LAS VEGAS, Nevada –  Mallory Hagan won the Miss America pageant on Saturday night after tap dancing to James Brown’s ‘Get Up Offa That Thing’  and answering a question about whether armed guards belong in schools by saying we should not fight violence with violence.

The 23-year-old from Brooklyn, New York defeated Miss South Carolina, who took second place.

Hagan won a $50,000 college scholarship and will wear the crown for one year.

She attends the Fashion Institute of Technology, and plans to use her scholarship winnings to obtain a degree in cosmetics and fragrance marketing, according to her biography.

Hagan is expected to spend her title reign on a nationwide speaking tour and raising money for the Children’s Miracle Network, the organization’s official charity.

Her platform is child sexual abuse awareness & prevention.