INDIANAPOLIS — Alie Brown grew up in a New Palestine family passionate about the Indianapolis 500, and she remembers always looking up to the princesses associated with the 500 Festival.
“It’s something I always wanted to do,” she said of joining those tiara- and sash-clad ranks.
Now she’s doing it.
The University of Indianapolis senior was selected for the 2021 500 Festival Princess program, through which she’ll learn leadership skills, perform outreach in her communities and help celebrate the Indianapolis 500.
“I think this is an amazing opportunity, and I’m so excited to not only represent the city of Indianapolis and the University of Indianapolis, but also the town of New Palestine, Indiana,” Brown said.
The 500 Festival is a nonprofit organization that coordinates events and programs celebrating the Indianapolis 500, and its Princess program honors civic-minded and academically driven young women. Brown is one of 33 Princesses representing 16 Indiana colleges and universities and 21 cities and towns across the state. After submitting written applications and participating in virtual interviews, they were selected from hundreds of applicants based on communication skills, academic performance, community involvement, commitment to service and leadership.
During her interview, Brown said she strove to be seen not just as a student, but a human being with a genuine desire to use the opportunity to make an impact in her communities.
“I honestly was so in shock I didn’t really know what to do,” she said of learning she had been selected.
She and her fellow Princesses will virtually participate in the 500 Festival Leadership Development Program to learn about making impacts in their communities and state. They’ll also have mentors to personally guide them along the way.
Brown said the leadership development program will take place over the web-conferencing platform Zoom, with which she’s grown comfortable from engaging in so many college classes that way throughout the pandemic.
The Princesses will also participate in virtual outreach opportunities through the 500 Festival’s statewide outreach program, which educates Hoosiers about the history and legacy of the Indianapolis 500, the 500 Festival and its various events and programs. Each year, 500 Festival Princesses conduct more than 1,500 community outreaches involving more than 50,000 people, according to a news release from the festival.
Brown will plan different initiatives in the communities she’s involved in and said she’s reaching out to schools in the Southern Hancock school district about sharing information on the 500 Festival and the history of the race, which will be run for the 105th time on May 30.
“A lot of people know about the race, but they don’t know about the history of it,” she said.
As a marketing and supply chain management major, Brown understands the importance of a professional headshot photograph and knows how difficult it can be for people coming out of college to afford one. That’s why she also wants to use her involvement in the Princess program to set up an event to provide free headshots in Indianapolis.
In-person events associated with the festival are optional for Princesses if they feel comfortable, Brown said, and they’ll also follow COVID-19 guidelines. One that she’s signed up for is a flag-raising for a tortoise race at the Indianapolis Zoo.
Several of the 500 Festival’s events are virtual this year, like its runs and Kids Day, while the parade and Breakfast at the Brickyard are currently scheduled to take place in person.
Each 500 Festival Princess will receive a $1,000 scholarship, and the 500 Festival Queen Scholar will receive an additional $1,500 scholarship.
Madonna McGovern, Brown’s English teacher at New Palestine High School, remembers her as outgoing and mature.
“She was just a very loyal friend and very caring to her classmates and her friends as well,” McGovern said.
Lisa Clouse, interim vice principal at New Palestine Junior High School who taught Brown language arts in seventh grade, also remembers her former student well.
“She stood out for really great reasons,” Clouse said. “Middle school’s just a really, really hard time for kids — trying to figure out who they are, trying on a lot of different identities — but Alie was always pretty consistent. She came in with an identity that I think has stayed with her as she’s matured.”
Clouse described that identity as caring, which she witnessed through curriculum she taught that emphasized the importance of social justice and equality.
“Alie was one of those kids who always seemed to lead with a sense of compassion,” Clouse said.
She added she’s excited for Brown as she embarks on the Princess program.
“I think it’s a great platform for young women to work from, to work toward bettering communities … and I think it plays right into who she is,” Clouse said.
