A night to remember
LaFayette High School crowns homecoming royalty
BY KADIE TAYLOR
THE LAFAYETTE SUN
LAFAYETTE — LaFay- ette High School celebrated Homecoming last week, crowning 2025 Homecoming King Amilleon Huguley and Queen Shakyra Hughley during the Bulldogs’ Homecoming game.
King: Amilleon Huguley
LaFayette High senior Amilleon Huguley, the 2025 Homecoming King, has played basketball since eighth grade and is active in several student organizations, in- cluding NBLA, SGA and the National Honor Society.
“Being in a sport taught me a lot of things — to grow up, be more mature and face challenges with school,” Huguley said. “Just Bulldog school pride, that’s what it’s all about.”
Throughout his time at LaFayette High, Huguley said he enjoyed spending time with his friends — many of whom are family.
“All of my friends are basically my cousins, so we all have a really good bond,” he said. “We always help each other in all the ways we can. The teachers are the same way — they help with school or even if you just need somebody to talk to some- times. Family should always be helpful.”
Huguley said homecoming week is one of the biggest events of the year at LaFayette High, and being chosen king was an unexpected honor.
“People in your class nominate whoever they want to run,” he said. “When you get nominated, you bring all your stuff and tell the whole school to vote for you. It felt good. We all like the dress-up days and the pep rallies. Our two best pep rallies in four years were the week before and the week of homecoming.”
When his name was called, Huguley said he was shocked but proud.
“I was very surprised be- cause it was just me and my friends running against each other, and we didn’t know who was gonna win,” he said. “It made me feel good because I try to talk to everybody in our school, so I try to build a bond with everyone.”
He recalled walking out on the field that night as one of his most memorable moments.
“At first, I was kind of ner- vous because there were a lot of people out there,” he said. “But then I calmed down. When my name was called, it was a sigh of relief because the wait was finally over.”
After graduation, Huguley plans to study mechanical engineering and hopes to continue playing basketball.
“I’ve been looking at Auburn, Alabama, Tennessee and Florida State,” he said. “Our teachers give us real-life scenarios about what it’ll be like in the real world. I’m gonna try to try out for a basketball team wherever I go, and if that doesn’t work out, I’ll probably join a club.”
Queen: Shakyra Hughley
Shakyra Hughley, LaFay- ette High’s 2025 Homecom- ing Queen, has been active in cheer, dance, FBLA, FCCLA, SGA and Unite.
“I’ve been an on-and-off cheerleader since eighth grade,” she said. “I’m a two- year dancer in the mighty marching Bulldog band. My time here at LaFayette High has shown me that Bulldog Pride can never hide. We’re big on school spirit. I’ve built a lot of friendships here, and they’ve taught me a lot about going into the real world.”
Hughley said her relationships with teachers and administrators have grown throughout her high school years.
“I’ve really grown my relationship with my principal,” she said. “Her first year, she was really scary — I didn’t go around too much. But now she calls me her queen. My teachers, too — my ninth- and 10th-grade math teacher, we’ve gotten close. Honestly, all of my teachers. My family has always been around me, and my friends are basically like cousins.”
Homecoming week, she said, is one of the most anticipated traditions of the year.
“This school really looks forward to homecoming week,” she said. “We love it. We do a door competition, a float competition and a game competition. The senior class won the games this year. It’s great.”
Hughley said the compe- tition for queen was close, making her victory even more meaningful.
“I think it was a very close vote between me and the girl I ran against — she’s my friend too,” she said. “This week and being selected as Home- coming Queen really made me see that there are people who look up to me.”
She admitted to feeling nervous when she walked onto the field but said the support from family and community helped calm her nerves.
“When I walked out, I was very nervous,” she said. “My cousin Paris Holloway walked me out and guided me the whole time. When I heard my name called, it was a relief — I wasn’t nervous anymore. I couldn’t stop smil- ing. I felt overwhelmed with joy. People are still telling me congratulations. I work at Jack’s, and even when people come through the drive-thru, they’re telling me congratulations.”
After graduation, Hugh- ley plans to continue her education and hopes to keep dancing in college.
“I’ve been looking at Flor- ida State,” she said. “I think I’m going to take the two- year route, going to Central Alabama to study business or dental hygiene. When I go to college, I want to be a dancer. If that doesn’t work out, I’ll definitely join a club. I want to stay involved.”
Chambers Academy celebrates its homecoming queen
BY KADIE TAYLOR
The LaFayette Sun
LAFAYETTE — Chambers Academy crowned its 2025 Homecoming Queen, Madison Stanford, during the school’s homecoming game last week.
Stanford said her time at Chambers Academy has helped her grow in confidence, leadership and community.
“I’m a part of Beta Club, and I’m in the honors program here,” she said. “I’ve also been part of the math team my 10th and 11th grade years, and we don’t know who will make it this year yet. I think I’ve grown a lot, and I want to take that into my future. I want to grow more socially and take my leadership skills from sports and my overall experience and use them.”
Stanford, who plays both point guard and shooting guard on the basketball team, transferred to Chambers Academy in 10th grade after attending Dadeville High School.
“I went to Dadeville in ninth grade before I moved here, and I was sort of recruited for basketball,” she said. “My last three years here have been really great. I’ve made some really good friends. Sports are great. I also play softball, and my overall experience here for the past three years has been really great.”
During homecoming night, Stanford said she felt supported by her family, friends and the school community.
“Like half my family showed up to the football game to watch me, so that was really great,” she said. “They were really proud of me. Two of my friends were actually the other homecoming nominees, but they were still really happy for me — and I would have been just as happy for them if they had won.”
Stanford said the anticipation before the announcement of the Homecoming Queen title was nerve-wracking but ended in a moment of excitement and pride.
“They had a tunnel with the cheerleaders, dancers and all of the nominees,” she said. “They started with kindergarten, and then there’s the Homecoming Princess and the Queen. They called out each of our names, and then they called out the Queen’s name. I was very last in line, so that was kind of nerve-racking. But the crowd screamed really loud when they called my name. It was such a good feeling.”
Stanford reflected on how far she has come since first arriving at Chambers Academy
“When I first came to Chambers, I was a little shy — I’ve always been kind of shy,” she said. “My sophomore year, I was really nervous to start basketball with people I didn’t grow up with. That year, we made it to the Final Four in basketball state. We unfortunately lost, but it was a good experience. Last year, I was more comfortable filling the role of point guard, and I feel like our team got stronger because our friendships did. We didn’t make it to the Final Four last year, but it was still a really good experience.”
After graduation, Stanford plans to attend Southern Union State Community College to complete her basic courses before transferring to Auburn University.
“I’m not really sure what I want to major in yet — that’s why I want to go to a two-year college first,” she said. “I’ve learned leadership roles and basic life skills through relationships with people and by learning from my mistakes as a teenager. Taking what you learn from that and moving forward in life is really important.”
