Kára Deidra McCullough ( ; born September 9 , 1991 ) is an American beauty pageant titleholder and scientist who was crowned Miss USA 2017 . As Miss USA , McCullough represented the United States at Miss Universe 2017 , where she placed in the top ten . Previously , McCullough had been crowned Miss District of Columbia 2017 , becoming the fourth woman from the District of Columbia to be crowned Miss USA . Additionally , McCullough and her predecessor Deshauna Barber 's wins marked the first time a state had won back-to-back titles since Courtney Gibbs and Gretchen Polhemus of Texas won Miss USA 1988 and 1989
Miss USA 1988
Miss USA 1988
Kára McCullough