Hand Middle School seventh-grade student Robert Pridgen III has been named the 2026 World’s Universal Prince for the ages 10-12 division.
The World’s Universal Beauty and Prince competitions, organized by the Our Little Miss pageant system, was held January 15-19 in Montgomery, Alabama.
“I’m super excited but also nervous because this is such a big title,” Robert said.
Robert started competing in pageants in November 2025. His mother, Sharon Pridgen, a special education teacher at Southeast Middle School, inspired him to compete.
“Robert saw that there were boys and men competing and he was like ‘Mom, I want to do that, too.’ It’s been great seeing him go out there and come out of his comfort zone,”
