Ashley Cariño biography: 13 things about Miss Universe Puerto Rico 2022

Ashley Ann Cariño Barreto is an Afro-Latina aerospace engineer, model and beauty queen born to José Cariño and Olga Arline Barreto in Puerto Rico, United States. Olga used to participate in beauty pageants in Puerto Rico.

Raised in Kissimmee, Osceola County, Florida, USA, Ashley is fluent in English and Spanish. She attended Valencia College and the University of Central Florida, which are both in Orlando, Orange County, Florida.

As a child, Ashley overcame attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). She is the eldest of five children.

Ashley is 5’11” tall. Here are 13 more things about her:

1. In 2000, she and her family moved from Puerto Rico to Kissimmee.
2. In 2007, she was diagnosed with scoliosis so she had to wear a back brace while in high school.
3. In 2012, she graduated from Professional and Technical High School in Kissimmee with certification to work as a psychosocial rehabilitator, specializing in working with children with cognitive diversity.
4. In 2015, she started working as a psychosocial rehabilitator at Insight Behavioral Health Specialists in Kissimmee.
5. In 2019, she transferred from Valencia College to the University of Central Florida to pursue a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering. Amid the new coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic from 2020 to 2021, she worked as a social rehabilitator with a behavioral specialist. On October 31, 2020, she took to Instagram to encourage her followers to vote during the U.S. presidential election on November 3, 2020.
6. On July 18, 2021, she represented South Kissimmee at Miss Florida USA 2021 at the Coral Springs Center for the Arts in Coral Springs, Florida. She won the title, besting 70 other candidates. It was her first beauty pageant. 
7. On November 29, 2021, she represented Florida at Miss USA 2021 and competed against 50 other candidates at the Paradise Cove Theater, River Spirit Casino Resort in Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA. She was second runner-up to Ellen Elizabeth “Elle” Smith of Kentucky.
8. On December 7, 2021, she was awarded a proclamation from Kissimmee at the city’s commission meeting for her Miss USA 2021 placement. She also rode along with Osceola County sheriff Marcos Lopez in the St. Cloud Christmas Parade.
9. On May 7, 2022, she took to Instagram to pay tribute to her mother who she described as a great mother, daughter, wife, friend and businesswoman. On June 23, 2022, she participated in an event in Fajardo, Puerto Rico where she talked to young people from the town and neighboring towns. She also gave them a copy of Rachel Ignotofsky‘s 2016 book “Women in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World.”
10. On August 11, 2022, she represented Fajardo at Miss Universe Puerto Rico 2022 and competed against 27 other candidates at Luis A. Ferré Performing Arts Center in San Juan. She won the title.
11. On November 19, 2022, she threw the first pitch for the game between the Cangrejeros de Santurce and Los Criollos de Caguas.
12. On January 14, 2023, she represented Puerto Rico at Miss Universe 2022 and competed against 83 other candidates at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. She finished in the Top 5.
13. She was 28 years old when she crowned her successor Miss Universe Puerto Rico 2023 Karla Guilfu on August 24, 2023 at the Centro de Bellas Artes Luis A. Ferré in San Juan.