For Marcia M. Turner '97, being selected Miss Massachusetts last year meant more than appearing on nationwide television and reaching instant celebrity status.

During her senior year of high school in Wenatchee, Wash., someone suggested Turner enter a beauty pageant. She says she declined, as she had an image of the typical beauty pageant contestant--and knew she didn't quite fit it.

In 1995, as a Lowell House junior, she decided she'd enter the Miss Massachusetts pageant, promoting a new vision for the contest itself.

It would not be "an ideal of youth and beauty, but a commitment of hard work" that would stress the importance of education, says Turner, who herself works with Boston Partners in Education.

"All of the doors that have been opened are because of my education. And that was because a lot of volunteers helped me along the way. I want to make people aware of where that got me, so they might be encouraged to do the same," she says.

Turner won the Miss Massachusetts contest and placed among the top 10 in the Miss America contest, which was broadcast live across America from Atlantic City, N.J., last September. During her term, she juggled her pageant responsibilities with a full course load.

The Government concentrator also co-chaired her house committee and gave campus tours with the Crimson Key Society.

Turner made more than 150 appearances in fairs, festivals and parades, sometimes touring four days each week. She accommodated her schedule by booking "a lot of seminars" at Harvard.

"There were some days with solid classes, but I had a good four days without classes. I had a business manager who scheduled events for me and she knew which days were school days," she says.

"Even dressing up four days a week can get draining," she adds.

Before entering a local pageant in Spring 1995, her only pageant experience was representing her hometown in a spring festival during high school.

Turner took runner-up in that first pageant and afterwards ran into a woman who said she had potential. She received pointers over the telephone from this woman, Turner says, which ultimately helped her take first place at her next local pageant.

"Then I went to the [Massachusetts] state pageant and ended up winning," Turner says. "I was pretty shocked. I was a pageant novice, and all I had to go on was what this woman had discussed with me."

Turner says she entered the contest because she was "curious, but in addition to that, I was somewhat challenged. I was always disciplined in my piano practice and disciplined in school."

Winning the Miss Massachusetts title was tough. But regular piano lessons at the New England Conservatory and 90-minute daily workouts between June and September with a personal trainer were no piece of cake either.

The workouts took a lot of energy, but Turner kept at it. "Wearing a swimsuit on stage is a good incentive for exercise," she says.

The 21-year-old also discussed current events regularly with a local attorney, who helped her keep up with the world and articulate her thoughts on issues.

Turner gave the job her all, and says she had a good time.

"It was a one year commitment and I don't think I would have appreciated it as much if I hadn't know that it was limited to just one year. I am very thankful to have that year to look back on," Turner says.

Clarissa J. Ngo '97, Turner's suitmate since sophomore year, says her friend's celebrity status made daily life at Harvard a little more exciting--and more lonely.

"She always had these exciting stories when she came home from events, and she is a very good storyteller," Ngo says. But with so much going on, Ngo says, "[Turner] was just here less."

Miss America Pageant

Before her two-week stay at the Miss America pageant in Atlantic City, Turner and the 49 other state winners spent four days vacationing in Orlando, Fla., the home of Walt Disney World.

"We got to cut to the front of all the lines!" she says.

One of Turner's most vivid memories was performing a piano solo before a live audience of hundreds and a television viewership of 40 million.

As she walked off the stage, Turner says, she knew she had nailed the piece. "It was a tremendous rush."

"All of my friends, all of my family members and an additional couple million got to share that with me," she says.

Though she was in the spotlight, Turner never lost touch with her humble beginnings.

"When people get to know me they see that I am sincere when I tell them about how I viewed the year," she says. "I meant what I said when I talked about wanting to be a role model for people."

"I wanted to tell people next year I won't have this, but what got me here will still be with me, the characteristics and commitments," she says.

Turner says she thinks the speaking skills and confidence gained during her reign will prove valuable when she begins a career in business or government after graduation.

Turner says she'll continue holding the same ideals that helped her win the contest. And while she has reached celebrity status on campus, she says life will return to normal, with plenty of time for studies, campus tours and singing with the Radcliffe Pitches.

"I am so happy to be a senior and to be just a student," she says.