One thing all the students running for Homecoming King and Queen can relate to is campaigning. Putting up posters, flyers, and giving out gifts along with posting on social media. But for senior Jaylene Marquez, who is one of the top five running for Homecoming Queen, it was rather different.
When Jaylene received her flower, putting her on the Homecoming Court, campaigning suddenly felt overwhelming, and she felt underprepared. She need not have worried: Jaylene had her mother, closest friends and her boyfriend to be her rallying team of support.
With their support, she made herself stand out by taking a unique approach to the campaign trail of Colton High School.
With the help of her mother, Jaylene handed out homemade beaded necklaces along with heart shaped glasses with a reminder to vote for her written on the lenses. She even made a poster to share across Instagram.
But what made Jaylene’s campaign different from the others is she actually went out and talked to people and got to know them. She got to know more of the people that she usually passed in the hall. Her close friends even helped her talk to people she didn’t know well.
When asked about getting to know more people through her campaigning, Jaylene said “I started meeting more people, so I became more comfortable at school. I familiarized myself with more people, people that I’d see around and people that were in my classes that I didn’t really know.”
Jaylene felt that the entire experience was an enjoyable one that was also very rewarding, and even made her feel more excited about running for Queen.
In the beginning, Jaylene wasn’t sure about running. Originally she thought about running alongside her friend, Gibby [Gabriela Gomez]. But her final decision was to run alongside her boyfriend, Isaiah Ruiz. She was influenced by Gibby, who also was going to run, but backed out due to physical injuries.
Another motivation that inspired her to up her campaign game was seeing other people’s reactions online when they won Homecoming Queen. This inspired Jaylene to experience that feeling. Despite this, she still accepts the possibility of not winning.
When asked about her favorite part of the experience so far, Jaylene said, “I think my favorite part is seeing the support, seeing how many of my friends and people back me up. Helping me get my name out there.”
Jaylene further elaborated by saying she didn’t expect so many people to support her, and that knowing she has a lot of support has been her favorite part of the experience so far.
She also mentioned that she might have a new favorite part later, like the parade, but at the moment, the support of her friends is what she values most.
Jaylene is rather proud of her work in school. At home, she struggles with time management and balancing multiple responsibilities, including a job, school, flag football, volunteering, and managing sports medicine.
After high school, Jaylene is interested in a career in the medical field, specifically anesthesiology, but is concerned about the extensive schooling required.
Ultimately, she is proud of her hard work, busy schedule, and the connections she has made through her activities.
Running for Queen has been a fun and rewarding experience for Jaylene so far. More is still to come, and she awaits the memories.
