Twenty-six Homecoming candidates stood in a line along the Mansion Park field. Twenty-five were female, and one was male. Second and first runner ups were announced, but applause quickly subsided as the crowd anticipated the reveal of the 2025 Homecoming royal. The announcer began over the loudspeaker, “And your 2025 Homecoming King…” At that moment it became clear exactly who had won. It was senior Julian Pringle.
On Oct. 10, Pringle officially became Altoona’s first ever Homecoming king. His crowning has become a topic of discussion among the student body.
After a successful campaign with his team, “The Pringle Effect,” many students, staff and fellow candidates believe that Pringle deserved to win Homecoming king.
“I was very happy for him, and I think that he deserved it,” senior Isabella Miller said.
“I think it’s great,” Homecoming committee adviser Paige Matteson said. “I think anyone who wanted to put the time and effort involved in running deserves a fair share to be there, and I think he went just as far as anyone else running to win and obviously he had the school’s popularity vote, but he also raised so much money, so all the aspects of Homecoming really contributed to him winning.”
Pringle ran as a way to make a positive impact on his fellow students and Homecoming as a whole.
“I chose to run because I wanted to make the impact that more guys can run, and I just want to be able to have all the experiences possible that I can as a senior,” Pringle said.
Pringle’s crowning has created a topic of debate regarding who should be able to win.
“I wasn’t upset,” senior Olivia Fortson said. “I’m not going to throw a fit like a child. I’m a senior in high school. I’m obviously mature enough, but I know that other people weren’t so happy… It was because he’s a guy running for Homecoming which is mainly girls every year.”
Many students have begun to suggest possible alterations for future Homecoming elections.
“I think there should be a Homecoming King and a Homecoming Queen,” Pringle said. “These opportunities end up being limited to females, and I think having the opportunity for a king and a queen to run would allow any senior [to] have as many experiences as possible… a male candidate can have as many opportunities as a female candidate can despite gender.”
“I think that if they were to make a decision, they should have done both [Homecoming King and Homecoming Queen],” Miller said.
Matteson believes that having both a Homecoming King and a Homecoming Queen could be a possibility for future years.
“I think that’s up for debate and for administration,” Matteson said. “…Maybe they could do a vote and see how they think they should proceed. I’m open to anything if people are willing to put in the work.”
As Pringle enters his new role as Altoona’s first king, he hopes to properly represent the school.
“I feel like I’m representing a larger student body,” Pringle said. “I don’t really think of it as winning as a male, I just think of it as winning more to being a leader of the school.”
