Editing Dominique Dawes (section)

==Education and life after gymnastics==
Dawes attended [[Montgomery Blair High School]] in Silver Spring, Maryland and [[Gaithersburg High School]] in Gaithersburg, Maryland, where she was the 1994 [[prom queen]].<ref name=sweeps /> She graduated with a bachelor's degree from the [[University of Maryland, College Park]] in 2002.
Pursuing a career in acting, modeling, and television production, she has appeared in [[Prince (musician)|Prince]]'s music video "Betcha By Golly Wow" and [[Missy Elliott]]'s 2006 video "We Run This" in the role of Missy's gymnastics coach. Dawes also briefly appeared on Broadway in a revival of the musical ''[[Grease (musical)|Grease]]'', playing cheerleader Patty Simcox.<ref>[https://archive.today/20120720104408/http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1009289/index.htm "Hopelessly Devoted"] Kimberly Wong, ''Sports Illustrated,'' December 30, 1996</ref>

[[File:Dominique dawes fitness.jpg|thumb|240px|Dawes speaking at a physical fitness rally]]
Dawes served as president of the Women's Sports Foundation from 2004 to 2006;<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.womenssportsfoundation.org/?s=dominique+dawes |website=Women's Sports Foundation |access-date=5 April 2022 |title=You searched for dominique dawes}}</ref> she was the youngest president in the Foundation's history.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/21/sports/olympics-ex-gymnast-s-next-routine-is-getting-girls-off-couch.html "Ex-Gymnast's Next Routine Is Getting Girls Off Couch"] Frank Litsky, ''The New York Times,'' May 21, 2004</ref> She was the first spokeswoman for the [[Girl Scouts of the USA]]'s "Uniquely Me" self-esteem campaign in 2002.<ref>[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_pwwi/is_200209/ai_mark03046497 "Olympic Champion Dominique Dawes Teams Up With Girl Scouts & Unilever To Empower Girls Through Progressive New Self-Esteem Program"] Market Wire, September 2002</ref> Dawes, whose younger brother is [[autism|autistic]], has also supported events for autism awareness, such as the 2001 Power of One rally in [[Washington, D.C.]]<ref>[http://www.autisminfo.com/PowerOfOne/Rally8.htm "The Power of One"] 2001 {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080105205223/http://www.autisminfo.com/PowerOfOne/Rally8.htm |date=January 5, 2008 }}</ref> She is presently on the Advisory Board of [[Sesame Workshop]]'s "[[Healthy Habits for Life]]" program and also works as a motivational speaker, concentrating on youth issues.<ref>[https://archive.today/20120718002019/http://www.apbspeakers.com/themes/DefaultView/SpeakerPages/Dominique%20Dawes.aspx Speaker profile at The American Program Bureau]</ref>  In June 2010, President Obama appointed Dawes to be co-chair of the newly renamed [[President's Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition]], along with [[New Orleans Saints]] quarterback [[Drew Brees]].<ref>[http://content.usatoday.com/communities/entertainment/post/2010/06/michelle-obama-jumps-rope-emphasizes-nutrition-/1 "Michelle Obama jumps rope, emphasizes nutrition"], ''[[USA Today]]'', June 24, 2010.</ref><ref>{{cite press release |url=https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/first-lady-launches-president-s-council-fitness-sports-and-nutrition |title=First Lady Launches President's Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition |date=June 23, 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170216153520/https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/first-lady-launches-president-s-council-fitness-sports-and-nutrition |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |work=[[whitehouse.gov]] |archive-date=2017-02-16}}</ref>

She provided commentary for Yahoo's coverage of the Beijing Olympics in 2008 and for the [[2010 Winter Olympics]].

On October 28, 2010, Dawes was working for [[Yahoo]] Weekend News when she met with [[Center for Inquiry]] (CFI)'s investigative partner [[IIG]] to test [[Power Balance]] Bracelets for their claim that they improve balance, flexibility and strength. She states "The fact is, all athletes know that nothing can replace good old-fashioned hard work – practice, practice, practice...Can a silicone wristband with a hologram sticker really give you an added edge?"  In the trial four bracelets were taped so no participant knew if the bracelet they were wearing contained the Power Balance hologram.  One bracelet was the control with no hologram, another contained only a [[PEZ]] candy. From Wendy Hughes report "The claim was that if the hologram worked, the speed of the participants would increase, and it would show on the graph. But it didn't. Out of 64 heats, 16 participants using 4 bracelets in 4 random heats, the results were almost flat. The main result was that if there was any change, the familiarity with the course caused a slight increase in efficiency. The Pez didn't make a difference either."  Dawes's conclusion is that superstition makes the Power Bracelet work.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_weekend/20101104/ts_yblog_weekend/do-power-balance-wristbands-work |access-date=November 4, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101110171737/http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_weekend/20101104/ts_yblog_weekend/do-power-balance-wristbands-work |archive-date=November 10, 2010 |title=Do Power Balance wristbands work? - Yahoo! News}}</ref>

Dawes appeared with gymnasts [[Nadia Comăneci]] and [[Simone Biles]] in a commercial for [[Tide (brand)|Tide]] called "The Evolution of Power" prior to the [[2016 Summer Olympics]].<ref>[http://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/gymnasts-dominique-dawes-nadia-comaneci-reflect-on-olympics-w211715 Dominique Dawes, Nadia Comaneci Share Advice for Olympic Hopefuls: ‘Enjoy the Journey’]</ref><ref>[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/anique-ym-hameed/olympic-gymnasts-simone-b_b_10972486.html Olympic Gymnasts Simone Biles, Dominique Dawes, And Nadia Comaneci Partner In ‘The Evolution of Power’ Video]</ref>

She is set to guest star as herself with [[Gabby Douglas]] and [[Laurie Hernandez]] in the episode "A Perfect 10" of the second season of the [[Disney+]] animated series ''[[The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder]]'', judging a gymnastics competition.<ref>{{cite tweet |user=theproudfamily |number=1602712831832514563 |author=The Proud Family |title=The family's getting bigger 🙌 The Proud Family: #LouderAndProuder is back for Season 2, streaming February 1, only on @DisneyPlus. |date=December 13, 2022 |access-date=December 13, 2022}}</ref>