When I think of a person who is successful both in and out of school, Haley Glenn is the one who first comes to my mind. For 16-year-old junior Haley Glenn, this year has been pretty exciting so far. Not only was she nominated for Homecoming Princess, but she actually won! But what is underneath the tiara and the homecoming royalness? I took some time to interview Haley Glenn about her in school achievements and activities, and how she truly felt about becoming Homecoming Princess.

What activities are you involved in?
National Honor Society, Spanish National Honor Society, student council, musical, choir, junior class board, and track.

All very honorable and successful organizations to be a part of! How do you manage everything?
I don’t sleep, ever.  It is definitely an honor to be a part of all of these prestigious activities, but they’re also very fun!

Is there anything you do outside of school?
I’m really involved in my church, but for the most part, most of my activities are at school.

Although Homecoming was a little while ago, I felt that I had to ask her how she felt about her nomination, the crowning ceremony, and how it felt to be a Princess. And what was it like knowing everyone was cheering for you when you won?
The nomination was a surprise! I was taking a nap when I woke up and heard someone  hammering something outside. I was like “Why are there construction workers at my house? What’s broken?” Then I looked outside and saw Shannon Patinella and Ashley Crandall from Student Council nailing a sign  into my yard and rang my doorbell.  I came down, they told me the good news and told me congratulations, and gave my candy. It was cool to be on court. I loved all the girls who were on it with me, and I feel like I got to know them so much better because of it. I would’ve been happy if anyone had won! The football game was such a fun reveal and when I won I was kind of dumbfounded.  I just kind of won and then they pulled me to the side, put the tiara on my head and had me take yearbook photos.  The best part for me was hearing all of my friends cheer for me, that made me feel so special!

What did being crowned Princess mean to you?
I think being Princess isn’t about who’s the smartest, the most talented, or the most popular. It’s about being you and being kind to others. That’s really all i’ve done in my life and hey, I guess I have a tiara to show for it now!

No one was truly surprised you won because everyone adores you. How do you stay so positive and happy all of the time?
I stay positive by doing two things. One, I surround myself with positive people who bring me up when I’m feeling down. You have the choice of who you are friends with.  You don’t have to choose to surround yourself with negative people. Surround yourself with positive people who bring out the light in you. I also stay positive by not letting things get to you. My mom always used to tell me to let the bad things “roll off my back.” So I did. Sure, sometimes people are rude. Sometimes I get bad test grades. But those things don’t DEFINE who I am, so I do not let them get to me. No one defines you but you. Just let all the other stuff roll off your back.

Very wise words from someone so young! What is in the future for Haley Glenn? In terms of school, life, world domination, etc.,
Dictatorship and world domination is obviously what’s in store for me next…just kidding! I would not know how to run the planet. In the foreseeable future, I would like to enjoy the rest of my High School experience and live it up! But once it ends, I’m off! I’m planning on attending a four year university (hopefully) somewhere on the East Coast and I want to pursue a career in studying languages all over the world. I’m in Spanish and German right now, and I have already taken French. This is something I’m extremely passionate about.  I’m just going to try to follow my dream, and do what makes me happy in life, and trust that everything will be fine.

As you can see, Haley Glenn truly shows what it means to be not just an awesome student, but also an outstanding individual. She is a friend to all and an inspiration to all of us to stay positive. Prairie Ridge could not have picked a better representation for their Homecoming Princess! Keep on shining bright, Haley Glenn!