Pageant officials said Rachel Berry did not meet residency requirements

Rachel Berry’s reign as Miss Oregon has come to an end.

The Aloha resident gave up her crown Thursday because Miss Oregon Scholarship Pageant officials said she did not meet the residency requirements. Officials said the 24-year-old Berry was not able to prove she lived in the state six months prior to competing in the Miss Willamette Valley pageant in April.

Berry said she accepted the decision “to do the right thing and relinquish the title.”

“In the spirit of what Miss America stands for, I would not want to deprive another contestant of the opportunity to represent the beautiful State of Oregon at the Miss America Pageant,” Berry said Thursday.

The Miss Oregon first runner-up was 24-year-old Miss Three Rivers Nicole Renee Mead of Lincoln City.

Berry had planned to compete in the Miss America pageant in mid-January.

As Miss Willamette Valley, Berry received a $250 scholarship; at the Miss Oregon pageant, she was awarded a $1,000 scholarship when she won the overall interview award and a $10,000 cash scholarship upon being named the titleholder.

She planned to pursue a masters degree using the scholarship money. Her undergraduate degree from Chapman University is in broadcast journalism, and her goal is to be a news reporter at a station in Portland next year.