Dedication, pursuit of excellence propels Army officer to Miss USA crown

WASHINGTON - Floating in a pool in her full combat gear, Cadet Alma Cooper was working hard to remove her first layer of gear during the survival swimming course at the United States Military Academy. The class was a requirement if she wanted to graduate and fulfill her goal of serving her country.

Struggling to stay afloat, she attempted to remove her gear while treading water. Her body began to sink until she became completely submerged.

She failed this portion of the class again.

"I was so frustrated by it because, in every aspect of my life, I am in pursuit of excellence," she said. "I want to be the best version of myself, I want to push myself, I want to be the very best that I can, and I just kept getting [almost] zero points out of forty on this test."

She became determined to overcome this challenge and started coming to the pool on weekends to practice. She went through the test repeatedly until she became comfortable.

With the semester rolling along, she waited for her chance at redemption, and on the second to last day of class, she got it. She jumped into the pool and pushed through each obstacle as several classmates cheered her on.

She removed her gear while staying afloat, swam with her rifle in her hand, and moved to the checkpoint where she dropped the gun and dove down in the water. She swam under the bridge and through a small tunnel before coming up and swimming down to the finish and touching the wall.

She said her instructor looked at her and said, '40 out of 40!' She finally passed.

"I was like 'Oh my God, it's over,'" she said. "I will always remember that [feeling].

She used her steadfast determination to overcome another obstacle in her pursuit of excellence, something she has been doing since she was a little girl.

Growing up in Okemos, Michigan, Cooper, currently a second lieutenant military intelligence officer, developed a love for learning at a young age thanks to her grandmother and mother.

"It fueled me to push myself in the classroom and to demand excellence," she said. "I feel like I was fortunate to have teachers who saw my hunger and desire to learn and gave me an environment to foster that."

A self-described 'math nerd,' she excelled during her first few months of third grade, leading to her advancement to fourth.

Her father, an Army Michigan National Guard armor officer, encouraged her to pursue her academic passion in science, technology, engineering, and math. He told her that STEM-related courses would be challenging but may lead to opportunities.

At the end of fourth grade, she was selected for a STEM summer camp at the University of Michigan State. There, she completed lessons and was mentored by STEM students.

"I was really eager to immerse myself in the hard sciences," she said. "I knew this was something I wanted to do in the long term."

She also became interested in pageantry as a kid. A letter for a junior pre-teen contest came in the mail when she was 8. She wanted to give it a shot.

She asked her parents, and they thought it would be a good chance for her to build confidence and learn public speaking. They would let her enter as long she had fun regardless of the outcome. She agreed.

Her mother, who had competed in pageants, coached her. Cooper practiced her routine in the school auditorium where her mother worked. They bought a flower girl dress from a local boutique shop and went to the pageant.

There were close to 100 contestants with some having full teams helping them. Cooper had her mother there to help with her hair and make-up. She took the stage for the pageant, did what she promised, and had fun.

When it came time to announce the winner, they called out her name.

"I just remember being genuinely so shocked that I won," she said. "I had the biggest smile; you would've thought I won Miss USA."

She was hooked. From that moment on, Alma and her mother would either watch or go to the Miss Michigan pageant every year. It was their thing.

With her father in the military, he was often on deployments, which was tough when she and her sister were young, she said. This put an extra strain on her mother who had to commute approximately 90 minutes to work while taking care of them and going to school for her master's degree.

"I really feel like my mom is superwoman," she said. "Both my parents are just pillars of inspiration and work ethic, and I often say that I'm living the American dream. From their childhood experiences to mine, I've been fortunate to feel like I'm standing on the shoulders of giants."

When her father first went overseas, he told Alma to help her mother by looking after her sister, who has special needs. She took the job seriously and learned how to handle her sister's seizures and provide her with the right medicine.

The two grew incredibly close during that time, she said, and their interactions left a lasting mark.

"Just the joy she finds in everyday things has brought me so much perspective on what really matters in life," she said. "I [also] think that it's naturally built me into being a servant leader, knowing my sister's needs come before mine. I think it's just brought about a lot of qualities in myself that I still carry today."

As Cooper got older, she said the deployments got easier to handle. She immersed herself in school, sports and pageants. Then, when she was 14, she entered the Miss Michigan Teen USA pageant.

Her mom coached her again and even bedazzled her dress. She competed with the same mindset of being her best self and having fun. That time she finished first runner-up.

The close call added to her desire to be Miss Michigan one day. The dream however would be put on hold after receiving a letter for another opportunity: United States Military Academy leadership summer camp.

She spoke with her father about the opportunity and decided to go. By the end of the first day of camp in 2018, she was all in.

"I just knew from that moment that I was going to go to West Point," she said. "I wanted to be challenged academically; I wanted to be developed; and I wanted to come out better for it--as a young woman, a leader, and a professional. I thought 'What better experience could I ask for?'"

Attending the school would also allow her to follow in her dad's footsteps of military service.

As a cadet, she pursued her passion for STEM as a mathematical science major. She traveled across the country as part of the school's leadership, ethics, and diversity in STEM team, and spoke to middle school and high school students about ethical leadership.

She said she embraced the rigorous challenges the school threw her way each year and fought to overcome them.

In her senior year at West Point, she used mathematical models to investigate the relationship between U.S. nutritional health and Army recruiting. She published her research thesis and briefed Army senior leaders on her findings.

She said the topic was important to her because of the nutritional challenges her mother faced growing up as a migrant farm worker. Her mother's side of the family came to the U.S. from Mexico and dealt with poverty and food insecurity. Cooper's mother would often tell her stories about her difficult childhood.

"That sparked my interest in food insecurity health and nutrition in America," she explained. "I talk a lot about how circumstances never define your destiny. And to me, I've seen [my mom's] work ethic up close and it's directly impacted me and how I strive in education and in my profession."

As her cadet career was winding down, her mentor encouraged her to apply for the Knight-Hennessy Scholarship at Stanford University. She was awarded the prestigious scholarship and was acceptance into the school's two-year master's degree program to study data science.

Her time at the academy ended with her graduation and then commissioning into the Army as her father, now retired, led her oath of office ceremony exactly 24 years after his own.

After being away from pageantry for a few years, she decided to make another push for her dream of becoming Miss Michigan. She started preparing in January and won a local contest before competing at the state competition in April.

She said she again focused on being the best version of herself and having as much fun as possible. As the competition went on, she tried to remain calm as the contestants went from 10 to five to three and then down to the final two.

"I felt like I've had this dream for a really long time," she said. "And I always say it's been delayed but never denied."

And it wouldn't be denied that night as they announced her name as Miss Michigan USA 2024. She embraced her family following the win and tried to calm her mother down as the tears ran down her face.

"It was really sweet because she competed in pageants growing up and for her to go through this experience with me made it meaningful for both of us," she said.

Her victory at the state pageant meant she would compete on national television in August for the title of Miss USA. The bigger stage meant she got another opportunity to represent more than just herself.

"It means a lot because all of this came about from a dedication of service that I found at such a young age," she said. "Watching my sister, seeing my father's career, hearing my mother's story and seeing my families work ethic, all of those things culminated in me even being able to compete."

She pushed hard during the pageant and was once again in the top two. As she stood on stage, she said she tried to take a few moments to think about how grateful she was to make it that far.

A few seconds later, her name was announced as Miss USA, and the crown placed on her head as she stood in disbelief. She became the first active-duty Army officer to win the title.

Making the celebratory walk around the stage, she pointed to her family cheering in the crowd.

"I knew that I would remember this feeling for the rest of my life," she said. "I see this honor as the opportunity to represent organizations that are bigger than myself and to show how meaningful service is and how impactful it is on such a large scale."

Now back at school, the 22-year-old second lieutenant is starting the final year of her master's degree program at the Stanford Nutrition Studies Research Group. She said she hopes to apply her training in data science during her career as a military intelligence officer.

"Whether it's a career in the service or in some way working for the Department of Defense, you can represent so much more than yourself by being part of such an incredible organization," she said. "I hope that my story inspires other people to find that in whatever they pursue."

On Nov. 16, she will compete in the Miss Universe contest in Mexico City.

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