On Saturday, October 1, 2016, the winners for homecoming king and queen were announced during halftime of the football game between Kean University and Frostburg State University. The two lucky winners were Michael Marquez for homecoming king and Erica King for homecoming queen.
Marquez and King are both seniors and had the opportunity to be crowned during their last year at Kean University.
Michael Mangual-Marquez, senior psychology major, is from Clark, NJ and has dedicated his time to being involved in extracurricular activities at Kean University. His mother has kept him motivated throughout his college life.
"She always worked so hard when I was younger to make sure I had a good life," said Marquez. "I plan to pay her back."
He was once a member the Kean University Men's Soccer Team and holds multiple executive board positions for his fraternity, Sigma Theta Chi. In addition to that, he was also on the Greek Senate executive board as vice president of community service and multicultural affairs and worked for the Involvement Center at the Center for Leadership and Services (CLS).
"I would have to say the day I became a part of my fraternity Sigma Theta Chi is my favorite memory so far at Kean University. It was the turning point of my life," said Marquez.
When Marquez is not on campus, he helps out the community by getting involved with food drives, raising money for Kean Dance Marathon (KDM) or even going to Irvington, New Jersey and participating in their national night out.
Throughout his four years at Kean University, he has completed over 200 hours of community service. He has made the most of any opportunity given to him, whether if it's raising awareness for breast cancer or having a chance to raise money for a variety of charitable causes.
"I love Kean [University]," said Marquez. "I have to say the past four years have really been a blessing."
Marquez considers Kean to be his home away from home and is glad that he had the chance to create great memories with some incredible people. He proudly gives recognition to his mother and his girlfriend for pushing him to apply for homecoming king.
Marquez says that social media and word of mouth were key to winning the votes of the student body. He initially felt that he didn't really win because he was the only candidate running for king, but one comment changed that.
"I had a random person come up to me and tell me that I deserve it, and that really put a smile on my face," Marquez mentioned. "I never even planned on being homecoming king when I came to Kean [University], but I became more active and received the right push from the people. I love where I am now. I honestly couldn't be any happier."
Winning homecoming king made Marquez happy because he had never taken a part of something like that. He advises those who are thinking of running for homecoming king one day to start getting involved now, so they can have people help them spread the word of their campaign.
He is looking into graduate school, but he initially plans to take the police exam. Marquez is carefully planning his career path by taking prep courses and going to interviews with current or retired officers.
Erica King, senior business management major, always dreamed about being prom queen when she was a freshman in high school.
"The system they used was different than just applying; people actually had to nominate you. So in college, I carried that dream over and gave it a shot," King shared. "I wasn't even thinking about it when I first started attending Kean University. At least I don't remember--that was four long years ago. Surprisingly, I kept doubting myself and I often thought about dropping out, but my support system wouldn't allow it."
Coming from Plainfield, New Jersey, where she was born and raised, King has come to love her college experience at Kean University.
"It's not a big school compared to where I intended on studying at, but I've made the best of it. I've stayed involved and active, so I have countless memories with everyone I've encountered," she recalls.
"My favorite memory at Kean would have to be meeting my boyfriend. Since I've been with him, the amount of change he's made as a person has been tremendous. It surprises a lot of people. He doesn't know it but he actually plays a part in why I strive to do so much and give a hand in any way I can. It makes him so proud and there's no better feeling than when someone is proud of you, even for the little things," said King.
There were many students who ran for homecoming queen this year compared to homecoming king. The ratio was completely unbalanced, so it was much more of a competition for the potential queens.
"None of the girls were friends of mine, but I knew who three out of the four of them were," King tells. "One of my opponents was in one of the biggest sororities on campus, so hands down I thought she had it. Anyone else, I just thought they'd have good votes because of the activities they were involved in or the department they worked in on campus."
King is the Treasurer for the Kean Dance Theatre (KDT) organization, vice president for Kean Women of Excellence, a Platinum Leader in the Leadership Institute, Student Organization Council Senior Class Representative, a member of The National Honor Society and a Cougar volunteer. She also served as a member for the Elite Media Association when she studied communications and public relations. Since her freshman year, she has been honored to make the Dean's list numerous times.
Now studying business management, she aspires to hold a position within top-management for a corporate company. She believes women are capable of being a boss, and she teaches all her mentees that idea. In her free time, she does plenty of community service on and off campus. She is a frequent volunteer at the Community Food Bank in Hillside, New Jersey. In her four years at Kean University, she has stayed very active and will continue to do so when she is an alumni.
Although she is heavily involved on campus, it came as a surprise to her when she was announced as homecoming queen.
"To be honest, I didn't know I won," King recalls. "I was so anxious I didn't correctly hear what the announcers said. When they called the second runner up, I instantly clapped and showed good sportsmanship because I didn't want to show I was upset about losing. Right after she received her flowers, she touched me and said, 'You won! You won!' I told her, 'No I didn't, you just won.' Then she showed me that I, in fact, did win. It was a feeling of so much relief. I no longer had to spend hours tabling, spend money, remind people to vote, or have anxiety. I was just happy. I felt accomplished. I made my supporters happy and it showed me again why I have faith. It made the gloomy days so much better. It also made me feel better about spending money on my dress and goodies."
When asked what she thought was the best way to win votes, King said, "I'm very known on campus so I used my connections with all the sports teams and different departments to spread the word. I also tabled a lot because a lot of students have no idea what a homecoming court is, when it is, how to vote or who's running."
She advises, "You can't win if you don't put the time in," to anyone who wants to run for homecoming queen next year.
Since King has been here for four years, she can't help but express her cougar pride. Being a first generation college student in her family, she is just happy to have the opportunity to have furthered her education. Many people do not get that opportunity, so this helps her keep going and motivated as a student at Kean University.
After she graduates, she plans on going to graduate school. Her dream is to be on the executive board and manage Nike Corporate. She doesn't want to get so far in a career and be told that she needs a masters degree, so she feels it's just better to get it out of the way. In the event that graduate school doesn't happen, King knows she will be open to different opportunities.
King is trying to decide whether to further her education or jump right into adulthood as she approaches her last year at Kean University. She is currently doing a lot of research on jobs, statistics and opportunities.
Once again, congratulations to the winners of homecoming king and queen for 2016!
