Born a military brat in the Republic of Panama, Rachel grew to call Tennessee her home after her parents were reassigned to Ft. Campbell, Home of the 101st Airborne Division, and soon, thereafter, settled there permanently.

Being in close proximity of Nashville allowed Rachel the opportunity to pursue her interest in the entertainment industry at a young age. By the age of eight she was performing in a live show at Opryland USA and participating in various recording sessions and modeling jobs.

As Rachel grew into a young adult, she combined her passion for entertaining and educating others to help determine her field of study in college—journalism.

Rachel is recent Magna Cum Laude graduate (December 06) at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee. Rachel graduated a semester early with a Bachelor of Science in Journalism, December 2006.

Since Rachel has been at Belmont, she has been awarded many honors and opportunities. Rachel received a full tuition scholarship to attend Belmont due to her community service activities and academic achievements throughout high school. She has been on the Dean’s List her entire collegiate career and is a member of Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society. In addition, Rachel serves as an officer for an on campus organization that is dedicated to welcoming prospective students and their families to the campus. Rachel also serves as managing editor for the student led campus newspaper, The Belmont Vision. When she is not in class or in the newspaper office, Rachel can be found at the Vine Hill Boys and Girls Club where she is an avid volunteer.

During her time at Belmont, Rachel also completed two internships, one at a local level at market 30 station News Channel 5, WTVF-Nashville and the second on a national level at Harpo Productions, Inc. in Chicago.

The new year of 2007 brought Rachel an exciting opportunity to travel to South Africa to work with students at Oprah Winfrey’s Leadership Academy. The Leadership Academy opened in January 2007 with 152 South African girls, ages seventh and eighth grade, from disadvantaged backgrounds. The first-class school offers academically talented girls an opportunity to develop their full potential and become the country’s future leaders.

--Miss Tennessee Web Site