Each fall, volunteers at the Tournament of Roses begin their competitive months-long process in selecting seven women to serve on the Rose Court, including who will have the honor of being crowned Rose Queen.
The Rose Court represents the Tournament at nearly 100 community and media functions between October and New Year’s Day, where they will ride in a Rose Parade float and attend the New Year’s Day Rose Bowl game.
- Also see: Rose Parade 2026 lineup: Your guide to every float, band and equestrian unit, in order
The seven young women who are selected to be on the Rose Court must be between 17 to 21 years old, possess at least a 2.- grade point average and be a full-time student (at least a senior in high school) within the Pasadena Area Community College District or in the following zip codes (which were added this year): 90032 (Los Angeles//El Sereno), 90041 (Los Angeles/Eagle Rock), 90042 (Los Angeles/Highland Park), 91775 (San Gabriel), 91776 (San Gabriel), 91801 (Alhambra), 91803 (Alhambra).
Applicants must also bring diverse strengths and experiences, such as demonstrated involvement in their community.
This year’s Rose Court features an impressive cohort with some notable feats, including not one but two college students, the first time college students have appeared on the Rose Court in 11 years, the first Caltech student, the first current Alhambra student and a Monrovia student who lost her home in the Eaton fire.
Here’s a bit about each of the young women on the 107th Rose Court.
Serena Guo, Rose Queen
Serena Guo is the 137th Rose Queen. She is a senior at Arcadia High School and also lives in Arcadia. Her parents are Hui Zhou and Wei Guo, and she has a younger sister, Alyssa. In her free time, she likes to train pets, draw, crochet and relax with a good Netflix show.
She works with the Foothill Unity Center, an organization she believes truly serves the surrounding community. She said what makes the organization unique beyond serving food to the community, the Foothill Unity Center also provides homelessness services, which helps homeless individuals become more self-sufficient.
Serena also serves as a school site leadership representative, student tutor and community volunteer at the Arcadia Public Library.
Passionate about law, justice and public policy, she is captain of the Congressional Debate Team, member of the Arcadia Speech and Debate Team, former intern with a law firm and has advocated directly with state representatives at legislative conferences. She hopes to pursue a career as a lawyer working toward justice and equality.
She is planning on studying public policy with a minor in biomedical engineering at Stanford University, USC or UC Berkeley.
Livia dePaula, Rose Princess
Livia dePaula is a senior at Temple City High School and lives in San Gabriel. She enjoys cheerleading, watching movies, reading, journaling, traveling and spending time with friends. DePaula is the daughter of Carla de Oliveira and Joao de Paula and has a brother, Lucas.
At school, she holds various leadership positions within her extracurricular activities. She is president of the Associated Student Body, co-president of Healthy Lungs Club, an Australian Sister City Exchange Ambassador and captain for the varsity cheer team.
One of the programs she holds dear is the English Learners Development mentors program. As a mentor, she meets with new, non-native English-speaking students, many of whom are immigrating, and helps them get assimilated into campus culture.
As a Brazilian, she’s fluent in Portuguese, but is learning Spanish to communicate with her mentees. Livia previously interned for Sasha Renee Perez’s state Senate campaign and has volunteered at Kaiser Permanente Hospital, with aspirations of becoming a nurse anesthetist.
She plans on pursuing higher education ta San Diego State University, California State Fullerton or UCLA.
Riya Gupta, Rose Princess
Riya Gupta is a freshman at Caltech, studying mechanical engineering and business, economics and management and lives in Pasadena.
She is the first student from Caltech to serve on the Rose Court.
Gupta was speaking to a Caltech alumnus at a Tournament of Roses event, who told her that she was afraid that women at Caltech would be perceived differently if they participated in something like the Rose Court.
Gupta told Caltech Magazine: “I thought it was interesting because I had similar thoughts when I was applying, knowing Caltech had never been represented on the Court. Perhaps people had a certain perception of us being super in the books and always in the lab, while the Rose Court is a more public-facing group. Honestly, to me, Caltech is one of the best representations of grace and heart, so it just made sense to apply.”
At CalTech, Riya recently conducted research on how particulate matter released by the Eaton fire impacts respiratory systems and public health in the long-run.
She’s an advocate for science and science accessibility, ensuring that scientific work is delivered in a way that’s accessible and accurate.
Her goal is to work at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory to help advance robotics and spaceflight initiatives.
In her free time, she likes to read, spend time with family and friends, make matcha tea and eat new foods. Inspired by her experiences working with peers, teachers and school administrators to expand opportunities for students, Riya is passionate about teamwork to create unity and progress.
She is the daughter of Sandeep Gupta and Deepti Mittal and has a younger sister, Yesha.
Olivia Hargrove, Rose Princess
Olivia Hargrove is a sophomore at Pasadena City College studying aerospace engineering and graduated from Thurgood Marshall Secondary School in Pasadena in 2024.
She is the first PCC student to be on the Rose Court in 11 years.
At school, she is a member of Pasadena City College Motorsports and Cal Tech Racing. Previously, she was involved with the University of California, Santa Cruz Mathematics, Engineering, Science, Achievement program the Cal Teach internship program and the UCSC Cross Country Cub. She previously spent a year at UCSC, working with the Rocketry Team, which solidified her passion for engineering.
Olivia plans on continuing her studies at UC Berkeley, UCLA or UC Irvine, with aspirations of working in aerospace engineering or obtaining a master’s degree.
She enjoys running, hiking, and exploring new restaurants with friends. She is the daughter of Linda Vogel Hargrove and the late Keith Hargrove and has a twin sister, Ava, who attends the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa.
Keiko Rakin, Rose Princess
Keiko Rakin is a senior at Alhambra High School and lives in Alhambra. She is the first current Alhambra student to be on the Rose Court, a historic moment for the city, when they honored her at this year’s Rose Court Luncheon organized by the Alhambra Chamber of Commerce.
She reps Alhambra pride and is heavily involved in her community, serving as the Student Board of Education Member for the Alhambra Unified School District and editor-in-chief of the Alhambra student newspaper, The Moor Weekly.
Passionate about creative writing and poetry, she is the founder and CEO of the Young Authors’ Alliance, an international youth-led literary arts organization, and served as president of the Creative Writers Club, Alhambra Moors Poets Society Library Service Club, and Literary Service Club.
She is also co-president of the Black Student Union.
She enjoys hiking, baking, acting and visiting museums. She plans to study human rights, creative writing, public policy or philosophy at Wellesley College, USC, Bryn Mawr College or Howard University, with aspirations of becoming a human rights lawyer, fiction author, nonprofit leader and bookstore owner.
Keiko is the daughter of Elisa Moriimoto and Massimo Bordi, and is a sister to Nero, Ki’ya and Zamir.
Sophia Ren, Rose Princess
Sophia Ren is a senior at Arcadia High School and lives in Pasadena. She enjoys music production, equestrian sports, skiing, debate, travel, volunteering and spending time with friends and family.
Sophia holds various leadership positions, including head chairwoman of the Arcadia Civic Youth Council, captain of the debate team and editor-in-chief of The Arcadia Quill.
Sophia is heavily passionate and involved in music, serving as founder and director of Youth4ward, a nonprofit organization supporting foster children nationwide through music education and community initiatives. She’s performed at Carnegie Hall in New York City five times as a flutist, a member of the Pasadena Youth Symphony Orchestra Philharmonic and has collaborated with Grammy-winning recording engineers and composers.
Sophia aspires to combine music and advocacy in her career and plans on studying music production, sociology and education at the University of Southern California or UCLA. She is the daughter of Geoffrey Ren and Maggie Han and has three siblings, Angela, Eric and Charlie.
Naira Wadley, Rose Princess
Naira Wadley is a senior at John Muir High School and lives in Monrovia. Earlier this year, she lost her home in the Eaton fire. Naira hopes that through her media appearances and interviews, she can demonstrate how strong and resilient her community is and shine a light on how Eaton fire survivors still need attention. In school, she serves as a youth Rotarian for Altadena Rotary, treasurer of the Associated Student Body, and leader for the Girls’ Empowerment Group.
Naira is incredibly athletic, playing on the varsity soccer team and also being involved in water polo, swimming and track and field. She also serves as a 6U assistant soccer coach for AYSO, a statistician for the Unified Sports Team and a lifeguard at Waterworks Aquatics. In her free time, she likes to journal, film, swim, watch movies, bake and eat. She’s even started her own cupcake business.
Naira plans on studying psychology and pursuing a doctorate with a goal of work with adolescents, and attending either UC Santa Cruz, UCLA, UC Santa Barbara, UC Berkeley, Spelman College or Clark Atlanta University. She is the daughter of Natasha Brown and has two brothers, Adonis and Diego.
Julianna Lozada is a correspondent for the Southern California News Group.