International HOSA Competition!

Funded Apr 17, 2018

Thank you so much for donating to this project! Your donations were used to provide a hotel room at the Sheraton Dallas Hotel for five days and four nights for two of my HOSA students. HOSA is an national student organization designed for students that are interested in pursuing a career in a healthcare related field in the future. These careers could focus on anything from veterinary science to public health to athletic training. As members of HOSA, which is the largest student organization in the world, students compete in an event of their choosing at the state level. The state competition for South Carolina was held this past March in North Charleston. Students that place in the top three for their competitive event at the state conference are allowed to compete at the international level, which took place in Dallas, TX from June 27th through June 30th. My students competed in the event entitled Health Career Display and placed third at state, granting them a spot at the international competition. Their health profession of choice to research was an Athletic Trainer.

In Dallas, the students and I had a truly wonderful time meeting new people through the HOSA organization and exploring the city. Students from all over the country, as well as from Puerto Rico and Canada, were in attendance at the conference and it was inspiring to see so many diverse individuals come together in the pursuit of knowledge and growth. Upon arriving in Dallas, we participated in the HOSA opening ceremony, which included two amazing guest speakers, one of which was the current US Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams. On Friday, my students competed in the Health Career Display event. This involved the students setting up their display among approximately 140 other participants and then having their displayed judged by a number of business partners and teachers from the Dallas community. After the first round of judging, the top 40 students that made it to the second round were required to give a short presentation explaining their research and motivation behind their project to a few judges. Unfortunately, my students were not invited to participate in round two of the competitive event. However, I am incredibly proud that they were able to compete at the international level in the first place considering the fact that this is their first experience with the HOSA organization and it is our first year as a legitimate HOSA chapter. If anything, the experience of attending the international conference and seeing the hard work required to be a part of such an incredible event and organization has inspired us to devote more time and energy next year to build upon the foundation of our current HOSA chapter by recruiting more members, raising more funds for important charities, and preparing even more in advance for competition.

In addition to the amazing experiences provided by the HOSA organization at the international conference, we also thoroughly enjoyed seeing the best of what Dallas, Texas has to offer! Since we were able to stay in a hotel located in the heart of downtown Dallas, we were given the opportunity to explore the area and visit some awesome local treasures such as the Reunion Tower Observation Deck, the Dallas Farmers Market, and Klyde Warren Park. We were also able to view incredible street art in the neighboring community of Deep Ellum, which made for some great pictures!

All in all, it was a truly memorable trip for both me and my students and certainly one that will not be forgotten. We are unbelievably excited to have been a part of the HOSA international conference and we can't wait to do it again next year!”

With gratitude,

Ms. Knight