The NWN sat down with 2013 Homecoming Court  Alex Galanopoulos, Alyssa Guzman, Jessie Rosell, Olivia Rusek, Valya Borisova, Damir Bekic, Peter Futia, Ricardo Johnson, Emmanuel Obeng, and Boaz Shields for a Q&A about who they are and why they ran for homecoming king or queen.

NWN: Why did you decide to run for homecoming king or queen? And why do you want to win?

Alex: I decided to run because I thought it would be fun. My mom also won Homecoming queen when she was a senior at Niles West so I thought that would be cute if I won too.

Olivia: I decided to run for Homecoming queen because my sister, Nicole Rusek, won Homecoming queen in ’08. I want to win because she’s my role model and I want to follow in her footsteps.

Alyssa: So as cliche as it is, I decided to run just for the fun of it. It’s a good way to remember my senior year, plus it’ll be fun to wear the sash around everywhere. I didn’t really run to win, just for the sash & experience, but it would be cool if I did win because it would be breaking the jock streak. Jocks are awesome and everything because they’re super tough & dedicated, but if I won it would be nice to represent those who aren’t as gifted with athleticism & those who may be better writers or something like that.

Jessie: I decided to run for Homecoming queen because I was encouraged by a lot of my friends to do so. I love getting involved with things at school, and it looked like a ton of fun!

Valya: I just thought it would be fun, I don’t really care if I win but if I do then that’s a plus.

Damir: I decided to run simply it’s my year, and I want it to be memorable. I want to win so I’ll have a story to tell in the future and just finish my senior year with something exciting.

Peter: Every one of friends and family wanted to vote for me, congratulate me, and be nice. One of my friends nominated me.

Ricardo: I decided to run for Homecoming king because I thought it would be a great thing to do for my last year of high school. I want to win because I want to tell my kids many years later that their dad won Homecoming king and it would be a great honor to be granted such a thing.

Emmanuel: I ran because I wanted to put myself out there this year. I want to win because it’s something big to remember the rest of my life.

Boaz: It sounds kinda weird, but I kind of want to win so I can look through my old yearbook with my kids and be able to tell them that their dad was Homecoming king.

NWN: What extra-curricular activities are you involved with at West?

Alex: I’ve always done sports at Niles West like basketball and volleyball. I also participate in fundraisers like Relay For Life, and I am a part of the Leadership Council.

Olivia: I play volleyball and I’m part of the NWACE.

Alyssa: I was on the debate team my freshman & sophomore year. I don’t compete anymore but I still occasionally help out with judging & coaching. I’m also the editor in chief of the NWN and I’ve been involved in it since freshman year.

Jessie: I play volleyball, and last year I was in Joseph & the Amazing Technicolored Dream Coat, which I really enjoyed, so I plan on being involved in more productions this year. I also played basketball and softball in previous years.

Valya: I do DECA and ski club.

Damir: I’m currently the president of Bosnian and Montenegro club.

Peter: I’m a part of women’s choir. 

Ricardo: I am involved in track, football, and basketball. I am in the recycling club.

Emmanuel: I participate in football and baseball.

Boaz: I’m currently a part of varsity football and wolf pack.

NWN: How do you want to make your last year in high school memorable?

Alex: I just want to make it a fun year. I don’t want to stress too much and I just want to enjoy being with all my friends and coaches and staff. Because after I leave high school, there will be many familiar faces I will never see again.

Olivia: I want to make my last year of high school memorable by staying close with all my friends and setting a new record in volleyball for most kills.

Alyssa: I just want to be sure that I get the full high school experience of going to Homecoming, Prom, supporting our sports teams, & showing a lot of school spirit. We’ll never get these years back so I want to make them memorable while I still can.

Jessie: I just want to leave Niles West happily. Thus far, my senior year has been unbelievable, and I’m hoping to keep this going even after all the hype of homecoming dies down. I want to enjoy myself by doing the things I love and nothing else!

Valya: I want to do all the activities I’ve been putting off for the past three years.

Damir: I want to make my last year memorable by finishing strong with good grades, and to honestly be on good terms with everyone.

Peter: Just spend time with my friends. I have a lot of friends here who are really nice, and they give me hugs. 

Ricardo: I want to make my last year at West memorable by having a great year in all sports, doing something that everyone will remember, and leaving a big mark not only by me but my whole grade. I want to have such a good year that at graduation I will cry.

Emmanuel: I want to make my high school year memorable by sticking my nose in everything I can whether it would be running for king or going all out during spirit week.

Boaz: I want to make my last year of high school memorable by doing everything I dreamt of doing as a freshman walking into Niles West, and hopefully also by getting to know and spend time with a lot of people who I won’t be seeing much of in college. I basically want to take advantage of everything I have while it’s still here.

NWN: What are your future plans? What colleges, if any, are you thinking about?

Alex: I plan to go to college. I’ve thought about schools like Marquette, UIC, Loyola, Depaul, and ISU. If it is possible for me to play basketball at a D3 or D2 school, that could also happen.

Olivia: My future plans are to play 4 years of volleyball at Miami University in Ohio. I hopefully want to go pro in Europe after that.

Alyssa: I’m looking into a career involving writing, so I want to major in English with an emphasis in creative writing, as well as journalism & secondary education. My big dream is to become a screenplay writer, but even if that doesn’t work out ill definitely keep writing. Right now I’m looking at a bunch of Illinois schools, some California schools,  Iowa, and Mizzou.

Jessie: At this point in my life, I want to be a teacher. All of the teachers I have had have impacted my life in some way or another, and I hope to do the same one day for a new generation. All I know is that I need to be working with people. I just love people.

Valya: I want to go to business managment, and I want to go to DePaul or Northwestern.

Damir: My future plans are to apply to many universities near me, like DePaul, Northern Illinois University, University of Illinois, University of Chicago, Loyola, Northeastern, Illinois State University, and Lake Forest.

Ricardo: I plan on studying physical therapy in college and hopefully moving on to the next level playing college sports by any means necessary to do so. I am thinking about attending the Nebraska, Arkansas, Colorado, and Ohio.

Emmanuel: My future plans are to try to play football and become a physical therapist. The colleges I’m looking at is Nebraska and Kansas State.

Boaz: I’m thinking about attending Miami of Ohio with a major in chemistry, but if that doesn’t work out I want to head somewhere near the ocean and become a marine biologist.

NWN: If you could have one super power what would it be and why?

Alex: I would want to be able to fly because I would totally go at night and fly around Chicago. It would be so pretty, and that means less walking around.

Olivia: Hm, if I had one super power I would definitely pick the ability to fly.

Alyssa: It’s a tie between being able to teleport, because then I would save money on gas and never have to worry about having to get a ride or anything, and having the remote that Adam Sandler had in “Click.” I would just pause time every morning and get an extra few hours of sleep before school.

Jessie: If I could have one super power. Hm. It would probably be the capability to turn into any animal I’d like. That was I would be able to fly, swim, jump, walk, and run! How sweet would that be?

Valya: I would fly, and save money on the CTA.

Damir: One super power that I’d want is mind control. If I had that power, I could literally do whatever I want with no consequences, I’m not implying I’d do something very bad, just little things.

Peter: I would want super strength like spider-man power and the webs. 

Ricardo: If I could have any superpower it would be to fly. I would fly all around the world, see lots of different things, eat lots of different foods, and meet lots of different people.

Emmanuel: If I could have a super power it would be reading minds because I’d love to know what everyone else thinks of me.

Boaz: If I could have one super power it would be to teleport because then I could just teleport onto a beach in Mexico, and be back home a second later.