Science Meets Sashes for Miss Pennsylvania USA 2024, a Woman in STEM

Noni Diarra, a CHOP research tech, was crowned Miss Pennsylvania USA 2024 June 29. (Photo credit: Edwin Shaw)

By Jillian Rose Lim

With a wide, warm grin, Noni Diarra describes pageant prep for Miss USA 2024 as a whirlwind. Between practicing poses, perfecting interview skills, and polishing her pageant walk, she’s deeply engrossed in her work at CHOP’s Center for Data Driven Discovery in Biomedicine (D³b).

The 23-year-old biopsy specimen technician will represent her home state as the recently crowned Miss Pennsylvania in the pageant August 4. A North Philly native and former Miss Philadelphia USA, Diarra also plans to put the hometown she loves on the map.

As part of the Pre-clinical Laboratory Research Unit of D³b, one of CHOP’s most cutting-edge collaborative research centers, her days involve processing biosamples, picking up specimens, propagating data collection, and much more. Yet as she balances sashes and science, Diarra keeps her eyes on the prize: Her goal is to empower young women and underrepresented minorities to achieve their dreams — whatever those dreams may be.

“My main goal for competing in these pageants is to be the representation for my community that we so desperately need,” Diarra said. “I grew up in North Philly where there is a lot of poverty and a lot of violence and yet so many talented people. I do this to reflect another way of being successful and to show that where you come from doesn’t have to be your story. There is a life that is so much larger than what you could ever dream, and you just have to be able to push through.”

Once Upon a Time in Philly

Diarra’s CHOP story began in childhood, long before the pageants and pipettes.

“I was born and raised in Philly, and just like a lot of other kids in the inner cities, I had horrible asthma because of the pollution,” said Diarra, who recalls growing up next to an abandoned house rife with asthma triggers.

She experienced asthma flare-ups that sent her to CHOP as an inpatient for three to five days at a time. And while it was harrowing for both her and her mother, Monique, who would often take the day off work to sit by her daughter’s side, it was also formative.

Through CHOP’s Community Asthma Prevention Program (CAPP), a community-driven initiative founded by Tyra Bryant-Stephens, MD, the two learned how environmental triggers, such as mold spores and mice, contribute to poor asthmatic health. Diarra’s CHOP memories also include the warmth and kindness of the hospital staff she interacted with during her stays, particularly when it came to reassuring her mother that everything would be OK.

“At that moment I said, ‘I want to be a doctor and help other kids,’” Diarra said.

That plan changed slightly, however, when she attended West Chester University and began working with a biology professor studying virus-host dynamics.

“I liked trying to get to the bottom of finding a cure and figuring out ways it can translate to the clinical space,” Diarra said. “That’s really how I began to love science, but I knew, throughout all of that, I wanted to come back to CHOP in some capacity, whether as a physician or as a researcher.”

Diarra graduated in 2022 with her Bachelor of Science in Cell and Molecular Biology and a minor in Women’s and Gender Studies.

Beakers and Ball Gowns

Like CHOP, pageants played an important part in Diarra’s childhood. At just 18-months-old, she participated in her first competition at her mother’s bidding, and again at 13-years-old.

“It was intimidating,” Diarra said. “I think if I had been more open to the experience, I would have enjoyed it a lot more. I’m a dancer, so the talent portion was second nature to me, but I had no clue what I was doing outside of that.”

Years later, as a sophomore at West Chester University, Diarra found herself donning a sash and gown once again as part of the Miss WCU Scholarship pageant. This time, Diarra joined to meet other young women on campus and earn some scholarship money.

Diarra was delighted to discover she had placed fourth runner-up. Shortly afterwards, a former Miss WCU recruited Diarra to compete in Miss Philadelphia, an event organized by the Miss America system.

“That’s how I started to seriously get involved in pageants,” she said. “Eventually, I switched systems to compete in the Miss USA organization and won Miss Pennsylvania USA on my first try.”

‘Be the Representation You Want to See’

While Miss USA is often perceived to be a beauty contest, Diarra said the nearly seven-decades-old pageant is about more than the perfect walk or polished look.

“It’s not just about the outside optics,” she said. “It’s also about your entire character and your purpose for being there. It’s how you interact with the judges, how you express yourself and your beliefs and values, how you articulate your ‘why’ – that is the most important part.”

One of Diarra’s biggest motivators in both her pageantry and science work is to advocate for diversity. As Miss Pennsylvania USA, she aims to be the representation that young Black women can see, recognize themselves in, and feel inspired by. This is particularly important in the science, technology, education, and math (STEM) field, where, according to a Pew Research Center study, women of color remain underrepresented and underpaid in the workforce. She believes that diverse representation in science can lead to new and impactful perspectives that improve research protocols.

“Being in a space where not many people look like you can be intimidating,” Diarra said. “It was difficult for me entering the workplace at 21 years old as one of the only women — and one of the only Black women — when I started. But diversity of thought is what’s going to help us find better ways of treating different diseases and find those cures that we so desperately need.”

Diarra plans to continue pursuing a career in science by attending graduate school and earning her PhD. Photo credit: Robert Moulder.

Looking to the Future

In the coming days, Diarra will travel to the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, California, for Miss USA. Should she win, she will represent the country in November’s Miss Universe pageant alongside winners from around the world.

But whatever the outcome of these pageants will be, Diarra already has a path in mind for her coming years. She plans to attend grad school and earn her PhD.

“I definitely want to be one of those boomerangs who returns to CHOP after that,” Diarra said. “I want to stay in the cancer biology research space because I’ve already learned so much within the short year and a half that I’ve been here, but I feel like I’ve only scratched the surface of what it takes to find cures for children’s brain tumors. That’s something I’m really becoming passionate about, and I want to continue that work.”