If Alabama’s Abbie Stockard gets hit with a wave of conflicting emotions on Sunday night, no one could really blame her.

Joy. Excitement. Sorrow. A tinge of wistful regret.

Stockard, Miss America 2025, will take her final walk as the national titleholder during Sunday’s pageant at the Walt Disney Theater in Orlando, Florida. She’ll place a glittering crown on the head of a new Miss America, give her successor a hug and start the next chapter in her life.

The Birmingham native has held the Miss America title for the past eight months, traveling around the country and meeting the public. She’s been a celebrity and a brand ambassador for the organization, connecting with the people she meets and advocating for her philanthropic effort: Be the Change: Find a Cure — Cystic Fibrosis Awareness.

Stockard is the fourth Miss Alabama to earn the national crown, following in the footsteps of previous winners Deidre Downs, Miss America 2005; Heather Whitestone, Miss America 1995; and Yolande Betbeze, Miss America 1951.

“Serving America in this role has been the honor of a lifetime,” Stockard said this week on Instagram. “How blessed I am to be surrounded by people who believe in me, cheer me on, and lift me higher.”

Stockard, 23, put her educational dreams on hold during her time as Miss Alabama and Miss America. But on Monday, she’ll return to her home state and resume her classes in the nursing program at Auburn University. Stockard also will be engaged in clinical rotations at hospitals in Birmingham.

“Nursing students stay busy,” Stockard told AL.com. “I’m excited to be a nurse again, and maybe get involved in a few other things at Auburn.”

We caught up with Stockard during her last few days as Miss America, asking her to reflect on her reign and ponder her future. Here’s what she said.

(The interview below has been edited for length and clarity.)

How are you feeling right now, as your time as Miss America draws to a close?

Abbie Stockard: It’s bittersweet. I’ve kind of been reflecting on my past eight months as Miss America, and I feel all kinds of emotions. Obviously, I’m sad. You know, my reign is shorter than most, and so I’m sad that it has to be cut off short for me. But at the same time, I am excited. I think what helps is that I have something to look forward to after Miss America, back to being a full-time nursing student at Auburn.

After taking off over a year of school, I’m really excited to get my degree and be back in class. It’s kind of a nice change of pace. As much as I’ve enjoyed traveling and all of the appearances, I will say it’s gotten to the point now where I’m kind of excited to not be in the airport every week.

It has its pros and its cons, but I think that I can leave Miss America week feeling confident that I truly made the most of my eight months. I accomplished everything that I wanted to do. The organization provided me with all the goals that I wanted to accomplish, and I truly think I made the most of it, every single appearance. I feel satisfied with that. Now I’m just excited to give another amazing young woman that same opportunity to experience a once-in-a-lifetime of a year.

What are some highlights from your time as Miss America?

It has been a mix of really super exciting and fun, and then at the same time, also very meaningful and rewarding. The Kentucky Derby was incredible. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to go back, because how can I top being Miss America at the Derby? Also, getting to sit front row at the UFC fight in Las Vegas. I’ve attended more motorsports events than I ever thought I would go to. I’m at like four or five now. Going to the NFL draft, the NFL Super Bowl. Getting to dance with the Utah Jazz dancers, the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders and the Auburn Tiger Paws.

Then the meaningful and the fulfilling ones — for me, the one that immediately comes to mind was having the opportunity to meet with President Trump in the Oval Office. That was absolutely surreal. I got to talk about the Promise Fund, which is one of Miss America’s partnerships that advocates for cervical and breast cancer screening, and accessibility for underserved communities. But I also got to talk about cystic fibrosis, my service initiative, which I’m extremely passionate about. He gave me, as well as my best friend with CF, Maddie (Hagler), a presidential seal, one that I got to take home and give to her. She’s my roommate this year at Auburn. So that was very, very special.

Also, getting to be the commencement speaker for the UTHealth Houston graduation ceremony. I was giving a speech to Ph.D candidates that were graduating, and I was sitting here like, “Wow, I don’t even have my nursing degree yet.” But it was such a cool experience for me to say that I’ve been a commencement speaker.

I’ve gotten to visit several children’s hospitals, speak to children’s classrooms, and do a lot of work with the national Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. I loved when I got to wear the purple-colored sash the entire month of May for CF Awareness Month. That was really special. I think it brought a lot of attention to the disease. I also got invited by the CF Foundation to Colorado, where I attended Celebrity Ski.

I attended the CF Foundation’s Volunteer Leadership Conference in San Antonio. And I got to go to Santa Monica, California, where I was presented with the Claire’s Place Advocacy Award, which is basically an organization that was created by a little girl with cystic fibrosis that passed away. The goal is to help families financially, because the medicine for CF patients is just so expensive. It was really cool and very rewarding to be there, and meet more and more people from the CF community. That’s honestly what made my year.

You’ve also made lots of appearances in your home state, correct?

I have gotten probably more appearance requests from my home state than I’m assuming any other Miss America has. I’m telling you, requests every week. It was so meaningful to me. I have received an outpouring amount of love and support from the people of Alabama — from every single community I have traveled to across the state. Nothing beats it. I love being in Alabama. It’s truly made me appreciate it even more. I feel like it’s such a blessing to live here, and be comfortable going anywhere across the state of Alabama, because now I feel like I have been everywhere.

In just a few words, how would you describe your reign as Miss America?

Surreal. Out-of-body experience. Rewarding. It truly is like an unlike anything anyone will ever experience.

Is there anything you would change about the past eight months?

Well, you would think that I have mastered packing at this point, because for more than half of my year, probably over 75% of it, I was traveling or on a plane every week. But every time I went somewhere, I would still forget little things. A lot of times it was the hairspray. I should have been more prepared for my appearances, with a little bag that would have everything I needed. That’s what I would tell the next Miss America to do. She needs a little cosmetic bag that she brings everywhere, with travel-size hairspray, gum, lip gloss, bobby pins, hair ties, safety pins. Somehow, I always managed to forget hairspray. We always had to go to CVS or Walgreens and buy things. So, the essentials. Miss America needs a “go bag.”

When you were traveling, what did you miss most about Alabama?

I have learned that, for me personally, there is no better place than the South. Being on the road and traveling to all these different states truly made me appreciate being in Alabama even more. The people, the food, the atmosphere. This sounds silly, but I even miss the humidity at times. I miss the greenery. I was out in Arizona when it was so dry, and I was literally driving by cacti. I missed the trees and the greenery and humidity and all that stuff.

It definitely put things into perspective for me. It also affirmed that I want to spend the rest of my life, preferably in Alabama, definitely in the South, because there’s truly no place that beats home. The people in Alabama, everyone has been so nice to me throughout this year. There’s just something about Alabama that’s different, and I relate to the people more. When I say “War Eagle!,” there’s always an Auburn fan in the room. That makes me feel more at home.

You jumped back into nursing school in late August. Has it been a big transition for you?

My life has changed, yeah. I went from being a full-time student to winning Miss Alabama, to winning Miss America, being out of school, and now I’m just a normal student again, back on campus taking lecture notes. It’s like, whoa, what just happened? That’s kind of how I’m feeling. it’s been a transition for sure. I’m jumping back into second semester, and I have to jump right into content. My first day of class was a four-hour lecture, so it was kind of a wake-up call for me. I gotta get used to this again. But it’s fine. I love being in a routine. So once Miss America is over, I’ll get into that, and I’ll become comfortable with it.

Is your plan still the same — finish nursing school, then go on for advanced education?

Yes. I have received over $89,000 in tuition scholarships, so when I graduate in December of 2026 with my bachelor of science in nursing, I will have leftover scholarship money. I plan to get a couple years of experience as an RN, and then hopefully go back to pursue a more advanced degree. The scholarship money has been life-changing for me and my family, because this past year I was able to use my Miss Alabama money to pay off my student loans. And then my Miss America money just covered my first bill for fall semester tuition. Next year, I will graduate completely debt free.

One of my goals this year as Miss America was, everywhere I went, I tried to shed light on this life-changing scholarship money. A lot of people don’t know that Miss America is based off scholarships. I think there are so many young women across the country that were in a similar position as me when I started freshman year of college, looking to relieve this financial burden somehow, and not really knowing what to do. For me, Miss America was my answer. And I think for a lot of them, it could be theirs, too.

What’s your role for the pageant finals on Sunday? It’s the culmination of a full week of Miss America events.

Yes, and I’m so excited. I don’t have any stress or pressure of competing. I get to just enjoy, and have fun, and pour into these contestants — be there for them and put their minds at ease. I have been through this, and I remember all of those emotions and feelings very vividly. … On the finals night, they’re actually going to let me do a dance performance, which is really fun because usually Miss America doesn’t perform. Also, I can’t wait for the opening number. They’re going to feature me in that and show everyone my little farewell collage that I’ve put together.

What advice would you give to the new group of contestants?

Honestly, it would be to just enjoy your time at Miss America. This is their moment. I want them to enjoy it, and not get caught up in the pressure of feeling like they have to prove themselves to anyone, because they don’t. I want them to trust their preparation, and just press play and enjoy it and make it count.

My advice would also be, don’t count yourself out if you don’t win a preliminary award. If your interview doesn’t go as well as you think it should, don’t count yourself out, because I did that. That’s why I told anyone and everyone that I probably wasn’t going to win. You never know what’s gonna happen.

Don’t be the Miss America you think the judges want. That’s not going to win. You win by being you. Being real and relatable, being authentic. That’s when your personality really comes to light. I truly believe that’s what the judges are looking for.

I’ve also learned, you may be the best speaker, you may be the most talented person, you may think you’ve done the most with your service initiative. But what really it comes down to as Miss America is, do you love people? Do you love this organization? Will you be able to love on all of the volunteers, be good to the Miss America board, the team, even when you’re just exhausted? Can you be kind to all of our sponsors, all of those things?

Because there are going to be times you’re running on little sleep, and the last thing you want to do is get on a flight. But if you want to win Miss America, you have to be willing to put those things on pause. Living this dream out for a year, there are hard moments, but it really is so worth it.

Any more thoughts about passing on the crown?

Oh, it’s so bittersweet. I can’t say I’m super-excited about it, because I’m not necessarily ready for my time to come to an end. But at the same time, I really am excited for the next group of contestants. Whoever wins Miss America, they become part of the sisterhood, and I’m excited to tell them everything that I’ve learned and help guide them through this transition.

When you win Miss America, stuff changes so fast. You’re suddenly thrown into the spotlight where you have a platform. People are looking at you, they’re judging you, making opinions about you, and it can be a lot to manage all at once. (The new Miss America) needs people, and she needs a good community around her. And I’m excited to be that person for her.

It’s been an amazing year. This position has opened my eyes to so many things, but it’s also allowed me to connect with so many people, form so many unique relationships, get to share my story, get to hear other people’s stories. It reminded me that holding this title is not about you. It’s really just about loving and serving people well. So I’m excited for us to crown someone and see how she does that.

Will you have a cheering section of family and friends at the finals, watching you take your last walk as Miss America?

Yeah, of course. They wouldn’t miss it. My whole family will be there. I still consider the Miss Alabama board family, too, and they’ll all be there. And for the people who can’t make it, you best believe they’ll be on that livestream.

What would you like to say to the people in your home state who’ll be watching you on Sunday as you bid farewell to Miss America?

Thank you, Alabama, for being my biggest cheerleaders throughout this year. Alabama has helped make this year what it is. I feel so lucky and blessed to have such an amazing community that’s backed me every single day for the past eight months.

If you watch: The Miss America pageant will not be broadcast on television this year. The finals show on Sept. 7 will stream online, starting at 6 p.m. CT, 7 p.m. ET. Watch it for free at PageantVision.com or the Miss America YouTube channel.

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