Miss America Organization CEO steps down

    The head of the Miss America Organization has stepped down months before the September pageant in Atlantic City.

    CEO and president Art McMaster tells The Press of Atlantic City he needed to take a break after bringing the pageant back to the seashore resort.

    McMaster has been with the organization for 14 years, becoming its head in 2004.

    The organization’s vice president, Sharon Pearce, will serve as interim president. Board chairman Sam Haskell will take over as CEO.

    • WHYY thanks our sponsors — become a WHYY sponsor

    The new Miss America will be crowned on Sept. 15 in Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall.

    WHYY is your source for fact-based, in-depth journalism and information. As a nonprofit organization, we rely on financial support from readers like you. Please give today.

    Want a digest of WHYY’s programs, events & stories? Sign up for our weekly newsletter.

    Together we can reach 100% of WHYY’s fiscal year goal