On Friday, the West High Alumni Association announced the 2019 Homecoming Royalty Court winners.
The winners are Whitney Banz, Maya Clark, Krystal Hernandez-Cortes, Olivia Hutten and Osvaldo Miranda. All five are members of the Class of 2020 and will receive a $500 scholarship grant from the West High Alumni Association.
“Our 2019 Homecoming Royalty Court includes five phenomenal students who are leaders, mentors, academics and athletes,” the PA announced during the presentation of the Court at the Homecoming Game.
“They include a varsity basketball captain, founder of an all-girls robotics team, a future lawyer for the Navajo Nation, a passionate dancer and the first person in their family who will graduate high school.”
Whitney Banz is captain of the girls’ basketball and golf teams. She led her golf team to the second day of Utah 5A State Championships in 2019. In addition to her athletic accomplishment, Whitney volunteers as a peer tutoring for the special education program, Panther Pals and at the West High Family Resource Center. She hopes to attend Westminster College or Brigham Young University to pursue a degree in special education.
Maya Clark is an International Baccalaureate student and student government senator. She served as band section leader for two years and is an active member of the West High robotics community. She also volunteers with National Honor Society. Her educational goal is to become a lawyer that advocates for marginalized communities. As a member of the Navajo Nation, Maya decided to run for Homecoming to raise awareness and support for West High’s Native American and indigenous students.
Krystal Hernandez-Cortes is a member of the West High Oestanas. She was nominated for the All-State Academic team and has diligently worked to maintain a 3.9 GPA. Krystal is also part of the Gear-Up and AVID programs, which have helped her prepare to apply to the University of Utah where she plans to study marketing. She will be the first member of family to attend college.
Olivia Hutten began attending West High as an ELP student in middle school. As an ELPer, she founded Roboraptors, an all-girls robotics team designed to help girls find their passion in STEM education. She has led West High Robotics to two world championship tournaments and hopes to become an environment engineer. Olivia ran for Homecoming Royalty to continue to help inspire other girls to study science and technology.
Osvaldo Miranda is the Associated Students of West vice president and senate president. He is also an active member of HOSA, Hope Squad, Key Club and Gear Up. Being a member of student government has opened his eyes to new issues and he hopes to be seen as a friend and advocate to students who are facing challenges at West High. Osvaldo will not only be the first person in his family to attend college, but is the first to advance their education past sixth grade. He hopes his college experience will be an opportunity to immerse himself in a new community where he can explore new classes and grow his potential.
A record 39 students applied to be part of the 2019 Homecoming Court. The West High Alumni Association then chose 10 finalists that were interviewed about how they represent the West High community, what Homecoming means to them and how they would improve student-alumni relations.
These five seniors and Homecoming Royalty Court members were chosen by the West High Alumni Association to represent the West High community. Each one of these students will receive a $500 scholarship from the West High Alumni Association.
Programs like Homecoming Court Royalty are made possible through the generosity of donors who give to the West High Alumni Association. To learn more or support these programs, visit westalumni.org/donate.
