HBCU Alum Crowned Mrs. Universe 2022

Attorney, author, actress, and award-winning TV producer Juanita Ingram, Esq. was recently crowned Mrs. Universe (R) 2022 on August 24 in Miami, Florida by the Ms. World Corporation. Over 75 contestants represented countries around the world, Ingram is the first Black woman to win the title. A Tennessee native , Ingram lives in Singapore with her husband and two children. Ingram is the creator, star and executive producer of the family-friendly docuseries The Expats International Ingrams, currently streaming on Amazon Prime and Roku.  

"I am honored to win this title and grateful to my husband, children, family, friends and pageant coach Kyle Ean Haggerty for believing in me and supporting me. Pageantry with purpose is powerful. Currently, I am working on a new special series titled ‘Beyond Beauty’ that will be released in late November, showcasing the Ms/Mrs pageant genre as well as the confidence-building and positive aspects of pageantry."

Ingram has a prolific pageantry legacy as she is also the first African-American woman to compete and win the title of Mrs. Indiana United States in 2007, Ms. World International 2012, Mrs. UK Universe 2013, Mrs. Great Britain World 2011, and Mrs. UK International 2014 (placing Top 3 at Nationals). MadameNoir selected her as one of the Top 7 Black Women in Pageantry to turn Beauty into Business, along with Halle Berry, Oprah Winfrey and Vanessa Williams.

As the newly crowned Mrs. Universe (R) 2022, Juanita will spend her year promoting Dress for Success, a global charity in 144 cities and 23 countries that empowers women to become economically independent by providing free interview attire, training and ongoing support. Ingram is the founder and current board chair/president of two Dress for Success affiliates in London and Chattanooga, Tennessee (her hometown).