Ysabelle Rosales of Pueblo is using her year as Colorado State Fair Fiesta Queen to tout the value of higher education for Hispanic students – especially first-generation students, like herself, who are the first in their families to earn bachelor’s degrees.
Rosales is in her first year at Colorado State University studying business administration with a concentration in marketing. She is a student in the CSU Honors Program and is the recipient of a prestigious Boettcher Scholarship, which is granted to students with notable academic and leadership potential.
Meantime, she is the 2025-2026 Colorado State Fair Fiesta Queen, a role that celebrates the state’s Hispanic culture year-round, with an emphasis on the state fair’s Fiesta Day, which features a parade, food, music, dancing and Mexican rodeo performances during the annual event in Pueblo.
As she participates in community events this year, Rosales hopes to demonstrate for other Hispanic students that college is attainable. In fact, holding the role of Colorado State Fair Fiesta Queen is a step in that direction with the college scholarship it offers.
“Being a multicultural woman with Latina roots, it’s extremely important to me to represent my culture and to show younger generations that you can do it,” Rosales said. “I want to show, ‘You’re worthy of a college education. You’re worthy of putting all this effort into yourself for a successful future.’”
