorado USA state pageant, visit their website. Information about the African Community Center and Ready for American Hospitality can be found on their websites as well.
