SPEEDWAY, Ind. — Every year, around 30 college-aged women are selected to be a part of the 500 Festival Princess Program with hopes of being named the 500 Festival Queen Scholar.
Saturday morning, Lissania Perez Diaz was crowned as the 2024 500 Festival Queen Scholar during the Breakfast at the Brickyard at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Diaz is a junior at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis and is pursuing degrees in chemistry and law.
She is actively involved in the community around her with groups like Undergraduate Women in Science and the Latino Student Union Association.
"Every activity I do at IUPUI is based on the things I love in life; science, chemistry specifically, and my heritage," Diaz said.
In her role as queen, Diaz will serve as an ambassador for the 500 Festival and participate in a variety of activities throughout the week the Indy 500 pre-race and Victory Circle celebrations.
The 2024 Princess class represents 18 Indiana colleges and 23 towns and cities across the state. With a cumulative GPA of 3.74, the group was selected from hundreds of applicants based on leadership, academics, community involvement and more.
To learn more about the festival or the princess program, click here.