The Miss Ohio 2008 Judges

*The following photos and bios were copied from the official website.

I guarantee the contestants are all a-twitter about how distracting this guy was in the interview room... :)

After serving three years in Germany with the United States Army, Matthew Buccilla returned to his childhood home of Columbus, Ohio in 1994. As President of his family's event facility and recreation business Hickory Lakes through the year 2006, Matthew hosted 1500 plus corporate and social special events for more than 200,000 guests. He now combines his extensive background in hospitality management, training in the culinary arts and strong eye for design in his new role as a Creative and Brand Designer for the globally recognized Special Events and Visual Merchandising firm ZenGenius. Matthew has "branded" events for corporate giants such as Victoria's Secret, Bath & Body Works, OhioHealth and Nationwide. Not limited to corporate events, his designs have literally set the stage for Fashion Shows for Columbus College of Art Design, celebrated the Grand Opening of Dublin Methodist Hospital and framed the welcome of Claude Monet's 'Waterlillies' to the Columbus Museum of Art. Matthew's events are not only beautiful and brand appropriate but also friendly to the environment. He has a Green Code of Standards that guide and influence each and every design. His love for all things natural has also landed him on Animal Planet's Reality Series 'King of the Jungle''. Matthew is happy to share his German Village home along with his partner and two dogs. He is eager and honored to be part of Miss Ohio.

Pamela Carlberg currently resides in Plymouth, Indiana. After achieving a triple major from Indiana University in Business Administration, Advertising, and Marketing, Pam served roles as Manager of Administration, Director of Physician Recruitment, Vice President of Public Relations, and Business Consultant. She is currently the President and owner of a company dealing with air and water purification products. Additionally, she has studied music for over 40 years in vocal performance, keyboard and composing. Pamela has been the producer and director of pageants for over 25 years and has judged state and local pageants for as many years. She is proud to state that she is a Miss America certified judge. Pamela held the title of Miss Indiana in 1981 and later was named 3rd Runner Up in the Miss America Pageant.

Barry Phillips is an internationally recognized art director, film/TV producer and host. He is the recipient of two national Emmy Awards for Best Art Direction in a Daytime Television Series or Special. His work as a designer has been seen on CBS, NBC, HBO, Showtime, ABC and for Academy Award winning director, Oliver Stone. For several years, he has conducted interviews in his series “The Great Americans” where he interviews personalities whom he considers significant contributors to the American culture. A Magna Cum Laude graduate of TCU with a BFA in commercial art design, Barry also has a Master's Degree from Texas A&M as well as an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Jones College in Jacksonville, Florida. He is currently a nominee for the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities at the White House and was recently named one of “TCU's Top 25 'Mover and Shaker' Alumni” where he also served on the Chancellor's Committee on the Future. In 2004, Barry was named head judge for the Miss America Pageant national panel selecting Miss America 2005, Deidre Downs. Asked to serve as PR speaker for the 12^th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2005, he was recently named to the Board of Directors of the award-winning Fort Worth Opera. As a Supervising Producer/Creative Director for many projects, Barry also has agency experience in commercial production, media branding, corporate video and working with animators in Flash, virtual reality and computer generated imagery, often using green screen shooting and design. Having received awards from the New York and Los Angeles Society of Illustrators, Barry's published clients include Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Reader's Digest, Lennox, the NFL/ National Football League, American Airlines, Warner Brothers, Los Angeles Magazine, American Heart Journal, Dr. Pepper, the St. Louis Cardinals, Hang Ten International, Fame, Prodigy and Continental Airlines. His work is in many private collections including philanthropist Ed Bass, actress Valerie Bertinelli and the National Dr. Pepper Museum.

Frances previously served as President of the National Association of Miss America State Pageants. Frances Skinner-Lewis has been involved with the Miss America program since 1974. She served as the Executive Director of the Miss Illinois Scholarship Pageant for 16 years. During that tenure she has coached contestants who, as Miss Illinois, went on to become national non-finalist talent winners, fourth runner-up to Miss America, third runner-up to Miss America, first runner-up to Miss America, the 1992 Fruit of the Loom Quality of Life Award Winner, the 1994 Home Furnishing Award Winner, Miss America 1991, Marjorie Vincent, Miss America 1988, Kate Shindle and Miss America 2003, Erica Harold. Frances has also served on the state judging panels that selected Kim Aiken, Miss South Carolina and Shawntel Smith, Miss Oklahoma, both of whom went on to become Miss America. Frances continues her litigation law practice in Chicago where she resides with her husband Paul and her two children, Max and Chloe.

Gene Hill is Executive Director of the Imperial Valley College Foundation in California’s Imperial Valley. As an ordained minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Gene currently serves two snowbird congregations during the winter months reaching snowbirds from throughout the United States and Canada. Mr. Hill is a musician with emphasis in choral directing, accompanying, piano, and voice. During his tenure as Executive Director of the Miss Idaho Scholarship Pageant from 1990-93, Gene produced four live telecast pageants and co-hosted with Miss Americas Kelley Cash and Debra Sue Maffett. He is an experienced host, producer, scriptwriter, and judge, having judged state pageants from Washington to Massachusetts, including Utah on three occasions. Gene Hill lives in Southern California and is the father of two grown children.

Cheryl Mrozowski is Director of Dance and chair of the Theatre Studies and Dance Department at Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts. Mrozowski received her early training with the State Ballet of Rhode Island and launched her performing career with the Dayton Ballet and Cambridge Opera Company in Cambridge, England. While in the United Kingdom, she studies the Vaganova method of dance and received her teacher’s qualifications from the Society of Russian Style Ballet Schools. She holds a BA in history from Salve Regina University and an MA in Dance from American University in Washington, DC. She has served on the faculty of Auburn University in Alabama, Goucher College in Maryland and American University in DC. A former Miss Rhode Island and talent winner at Miss America, she has served as a judge on several occasions on the state and local levels. She has taught at the Southwestern Regional Ballet Festival in Dallas, Texas and was featured in the magazine “Dance Teacher Now.” She was the subject of NBC’s “Timelines” a documentary news program which showcased her work at Wheaton and was featured along with her dance company in the Wheaton Quarterly. Ms. Mrozowski sits on numerous boards for various arts organizations and is a trustee of her alma mater, Salve Regina University. She lives in Newport, RI with her husband Harry and son Brett and is delighted to return to Miss Ohio.