Shania Ann Knutson is an ordained minister and a beauty queen from Brookings, South Dakota, United States. Aside from Brookings, she has lived in other parts of South Dakota including Viborg.

Knutson is the third of four sisters. She was born in South Dakota to Jason Knutson and Alicia Knutson.

Raised in South Dakota, Shania grew up on a farm with her three sisters namely Jaclynn Engen, Alison Knutson and Kasandra Knutson. Engen is married to Luke Engen.

Shania is 5’9″ tall. Here are 13 more things about her:

1. From 2015 to 2019, she attended Viborg-Hurley High School in Viborg.
2. She was runner-up to Miss South Dakota Teen USA 2017 Delaney Rupp.
3. When she was crowned Miss South Dakota Teen USA 2018, she also won Miss Photogenic. On May 18, 2018, she represented South Dakota at Miss Teen USA 2018 and competed against 50 other candidates at the Hirsch Memorial Coliseum in Shreveport, Louisiana, USA. She was unplaced.
4. From 2019 to 2022, she attended South Dakota State University in Brookings where she earned her bachelor’s degree in entrepreneurship. From February 2019 to August 2020, she worked for JP Denmark in Viborg as a manager.
5. In July 2020, she established The Stem Floral Studio and joined Hitch Studio in Brookings as a wedding associate.
6. On February 4, 2021, American Marriage Ministers ordained her as a minister.
7. On April 25, 2021, she competed at Miss South Dakota USA 2021. She was runner-up to Caroline Pettey.
8. In May 2021, she joined Cubbys Sports Bar and Grill in Brookings as a server.
9. On March 20, 2022, her boyfriend Pierre Lear proposed to her and she said yes.
10. On April 9, 2022, she represented Brookings County at Miss South Dakota USA 2022 and competed against 10 other candidates at the Watertown Events Center in Watertown, South Dakota. She won the title and was crowned by Pettey. On April 24, 2022, she, her three sisters and their parents went to South Dakota State University in Brookings to receive the South Dakota Future Farmers of America Foundation‘s 2022 Family of the Year award. Lear and Luke also attended the ceremony.
11. On October 3, 2022, she represented South Dakota at Miss USA 2022, competed against 50 other candidates at the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, Washoe County, Nevada, USA and was unplaced. Between October 10, 2022 and December 16, 2022, she allegedly stole a total of $554.54 worth of goods at Walmart in Brookings across 12 separate occasions.
12. In January 2023, she was arrested on her warrant for petty theft in the first degree and booked booked into the Brookings County Detention Center in Brookings.
13. She was 22 years old when she pleaded guilty on February 13, 2023 to first-degree petty theft in a courthouse in Brookings County. She paid restitution, received a suspended imposition of sentence and had a second-degree petty theft charge dismissed by prosecutors. On June 11, 2023, she will crown her successor Miss South Dakota USA 2023. She is set to marry Lear in Volga, Brookings County on June 23, 2023.