Sparkling finish to 'American Idol'

The applause was deafening when Jordin Sparks was named the newest "American Idol" last night.

"You ought to hear us when we talk about it at school!" said Sandy Maxted, 49, one of 13 women who gathered in Laura Jones' Okolona home to watch the finale of the Fox hit. Jones, 29, a math teacher, had several goodies for the group, including Edy's "Hollywood Cheesecake" flavored "American Idol" ice cream.

The women -- all but one of whom is employed by Assumption High School -- shrieked, clapped and shouted when the 17-year-old was crowned the latest pop singing sensation after netting the majority of the record 74 million votes cast by the public after Tuesday's show.

"I wasn't surprised that Jordin won," said Janet Adkins, chairwoman of Assumption's social studies department.

"She's going to do great things in the future," said Adkins, 40.

Music teacher Jackie Metry thought Melinda Doolittle, who was booted on May 16, should have been won the television competition.

Mary Margaret Ralph, 52, agreed. The life-choices teacher brought along a life-size cutout of Doolittle's face and affixed it to a ruler.

"I've got to have Melinda with me," Ralph said.

Although she wasn't the best singer, Sparks showed much growth throughout the show, said Metry, 41.

"There's the potential for her to go far," she said.

Maxted thought runner-up Blake Lewis, 25, deserved the prize.

In fact, the business teacher narrowly missed out on winning a pool she and her colleagues started back in February when the "Idol" field was narrowed to 24.

(Metry walked away with the $50 pot, which she says she'll spend on gas over the upcoming Memorial Day weekend.)

Maxted put her money on the beat-boxing, plaid-pant wearing Lewis because "he's totally different from anybody else who's ever been on 'American Idol,' " she said. "He can take any song and make it his own."

One of the highlights of the evening was Lewis' performance with Doug E. Fresh.

"I thought it was awesome that they brought back a little of that old school," said Anissa Campbell, 31, CEO of Black Rose Entertainment, a model management/event staffing company.

"Doug E. Fresh's beat-boxing, which is his little trademark, and then to have (Lewis) from the new school? That was so cool," Campbell said.

The women oohed and ahhed over the African Children's Choir, which returned to the show after performing during a two-part "Idol" fundraising special in late April.

They gasped with surprise when one of the season's most outrageous auditioners, Margaret Fowler, accepted an award for best presentation.

The Birmingham, Ala., resident dressed once again in an outfit reminiscent of Big Bird and bobbed and weaved behind the podium as she spewed a stream of words punctuated by hoots and hollers.

Then Fowler grabbed "Idol" emcee Ryan Seacrest and planted a long, wet kiss that nearly brought him to his knees.

"He so deserved that!" yelled Diane Darst, 37, an English teacher.

But it was Sanjaya Malakar who elicited the most memorable response from the women.

They booed when the mop-headed 17-year-old took the stage, accompanied by five of his former crooning competitors and, eventually, Smokey Robinson, all of them sharply dressed in white suits.

The ladies nearly raised the roof during a photo montage that included John F. Kennedy Jr., Abraham Lincoln and Mahatma Ghandi that preceded the hair-challenged Malakar's solo performance.

The comparison was "gross," Ralph said.

Malakar soon disappeared, and Blake and Sparks assumed the spotlight just before the winner was announced.

"Just watching how America can literally make superstars out of someone right before my eyes just gives me more inspiration for what I want to do," said Campbell, sighing at Sparks' sweet display of gratitude to her family, the judges and her fans.