The idea of selecting "the most beautiful girl" was initiated in
1927-1928 in conjunction with the first annual ball at Southern by
Mr. Robert L. Shade and Mr. Thomas Langston, and Miss
Robbie Smith was selected. The next year the title was changed
to "most beautiful co-ed" and the committee picked Miss
Marie Breaux for the title.
For the session 1929-1930, two young ladies were selected; "the
most beautiful co-ed" was selected during the winter session, and
an additional selection was sponsored by the Homecoming activities
committee earlier in the fall. To prevent the confusion which
occurred, and almost as a normal next step, a co-ed was selected to
serve as "Miss Southern" for the 1929-1930 session. Miss
Lenora Jones Washington, a native of Scotlandville, and
daughter of the first dean of Southern University was accredited
the honor of being the first "Miss Southern". Her husband,
Lawrence Washington, who was the center on the football team,
was also for the second year in succession, selected the "Most
Handsome Man".
The selection process for Miss Southern was changed during the
early 1930s instead of a select committee having this difficult
choice, the student body elected the coed during the fall school
session in which she was to reign. This process remained in effect
until the early 1950s when the practice began of selecting the
reigning beauty during the second semester of her junior year.
