Katherine Renee "Kate" Shindle (born January 31, 1977), Miss America 1998 and Miss Illinois 1997, is an American actress, singer, dancer, and AIDS activist. She is the author of the 2014 memoir Being Miss America: Behind the Rhinestone Curtain, published by the University of Texas Press. She is currently serving as the President of the Actors' Equity Association, elected in 2015.