It's hard to believe the 2017 500 Festival Princesses are done with their duties as members of the Princess Program. No matter where they go, they will always be ambassadors for the 500 Festival through the stories they share and the lives they impact, and these women are going places. [Read our blog about 10 Women You Didn't Know Were 500 Festival Princesses to see just how far Princesses can go]

As applications open and the search for 2018 Princesses has begun, here's a quick recap of what some of our 2017 Princesses are up to now:

 

 

• Quinci Miller is currently studying abroad at Queen Mary University of London. Her favorite class is "British Horror: Film, Literature and Television” and she spends her weekends traveling. So far she’s been to Bath, Stonehenge, Amsterdam and Paris.

 

• Taylor Wong is continuing her passion for giving back by currently serving as the Executive Director of Special Events Committee for Ball State University Dance Marathon. In this role, Taylor will assist with planning and executing all of the ancillary events leading up to the marathon.

 

• Sam Mitchell is headed to Washington D.C. next semester for the Washington Leadership Program. This is a joint IUB/IUPUI program that allows students to live, work, and study for 12 credits in downtown D.C.

 

 

• Esther Bower made the Dean’s List in the College of Communication, Information and Media at Ball State. You can also catch her as an anchor of Newslink Indiana at Ball State.

 

• Katherine Cole, now Dolen, started her own business with her new husband, Derek. Dolen Designs builds and sells wedding and home décor.

 

• Ashley Spears accepted an events internship at Pacers Sports & Entertainment after interning with Finish Line over the summer.

 

• Destiny Hibbs and her fiancé Matt are headed to Guinea in December to serve for over two years in the Peace Corps in the Agroforest and Public Health Education fields.

 

• Kayla Meeks was recently a speaker at the Indiana Center for Nursing Scholarship Gala. She spoke about what shaped her decision to pursue nursing in college, the importance of mentors in her life, her goals and how important it is to give back to your community.

 

• Annie Cole is headed to Manila, Philippines in January to teach and work.

 

• Anna Marie Farlow graduated from Indiana University and began working at Eli Lilly as a microbiologist in the Micro/Environmental Management Quality Control labs.

 

• Jackie Leeuw is going to the National Association of Farm Broadcasters convention in Kansas City, Missouri, in November. She was awarded an attendance scholarship and will get to network with some of the best agriculture broadcasters in the country.

 

• Jessica De La Cruz graduated from Indiana University this spring and is currently teaching Spanish for Teach for America.

 

• Shivani Bajpai was accepted to the Indiana University School of Medicine class of 2021.

 

• Hannah Kruger is currently serving as the Vice President of Butler’s class of 2019, and she'll be studying abroad in Italy in the summer of 2018.

 

• Amanda Hawkins graduated from Ball State in May and accepted a teaching position for 3^rd graders at Sheridan Elementary, where she completed a community outreach as part of the Princess Program last spring.

 

• Lauren Peacock accepted a full time position with Monsanto Company after completing her internship. She is now living in Illinois.

 

• Karlee Gable, proud Indiana State University Sycamore, is the Director of Leadership Development at Indiana State Student Government. She is the freshman branch student advisor and is responsible for working with different departments on campus to plan leadership development programs and events.

 

• Mannah Mace is currently serving as the student body president at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College and is playing on the women’s soccer team. She also recently accepted a spring internship at the 500 Festival!

 

No matter where they're off to or how many classes they're taking, it's safe to say 2017 was one incredible Princess class determined to achieve great things.

 

Want to be a 500 Festival Princess in 2018?

Apply!