Alum Miss Connecticut USA Spotlights Mental Health

Sacred Heart University graduate Jenna Hofmann now advances to Miss USA competition

Well before Jenna Hofmann ’22 was a beauty pageant winner, she was a big fan of these competitions because of the platform they gave contestants to bring attention to issues and causes. As Miss Connecticut USA 2025, she has every intention of doing the same.

“I am very passionate about mental health awareness,” she said, adding that her experiences with anxiety led her to reach out and urge others to share their stories. “More and more people need to talk about this. You can get lonely, and it can be scary, but it’s important for us to share our stories and support one another. It’s OK to not always be OK. And it’s OK to experience these emotions.”

Hofmann, 23, who grew up on Long Island, NY, was crowned in January. (She was the second runner-up last year.) She now advances to the nationally televised Miss USA competition later this year. Moving forward, she will juggle appearances, events and speaking opportunities, along with her work as a real estate agent at the number one real estate brokerage in the country.

“This year is going to be really busy, and I’m so excited to be on this journey,” she said.

Her crowning is a culmination of about 10 years of competing. At age 14, she spotted a notice on Facebook seeking Miss New York Teen USA contestants and tried for the title. That year she placed in the top 15 in her first pageant. She then went on competing to win the title of Miss Teen New York United States in 2018.

She has always been passionate about sharing her story to advocate for mental health awareness. After losing a close friend to suicide, she wants to share his story as well to continue his legacy.

Hofmann graduated from Sacred Heart University with a Bachelor of Arts in communications, specializing in public relations and advertising. She said her education and skills gave her a diverse set of tools to use in her career and life. In particular, she learned what goes into presenting a strong message about herself, her brand and the issues about which she feels most passionate.

“When I watched the Miss Universe and Miss USA pageants on TV when I was younger, I always thought the participants were beautiful on the outside and on the inside,” she said. “They used their platform to bring attention to the issues and causes that meant the most to them.”

In addition to her mental health awareness efforts, she works closely with Girls Inc., a nationwide organization that helps young women achieve their greatest potential, prepares them for lifelong success and encourages them to become strong leaders.

“I want to use this crown and this sash as a microphone to encourage more people to unlock their fears so they can reach their greatest potential,” she said.

Hofmann fondly recalled her days on SHU’s campus. It was during visits to see her older sister, Diana, who graduated five years before her, that she fell in love with the University. “I loved being at Sacred Heart. I loved seeing the campus,” she said. “When I visited, it was a lot smaller than it is now. And when I was a student at Sacred Heart, I loved seeing it grow.”

Although her time at SHU was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, she said she was grateful for the experiences she had, including a tasty go-to from one of SHU’s dining spots that’s been hard to forget. “It may sound funny, but at Linda’s, they had this bacon, egg and cheese wrap that was just so good,” she said. “I still crave them to this day.”

Photo: Jenna Hoffmann, left, is crowned by Shavana Clarke (Photo credit: KGarciaProductions)