Miss Tennessee visits Jackson school

JACKSON, Tenn. — Jackson Christian welcomed a Tennessee celebrity to their school Wednesday morning.

Reigning Miss Tennessee Grace Burgess told the children she believes in dreams and achieving them.

“I always talk about perseverance and never giving up,” she said. “That’s my character trait. I like to talk about how hard I worked to become Miss Tennessee.”

Burgess serves as the governor’s spokesperson for character education. She travels to schools in all 95 counties to talk to children about character traits.

“School tour is probably my favorite thing about being Miss Tennessee,” she said. “I always have been really passionate about kids and had a love for them.”

She said during her school visits she likes to let the students know her job is more than just wearing a crown. “I really like to explain to them that it is a job and sometimes it’s not all rainbows and happiness.”

Faculty at the school say speakers like Burgess have a good impact on the kids.

“We’ve been bringing people in to talk about different careers to inspire them to achieve their dream,” said Deanna Reid, a science teacher at JC.

Burgess said her favorite part of touring schools is letting children ask her questions.

“I always make sure to hold a Q&A session everywhere I go. Some of the questions I get are quite humbling, to say the least,” she said.

The 22-year-old says she’s always been interested in childhood literacy. She began working with literacy organizations when she was 16.