Homecoming is an exciting time for any university, and for some students, there’s added
Newman University has a long history of Homecoming traditions with many events
One staple of the Homecoming celebrations is the crowning of royalty during the Homecoming basketball games.
That tradition was celebrated this year on Feb. 21 during halftime of the men’s basketball game.
Morgan Calvert, director of student activities, said planning for the Homecoming coronation ceremony begins months in advance, with details being decided in January.
Calvert said the process was smooth and successful for the 2019 ceremony.
It all starts with nominations for Homecoming court, said Calvert. The 2019 nominees consisted of 13 men and 20 women. Once the nominations are finalized, voting begins to determine the final court with five in each category.
Although voting took place online for the 2019 court, Calvert said they are looking at moving to in-person ballot voting for future elections to increase engagement and ensure voting accuracy.
“The student body nominates any student who is of senior class standing, who has been involved at Newman during their tenure and who has a 2.75 cumulative GPA or higher,” explained Calvert.
“Each of these nominees
The Royalty
The 2019 Homecoming king and
Plank said being on the court was an amazing honor and there are so many great people.
“It’s an honor to represent Newman this way. Hearing my name called was awesome, especially with Paul being king. It’s just really cool to have done everything I’ve done at Newman for the past four years and have people recognize it.”
She added, “This is just the cherry on top for the entire four years, this is a really nice way to end it.”
Rupnik said he was excited when he found out he was on the court.
“I love this school. I’ve played baseball here for four years. When I got nominated, my teammates got really involved and excited. It’s really
He added that coming to Newman was a big change from his hometown in Canada, but he has always felt welcome.
“I really didn’t know what to expect. … I really like the people here, it’s that home vibe and everyone welcomes you and wants you to be here and I thrived off of it.”
Rupnik added he was happy his girlfriend was voted Homecoming queen.
“I was so happy she won. … No one at this school deserves to be Homecoming queen more than her. She does so much for this school … it was just awesome to be there with her.”
The final Homecoming court for 2019 was:
Men:
- Vincent Couto
- Anthony Hamersky
- Anthony Navarrete
- Paul Rupnik
- Brandon Steiner
Women:
- Yemima Buana
- Regan Casey
- Briana Marin
- Quincy Plank
- Swati Tamrakar
