University of Pittsburgh student Heather Tomko represented Pennsylvania in the Miss Wheelchair USA pageant and won the pageant’s top prize. At the pageant, Tomko also won the Invacare People’s Choice Award and the Dr. Georgi Hudson Smith Quest for Knowledge Award. Her platform, “Increasing Inclusion of People with Disabilities into their Communities,” aims to advocate and educate the community about disabilities and accessibility.

Tomko is a student and part of the research staff in Pitt’s Graduate School of Public Health, pursuing her master’s in public health in Health Policy and Management.