This is the last of a three-part series on the 2025-2026 school year’s homecoming festivities.
Part 1 focused on the court candidates for homecoming queen and king.
Part 2 focused on the novel event of class dances during the homecoming assembly and football game.
For the first time in its history, Sunny Hills added a new position to its annual homecoming court: homecoming king.
The Associated Student Body [ASB] posted the new position on its Instagram page on Tuesday, Sept. 30.
The senior nominees for the inaugural title included Caleb Solis, Pierrce Sandle, Jake Sexton and Katie Park.
Ultimately, the student body voted to select Park as the school’s first-ever homecoming king at the football game at Buena Park High School on Thursday, Oct. 30, during halftime.
“I felt surreal, and I didn’t believe it because I won alongside my girlfriend,” Park said. “I celebrated with my mom and my friends, [and] they reacted just as shocked as I did.”
As for her motivation to run for the position, the senior said it came from her girlfriend, senior Maddison Pech.
“The reason I decided to run for homecoming king is because my girlfriend was running for homecoming queen, and I thought it would be a fun idea to run for king,” she said
As the winner, Park said she believes a homecoming king should embody certain qualities.
“I think a homecoming king should have confidence and charisma,” she said. “They should have 100% kindness and care for every one of their peers.”
The idea to add the new title came from both students and parents who wanted to see more inclusivity in homecoming traditions, ASB adviser David Fenstermaker said.
“I’m all for recognizing more people, and it’s a pretty simple process,” Fenstermaker said. “Overall, the votes show that kids are looking at the person when they make some of these decisions, which is good, and it’s not so connected to a certain role and it gives opportunities to more people, which is the whole point.”
Other students at Sunny Hills voiced their support for the new addition because it reflects a more inclusive and modern approach to homecoming traditions.
“It gives guys at our school a chance to be recognized for their achievements and the impact they have on our campus,” junior Josef Hudak said. “It makes Homecoming feel more balanced and gives everyone a chance to take part in the tradition.”
Hudak’s view is shared by junior Julianne Brie Tubiera, who also supports the new role for the same reason.
“I honestly like the new addition of the [homecoming] king because it gives everyone representation now, and I think it’s cute that there’s a queen and a king that won for [homecoming],” Tubiera said.
Senior Kevin Hur, who won homecoming princess his junior year and advocated for the new role, said he looks forward to the future kings to come.
“To have won homecoming princess my sophomore year and for that to have helped build this new position where another student can run and win will be something I am very excited to see,” Hur said. “I hope it’ll encourage more guys to feel comfortable about running and be celebrated for their involvement rather than seeing the tradition of [homecoming] as a joke.”
