Say hello to your 2026 Cleveland Rose Festival Princess: Kaitlyn Alexander!
Since 1908, Portland’s Rose Festival has been a city tradition, where a princess is nominated to represent their school in the parade. Cleveland has followed this tradition since the beginning, and 12 princesses have gone on to become queen, the last in 2008. There are 15 princesses from around Portland on the court this year to partake in the duties of a Rose Festival princess.
Becoming a princess means being more active in the community and making changes that they believe in. Princesses volunteer their time and develop their leadership skills as they travel around the state, representing the city. Perks to being a princess include having a mentor geared toward what they want to do in the future and a $5,000 scholarship.
Last year the Rose City Princess was Sabrina Johnson, now a senior at Cleveland. Her role as princess last year inspired many, including our current princess Alexander.
“I’ve done cheer with her every year I have been in high school and it was nice seeing someone I knew make a difference in the community,” Alexander said, reflecting on Johnson’s role in her life.
Alexander’s career plans are to be a medical researcher or a pharmaceutical scientist. She has been active in student council, serving as the student body treasurer this year, while also participating on the competitive cheer squad, golf and speech and debate teams. She also enjoys serving on the theater council and in the Intensive Skills Class.
In past years there were competing candidates for the Rose Festival Princess title, but this year Cleveland did not have a vote to decide who filled this position because Alexander was the lone candidate.
Voting for a princess brought the school community together to watch the different speeches between the girls competing to become princesses and connected them with the school spirit.
“I liked last year because it was in front of the whole school, so I feel like it gets the school more involved,” Alexander said.
This year her speech was less emphasized than last year’s speeches because the assembly was at the end of the school day and optional with only a few classes showing up. This caused recognition for the new princess in Cleveland to be talked about less, and less people know about it.
“It didn’t put a lot of emphasis that it was happening, which makes me scared for next year when the court’s picked again because the Rose Court didn’t get a lot of support within the school,” Alexander shared.
Cleveland’s Rose Festival Princess brings the school community together to connect the students and share different aspects of the world with one another. Alexander has the honor to influence the peers around them and make a change in their community.
“Cleveland is like a huge family, so I’m really excited that I get to be part of Cleveland and be able to show everyone what Cleveland is,” Alexander stated on the KPBS radio run by Benson Polytechnic High School.
As our school pushes this tradition on by nominating a Rose Festival Princess, we become a community as one represented by our crowned princess. Thanks to Kait Alexander there will be a strong Rose Princess to represent Cleveland and powerful princesses to come.
