Guilford Girl, 9, Walked In New York Fashion Week, Soon Off To Paris

NEW YORK, NY —Nine-year-old Katerina Cejas won't physically be in school on Sept. 30.

She'll be in Paris.

The Guilford girl, a student at Melissa Jones Elementary School, is walking a Parisian runway for designer Mila Hoffman. This is not her first catwalk. She walked for a number of designers at New York Fashion Week earlier this month.

So how does an elementary school girl from Guilford, Connecticut end up in the world of fashionistas? Her mom Isis Cejas explains.

"I saw that there was a casting call and I submitted a picture," said her mother Isis Cejas. "We took off from there."

While in the Big Apple, Katerina walked for several designers.

She modeled in Prestige Fashion Week, held at Gotham Hall in NYC, on Sept. 9. At Prestige, she wore garments from Kat Couture, a designer from Connecticut, and Canadian design house Kayzie Couture.

On Sept. 10, she walked at Small Boutique Fashion Week when she represented Puerto Rico’s Caroline Couture.

On Sept. 11, she walked the runway at Society Fashion Week, where she appeared for Texas designer Mila Hoffman.

But even New York Fashion Week was not her first time on the runway.

"She actually just started this summer with her first runway show in Miami for Miami Fashion / Swim Week with designer Mila Hoffman," her mother said.

Besides runway modeling, Katerina loves crafting, is part of the Guilford Youth Football and Cheer Competition Cheerleading D10 Squad, and she's on a Competition Dance teams at Dance Unlimited in Branford.

She's also getting into the business side of modeling. She's a brand ambassador for Rhode Island based dance and cheer apparel company, I Dance, You Cheer. And she just became a brand ambassador for Secret Scrunch scrunchie business.