In early April, senior Jina Lim was elected by the student body as Lincoln’s 2021 Rose Princess. She will now represent Lincoln at the Rose Festival and in the greater competition for Rose Queen. Learn more about Lim, including why she chose to run for Rose Princess and what she will be up to over the summer, below. This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity. 

Why did you decide to run for Rose Princess?

I’ve seen a lot of friends run for Rose Princess in the past, and I’ve seen some seniors elected as Rose Princess, and I thought that was a great way to just engage with the community. It looked like a very exciting program. 

What does being Lincoln’s Rose Princess mean to you?

I am definitely honored to represent Lincoln as one of the Rose Princesses in the court. [To me,] I think it means just [doing] something to give back to the community. I got a lot back from Lincoln, in terms of activities in academics and just the school itself. I think it’s nice to give back. 

Speaking of activities, what extracurriculars did you do during your years at Lincoln? 

I was in band for all four years, and it’s the same with Speech and Debate. I did [Constitution] Team in sophomore year, and I engaged in golf team for three years.

What kind of things did you have to do this year to become a Rose Princess, in terms of application and interviews?

First, you turn [in] the application, and that’s pretty simple. It’s just answering the questions on a form and emailing it to the right person. There was an interview from the Rose Princess committee, that wasn’t democratic, it was just interviews, and they got who passed onto the next round. At Lincoln, there were only four candidates, so the interviews didn’t mean much in terms of who got to continue on to the next level. All four got to go on to the second round, which is the popular vote at Lincoln. We had to record a speech for the student body and the student body voted.

What does the future look like for you in terms of Rose Princess? I know previous Rose Princesses had to travel during the summer, but is that different with COVID-10 precautions? 

Yeah, there still is what they call a travel season. It starts in June. I’m not quite sure what’s going to go on and where we’re going yet, because that hasn’t been announced. But yeah, there is going to be an in-person travel season that I’m looking forward to, and there’s going to be a Queen’s coronation at some point. 

What is your future outside of Rose Princess? What are your post-graduation plans?

Next year, I’ll be attending Johns Hopkins University, [where] I’ll be majoring in International Studies. I hope to have a great time there.