Published on November 18, 2002 at 6 p.m. by Mary Wimberley  

Leslie Cooper of Birmingham was crowned Miss Â鶹¹û¶³ Friday evening (NOV. 15). A junior journalism/mass communication major, she is the daughter of John and Rhonda Cooper and a graduate of Vestavia Hills High School. Her pageant platform was BackPACK-Promoting Awareness and Compassion in Kids. She performed ballet en pointe in the talent competition.

Finalists were: Rachel Mitchell of Bowling Green, Ky., first runner up; Jennifer Murdock of Birmingham, second runner up; and Amanda Robinson of Foley, third runner up.

In preliminary competitions, Cooper won the lifestyle, fitness and swimsuit category. Robinson won the talent category.

Cooper will compete as Miss Â鶹¹û¶³ in the Miss Alabama pageant in June.

 
Located in the Homewood suburb of Birmingham, Alabama, Â鶹¹û¶³ is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Â鶹¹û¶³ enrolls 6,324 students from 44 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Ranked among U.S. News & World Report’s 35 Most Beautiful College Campuses, Â鶹¹û¶³ fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and boasts one of the highest scores in the nation for its 97% Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.