INDIANAPOLIS (WTHR) - Olivia Johnson of Zionsville was named the 2019 500 Festival Queen Scholar Saturday morning at Breakfast at the Brickyard.
Johnson is a junior at Purdue majoring in Spanish. She is an interpreter at the Indianapolis Zoo, a member of the Crazy Monkeys Improv group at Purdue University and a longtime participant in the OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon.
She was one of 33 of this year's 500 Festival princesses who serve as ambassadors for the 500 Festival, including the 500 Festival's statewide community outreach programs. They also volunteer at 500 Festival events and participate in vaious Indianapolis Motor Speedway events, including pre-race ceremonies and the Victory Circle celebration.
Each princess also gets a $1,000 scholarship. As queen, Johnson gets an additional $1,500 scholarship.
"Out of all the activities and experiences that I could be a part of, I believe the 500 Festival Princess Program is unparalleled because it gives Indiana college women a remarkable platform to proudly seek opportunities for leadership and transform passions into reality within the Hoosier community, locally and state-wide," said Johnson.
The 2019 500 Festival Princesses represent 13 Indiana colleges and universities and 20 cities and towns across the state. With a cumulative GPA of 3.65, this year’s 500 Festival Princesses were selected from hundreds of applicants based on communication skills, academic performance and community involvement.
