Miss Congeniality, 1969

By Robert Graham

It was a cloudy, sleeting day of 35 degrees when Karen Maciolek Salb (BBA 76) attended the 46th Inaugural Ceremonies on Jan. 20, 1969. Karen was a special guest at President Richard Nixon’s inauguration.

“In throwing wide the horizons of space, we have discovered new horizons on Earth,” said Nixon.

No place on Earth may be more synonymous with humanity’s movement into the next frontier than New Mexico, a place Karen moved to from Whitefish Bay, WI at the age of five. That year, in 1954, the famed Bolshoi Ballet did not appear in Paris after the U.S., Great Britain and France’s rejection of Russian membership to NATO.

Karen’s official Miss New Mexico photo in 1969.

The seeds of globalization found their way to the Land of Enchantment, as Karen began her formal training in dance with the Russian ballerina Natalie Krasnoff who directed the Krasnoff School of Fine Arts in Albuquerque. Before the age of 18, the Krasnoff School of Fine Arts introduced Karen to the legendary Ballet Rousse de Monte Carlo and Harkness Ballet while also preparing her for features with the New Mexico Ballet Guild and Albuquerque Light Opera. Karen also garnered silver and bronze medals at the 1962 National Ballroom Competitions held in Long Beach, CA.

After graduating from high school Karen headed to the east side of the state where she brought her winning touch to ENMU. She did not shy away from the stage lights and in 1968 Karen represented Portales as Miss New Mexico before catapulting herself and her alma mater onto the national stage in 1969, just as Greyhound basketball brought the University its first national championship by defeating Maryland State College 99-76.

Karen reacting to the moment she was named Miss Congeniality in 1969.

18 hours east in Atlantic City, NJ, Karen rivaled basketball icons Gregory Peck Hyder (Attended 66-70), Jim Guymon (BS 72), Jerry Hyder (Attended 67-71) and John Irwin (MS 71, BS 69) with her stellar showing at the Miss America Pageant. Karen performed a special dance routine with legendary host and Miss America Pageant icon Bert Parks, and the pageant recognized her as Miss Congeniality for 1969.

The following year Karen continued her studies and married Dr. Thomas J. Salb (MS 72, BS 70). She began operating dance studios in Hobbs and Portales, and the Lubbock Civic Ballet also tapped her to perform as a soloist. Over the years she enhanced her Hobbs studio by adding gymnastics to the ballet, tap and jazz ensembles and in 1978 she started the Maciolek School of Dance.

A current photo of Karen Salb.

In 1989, Karen saw a need and answered the call. She created the Maciolek Fine Arts Scholarship Trust, allowing students with parents who may have lost their jobs to continue their fine arts education. Today the trust has awarded more than $150,000 to students in Lea County.

Karen continues to work as the owner/artistic director at the Maciolek School of Dance. She is the gold standard for excellence and is a champion of the belief that fine arts can give young people the tools to handle anything. On April 16, ENMU hosted the Statewide Pageant Extravaganza. Kagan Massey, a student from Karen’s Maciolek School, won the title of Miss Hobbs.