CLAREMORE, Okla. — What do a bass drum player and a dancer have in common? Just ask Claremore High School senior Keira Koko-Petty, a student who wears many hats and continues to receive praise from her peers for her attitude and drive.
Kiera Koko-Petty, a Claremore senior with a schedule that never stops.
WATCH: Triple Threat? | Claremore Homecoming Queen performs in band, pom on same night
"Golf, band, dance, FCA. I work nights at Oklahoma Pizza Company as night shift manager, and I also work at J-Farley's," Koko-Petty said.
When asked how she manages it all, her answer was simple.
"Time management, honestly," she said with a laugh.
You might wonder why she does both band and pom since both perform under the Friday night lights. For Koko-Petty, it comes down to her love for supporting others.
"I love cheering other people on… I like to make other people feel good, and I love football," she said.
When game night comes, she makes the juggling act look effortless.
"I march my drum over to the field... I go and do pregame. I march in my dance uniform and do the national anthem, and then go to the Zebra where they run out, and I play songs. And then I will hand my drum to my drum tech... And I pick my pom poms and dance first and second quarter, do our dance halftime routine, and then I exit like backfield, and then put my drum on, and then do halftime performance with the band,” Koko-Petty said.
Her band director, Courtney Accord, says even with Koko-Petty's jam-packed schedule, her positive energy never wavers.
"Honestly, in my five years here, I have not had someone who's done both dance and band so successfully," Accord said.
"So for me, personally, since I've known her, every time I talk to her, she's in a good mood. She's always had a smile on her face," Acord said.
That spirit even earned her a homecoming nomination representing FCA after being a Zebra for just two years.
"I found out at home — my friends were texting me, 'You made court,'" Koko-Petty said.
"It made me feel very excited, and that I make an impact on people, and that people notice me as being someone that they can look for and like, who deserves that position," she said.
When they called her name that night as the 2025 Claremore Homecoming Queen, Koko-Petty added a tiara to the many hats she already wears.
"The moment they called my name, I was in complete shock," she said.
Koko-Petty credits her teachers, coaches, and classmates for making it possible for her to handle all her activities and be the best version of herself.
"It's that circle; everyone in this community wants each other to succeed. My drum tech carries my drums; my coach holds my poms so I can keep doing it all," she said.
Whether pounding the drum or dancing hip-hop, Koko-Petty says she wants to be remembered for how she treated people.
"I love getting to watch football, and I love watching my peers succeed. And right now, we're five and oh, and so we haven't dealt with a loss yet, so cheering them on gives me great joy, and it honestly just looks like cheering them on and waving some pom poms," she said.
Koko-Petty is planning to attend Pittsburg State University and then transfer to the University of Kansas to become an anesthesiologist.
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