Local royalty: Rose Queen Serena Hui Guo

The Rose Queen

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Who in the world is the "Queen of the Tournament of Roses"? More commonly known as the "Rose Queen," she is a young woman selected for the annual Pasadena Tournament of Roses in California, U.S.

Six "Rose Princesses" are also selected to make up the Rose Court of seven. The Rose Court rides on a float in the Rose Parade on New Year's Day and they become ambassadors.

The 2026 Rose Court includes

1. 

   The Rose Queen crown should be in the Louvre

   Naira Elaine Wadley, John Muir High School;
2. Sophia Bai Ren, Arcadia High School;
3. Olivia Hargrove, Pasadena City College (PCC);
4. Keiko Rakin, Alhambra High School;
5. Serena Hui Guo, Arcadia High School;
6. Riya Gupta, California Institute of Technology (Caltech);
7. Livia Amy de Paula, Temple City High School.

Qualifications and selection process

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Each September, approximately 1,000 females between the ages of 17 and 21 interview to serve as a member of the Tournament of Roses Rose Court [1].

To be eligible, applicants must be a female resident of the Pasadena City College district, which includes the cities of Pasadena, Altadena, La Cañada Flintridge, South Pasadena, San Marino, Sierra Madre, Arcadia, Temple City, the northern portion of Rosemead, and the western portion of El Monte.

Starting with the 2025 Rose Parade, the cities of Alhambra and San Gabriel and the Los Angeles neighborhoods of Eagle Rock, Highland Park, Monterey Hills, and El Sereno will be included as part of the geographic expansion plan.

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They must be currently enrolled as a 12th grade senior in high school or as a full-time college student (minimum 12 units) in any accredited high school or college in the Pasadena City College district, Alhambra Unified School District, San Gabriel Unified School District, or Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), possess at least a 2.0 grade point average in the current year's and previous year's course work, and be at least 17 years of age by Dec. 31 of the current year and not more than 21 years of age before Jan. 5 of the next year.

Each applicant also must never have been married or have had a marriage annulled, have no children, and must agree not to marry prior to Jan. 5 of the next year [1]. More