Loyola Nursing grad is new Miss Illinois USA

By Diane Dungey

July 2025

Nikolina Vujcic could tell the mastectomy patient in the hospital bed was uncomfortable and sad. While checking vital signs, Vujcic, then a senior at the Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing, decided to take the time to wash and braid the woman’s hair to help her feel more at ease.

The moment illustrates how Vujcic has embraced Loyola Nursing’s overarching Jesuit principle of cura personalis, which means caring for the whole person.

It also was a memorable story told on stage by Vujcic on a recent evening that culminated with the Des Plaines 23-year-old being crowned Miss Illinois USA.

“I could just sense the genuine concern and care coming from her. I remember standing there thinking, ‘Niki would be a great Miss Illinois USA,’” said Jennifer Vannatta Fisher, co-director of Vanbros and Associates, producers of Miss Illinois USA.

Winning the Miss Illinois USA title caps a year of accomplishments for Vujcic that included her 2024 graduation from Loyola; a “life-changing” journey to volunteer with other Loyola Nursing students in Lourdes, France; and the launch of her career. She now divides her time between full-time nursing in the pediatric emergency department at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge and preparing for the Miss USA competition in the fall. That winner will compete for Miss Universe Nov. 21 in Thailand.

One upcoming appearance in her Miss Illinois USA role will be to don her crown and meet with children being treated at the hospital where she works.

A passion for performance

Vujcic won her first pageant celebrating her Serbian heritage at age 6. She grew up immersed in dance, Serbian folk dance, and cheerleading.

She was captain of Loyola’s first competitive cheerleading team for two years during which the squad reached the finals of the Universal Cheerleaders Association national competition.

“I picked Loyola Nursing because of its focus on cura personalis and holistic education. Everything just meshed with who I am as a person.”

Vujcic credits her Loyola experiences with helping her hone the mental and physical fitness, determination, and discipline to win Miss Illinois USA and move ahead in her career.

“I ended up getting everything I could have ever wanted out of college, which I'm so lucky to say,” she said.

‘A meaningful experience’

One highlight was the 2024 trip to Lourdes to assist visitors who seek healing at one of Catholicism’s holiest sites. For one week each May, Loyola Nursing students assist pilgrims from around the world as they take part in a sacred bathing ritual at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes.

The service immersion is meant to teach nursing students how to go beyond physical needs and provide spiritual and emotional care to their future patients.

Vujcic unexpectedly found herself in demand to speak with members of a group from Croatia. Vujcic speaks Serbian, which is closely related to Croatian, as well as Spanish and English.

“That was really special to be able to take that bit of my culture and my personal life and integrate it into such a meaningful experience and help people be seen and be heard and understood,” Vujcic said.

'A full circle moment': Read about Vujcic's experience at the home of St. Ignatius in Spain, part of the Lourdes immersion for Loyola Nursing students here. 

At Lourdes, as in nursing, the Loyola participants are called upon to be present, to take time with visitors, to empathize but not break down in response to heart-rending situations, said Jorgia Connor, assistant dean of Loyola’s Bachelor of Science in Nursing program and a leader of the Loyola Nursing trip.

Vujcic met the challenge, Connor said. “She’s a good human being. She truly cares. She was like that with the peers she was with, too.”

The same was true at the Miss Illinois USA pageant, where Vujcic won the Mentor Award, given by vote of contestants in the simultaneous Miss Illinois Teen USA competition.

Vujcic hopes eventually to return to school for a graduate degree and also become a nurse practitioner focusing on fertility.

Meanwhile, she says Loyola’s cura personalis philosophy is her foundation, whether she’s taking steps to minimize trauma in the pediatric emergency department or planning volunteer projects she can promote as Miss Illinois USA.

“I took that from Loyola, and I'm running with it for the rest of my life, because I feel like it encapsulates everything that I want to do as a nurse,” she said.