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Miss Kentucky Alex Francke. Photo by Theresa Stanley
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Miss Kentucky Alex Francke. Photo by Theresa Stanley
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Photo by Theresa Stanley
At the ripe age of 22, Alex Francke has accomplished more than many of us will in a lifetime: She has completed a college degree, lived on two other continents, taught English as a second language and founded an active nonprofit that she continues to manage.
The Lexington native was also crowned Miss Kentucky earlier this year and will be competing at the end of December for Miss America 2020. The organization has worked to change the nature of the annual ceremony in recent years, doing away with its swimsuit competition in 2018 and attempting to shift the emphasis from physical beauty to talent, social impact and scholarship. Her extensive history in social activism, business education and creative arts make Francke a strong contender.
Francke has created an art-filled life for herself since a young age and devotes much of her energy today toward improving the accessibility of arts education and experiences for others – Kentucky schoolchildren in particular. She counts her time at Lexington’s School for the Creative and Performing Arts (SCAPA) and Kentucky Governor’s School for the Arts as majorly formative experiences in her life.
“I owe the majority of my cognitive thinking skills to my early exposure and involvement with the arts – I learned early on how to multi-task and give it my all,” she said. “All of those things were important to me and would challenge me in a way to better set me up for college.”
In 2014, Francke founded Adopt An Art, a nonprofit that works to bring multidisciplinary arts education to Kentucky schools.
Working with a team of trained artists and mentors who volunteer their time to lead the lessons, the organization has worked closely with Fayette County schools over the past four years to create after-school programs focusing on dance, drama, art and music classes. Today, the organization is shifting from its traditional after-school model to an in-school model, she said, to increase accessibility for all children, regardless of their after-school transportation options.
“I want everyone to be able to ‘adopt an art,’ regardless of where they come from or what they are passionate about,” Francke said. “We still have public schools that do not have arts opportunities for all of the kids.”
One of her primary goals with the organization is to shine light on how universally beneficial arts education can be, even for those who don’t plan on becoming an artist or dancer or musician. A graduate of University of Kentucky’s Gatton School for Business, where she majored in social entrepreneurship, Francke points to her parents as an example: While both are corporate executives now, her mom grew up playing piano and her dad was an artist.
“Even though they did not become professional artists, they absolutely benefited from arts education,” she said. “Art teaches culture, tradition and design – as human beings, art is in everything we do. “It is so rewarding to see how art can give people things they otherwise would not get,” she said.
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Through a partenrship with The Kentucky Castle, Miss Kentucky Alex Francke hosted a couple Miss Kentucky Tea Parties this fall, with proceeds benefitting Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. Photo by Theresa Stanley
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Through a partenrship with The Kentucky Castle, Miss Kentucky Alex Francke hosted a couple Miss Kentucky Tea Parties this fall, with proceeds benefitting Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. Photo by Theresa Stanley
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Through a partenrship with The Kentucky Castle, Miss Kentucky Alex Francke hosted a couple Miss Kentucky Tea Parties this fall, with proceeds benefitting Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. Photo by Theresa Stanley
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Through a partenrship with The Kentucky Castle, Miss Kentucky Alex Francke hosted a couple Miss Kentucky Tea Parties this fall, with proceeds benefitting Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. Photo by Theresa Stanley
At SCAPA, while Francke was a classical voice major with an emphasis on musical theatre, she also completed the Lafayette High School pre-engineering program. The combination of the two programs helped instill a work ethic that she says has served her in the areas of art, education, competitions and other endeavors. She also credits the Lexington Opera House, where she performed as a child and worked as an employee later in life, with having heavily impacted her path to where she is today – she even credits it with helping provide her with the courage and encouragement to pursue Miss Kentucky.
Her eyes light up when she talks about the beloved local arts venue.
“I remember the big, red velvet curtains rising and coming down on a show,” she said. “I felt like I could be and do anything because I saw it on stage – I saw people come to life and tell stories. It enchanted me.
“It was an outlet to perform, but it was also an outlet to better myself and be involved in the community,” she added.
Community involvement remains high among Francke’s personal priorities and future plans. Her social entrepreneurship major featured a strong focus on conscious capitalism, or serving communities through business. Locally, she points to DV8 Kitchen – a restaurant that provides employment opportunities for people in recovery from addiction – as an example; she worked with a catering company in Cape Town, South Africa that had a similar focus during a semester abroad. This past year, Francke was able to deepen her experience combining business acumen with community involvement through her work with Kentucky Proud, the marketing program for the state’s agricultural products. (All Miss Kentucky winners are given the opportunity to serve as the official spokesperson for the Kentucky Proud organization.) Through that role, Francke has criss-crossed the state, working with farmers, growers and producers and appearing at events and festivals to meet people and share information about Kentucky Proud programming.
Today, Francke is preparing for the Miss America competition and what comes after – she currently has her sights set on pursuing an MBA. As the winner of Miss Kentucky, she received a $30,000 scholarship; the winner of Miss America is provided a $50,000 scholarship, and runners-up win a significant scholarship too. As for competition prep, Francke takes a holistic approach that includes health and wellness in addition to talent and current events – she works out her vocal muscles by singing everyday, researches politics and follows current events, and importantly, is getting her emotions ready for the spotlight.
“I’m preparing myself to be subject to the praise or criticism – the same thing happens with Miss Kentucky,” she said. “Emotional grit is important. You develop mental toughness.”
Ultimately, it’s a goal she is highly honored and proud to be pursuing.
“I believe Miss America is the most well-rounded, role model for young women,” said Francke. “She’s the best at taking care of herself and taking care of other people.”
The curtains will raise on Alex’s biggest stage yet when she travels to Mystic Country, Connecticut to compete for Miss America 2020 and its education scholarship prize. The competition airs Thursday, Dec. 19 at 8 p.m. on NBC.