Four years ago, if someone told Riley Dellenger, a senior marketing major from Ocean Springs, Miss., that she would be named Miss Ole Miss by the university’s student body, she probably would have laughed.
But as results were announced on Tuesday, Sept. 30, on the steps of the Lyceum, that is exactly what happened.
“My freshman-year self would have never even imagined or dreamed or prayed for something like this,” Dellenger said. “The Lord has really just blessed me with this opportunity. I can’t say that I know what I’m doing at any time. Sometimes it just all falls into the places that it needs to fall into.”
In fact, it was not always a guarantee that Dellenger would find her way to the university.
“Ole Miss was not even on my radar,” Dellenger said. “I mean, I know I’m in the state of Mississippi, but I still had not really given Ole Miss a chance.”
At the insistence of a friend, Dellenger visited the university.
“I came up and I visited, and the people were so amazing,” Dellenger said. “They just drew me in. I met some faculty and staff, too, when I came and visited, and they were just so kind and encouraging. And I was like, ‘Wait, this place really feels like home.’ And I think that’s where I found myself being like, ‘Can I actually see myself thriving and doing well here?’ And I never saw that at any other university.”
From that point on, Dellenger has made a point to be the same welcoming face on campus that compelled her to enroll, serving as an orientation leader and student ambassador.
“I was an orientation leader for two summers, and it was so amazing,” Dellenger said. “Genuinely, all those leaders are my family, and I got to welcome in new students and see them for the first time. I’ll never forget when I sat down for orientation, I literally looked at my mom and I was like, ‘I want to do this next year.’ Because they were so genuinely happy, and they were welcoming.”
In addition to her service there, Dellenger has been a member of the Delta Delta Delta women’s fraternity, College Panhellenic Council, RebelThon, Big Event, Student Activities Association and Ole Miss Cru. She attends St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in Oxford.
During her time in these organizations, Dellenger has served as new member educator for Delta Delta Delta and public relations specialist for the Big Event, while currently serving as the vice president of member development for the College Panhellenic Council and co-director of member development with RebelThon.
“I love member development,” Dellenger said, “if you can tell from the titles.”
Dellenger’s campaign was aided by her time working for Jakota White’s Mr. Ole Miss campaign last year.
“I definitely learned from the best and I got to see how (White) loved others and how he made it such a fun process,” Dellenger said. “I was always out on the plaza singing and dancing and having just the best time. … I feel like that’s how a campaign should be done, just enjoying the moment and the opportunity. And I feel like that’s kind of what my campaign was.”
For Dellenger, the opportunity to run for Miss Ole Miss allowed her the chance to promote something bigger than herself.
“I was nominated and asked to do it,” Dellenger said. “I prayed about it. And I thought about it, and, I was like, ‘This is a great way to not only have a platform but also talk about stuff I really care about and enlighten things that we don’t look at every single day.’”
Dellenger emphasized the connections she had made with students across the university during her campaign.
“I think I want to make sure every person feels seen and heard and loved, and I think having a week where I just got to do that and look at people in the eye and say my name and ask them about themselves and learn all about their story, is (amazing),” Dellenger said. “I could probably name 20 people I met from this campaign that I will never forget meeting them, and I will always say hello to them on campus. I think that’s just how Ole Miss is and something that I’m really proud of at our university.”
Dellenger said that the moment her name was announced as Miss Ole Miss on the steps of the Lyceum, she was shocked.
“I could literally cry again about it, because it was just really awesome,” Dellenger said. “I had my people behind me, and I was so grateful, and honestly a little shook. I didn’t know what was to come, but before that moment, I felt like … I got to do what I wanted to do, which was talk about my platform, make sure everyone feels loved, heard and seen and then just be surrounded by my favorite people.”
Dellenger chose the Christopher C. Holman Memorial Endowment for her philanthropic cause, a requirement for Mr. and Miss Ole Miss campaigns.
“Over my past three years, I’ve seen a lot of people hurt … and I always was looking for some type of way I could help them more than just a hug or a prayer,” Dellenger said. “And so that research kind of (led) to me finding the Holman Fund, which supports our students, whether it be a medical emergency, loss of a loved one or a natural disaster.”
During her campaign, Dellenger emphasized the people that make up the university and all the backgrounds they may come from with her campaign slogan “Rooted with Riley.”
“I really care about roots — where we all come from, how we all get here,” Dellenger said. “I think that’s really important for us to all think about how we have international students here, we have people from the West and the East Coast. It is such a unique experience and I always say we attract the best of the best. We attract the people that care about a place and they care about people — and you see that on game days, you see that in the library. So, just never forget your roots.”
