Allegations of denied scholarship funds and financial irregularities have state investigators looking behind the curtains of the Miss South Carolina Organization.
The S.C. Secretary of State's Office is investigating the nonprofit pageant after complaints were lodged earlier this year, Secretary of State Mark Hammond said. Hammond, whose office regulates nonprofit corporations, declined to say what information his office has requested from pageant directors.
"There have been some accusations," he said. "The accusations would be concerning the annual reports that are filed in the Secretary of State's Office. We are reviewing those documents."
Gail Sanders, Miss South Carolina organization comptroller, said she did not know exactly what the Secretary of State's Office is investigating. Sanders oversees scholarship disbursements and said all contestants sign off on rules and are informed multiple times of the process through which scholarships are awarded.
"That's what we're all about, is empowering women and awarding scholarships," she said.
The majority of the millions in scholarship dollars the pageant makes available come through in-kind offers from local colleges and universities. The rest are paid out by the organization or affiliated foundations and are subject to conditions involving how long they're available and what process a recipient must go through to obtain the funds.
Funds denied
Hammond would not say who brought forth allegations against the pageant, but several former Miss South Carolina contestants or titleholders say they never received scholarship money they won in the pageant.
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