Meet Your Directors & Choreographer
Executive Director
Executive Director, Candy Brenner, whose love of people and strong belief in the positive affect that pageants have on today's young women have led her to become involved in many different aspects of the pageant world over the past twenty-five years. She served as a volunteer with the Miss America Organization for ten years and is a certified Miss America Judge. This experience led her to serve as a prelim director for Miss NJ MAO for several years, and the past ten years she has served as state director for the NJ National Teenager Scholarship Pageant.
Co-Director
Jachelé Velez, of Hillside, is the new co-director, Jachelé brings with her a zest for stepping out of the box, she is full of fresh, young ideas that along with her experience as a national titleholder will add a special dimension to the NJ Program! Don't let the fact that she is a teen fool you. She has already proven herself by handling business situations with a maturity well beyond her years!
As the state director, "I am thrilled, honored and excited to work with this dynamite young woman, New Jersey National Teenager has built quite a reputation for producing outstanding contenders for the title of America's National Teenager...five out of the past ten years, NJ has been able to boast that it was the home of the national winner." "Working together, Jachelé & I have pledged to strive to achieve a high level of excellence in all areas of pageantry and proceed down the same award winning path that has lead NJ to become a premier pageant in the National Teenager System!"
Choreographer / Producer
Michael Hartman is the official choreographer/producer for the NJ State pageant, a professional singer, dancer, actor from the Philadelphia area, Mike has performed at Regional Theatres across the county. His Professional Directing/Choreography credits include: "Seussical," "Grease," "Joseph," "Pippin," "Oklahoma," "The World Goes Round," "West Side Story," and "Annie."
In the pageant world, Mike is the Producer for America's National Teenager Pageants' in the states of NJ, VT, TN, FL, MA/NH and NE, and during the summer of 2007 he served as choreograph and producer for the inaugural Preteen National Teenager Pageant in Nashville, TN.