The New Prairie HOSA- Future Health Professionals teams ended their competition season with success at the International Leadership Conference in Nashville, TN June 22-25. Students earned a spot to compete at the international level by placing as a top finalist in the state competition in April.
Three of the sixteen team members earned top honors in the highly competitive field that consisted of students from around the world. In the secondary education division, Lauren Avery earned 4th place in Family Physician Medicine and Kaylee Koloj placed 5th in Career Development. Cecelia Walls earned 9th place in the middle school division for Health Career Preparation.
In addition, students could also compete in an Anatomy Challenge sponsored by Anatomage. Of the 174 secondary division teams that competed, New Prairies team of Alissa Sonnenberg, Abigail Walker, Sylvee Onnink, Eira Schmidt, and Avery Mougin earned an impressive 14th place. New Prairie also had teams compete in the Body Interact Challenge- a virtual patient competition.
In addition to competition, students also had the opportunity to attend leadership workshops, educational symposiums, and volunteer as event staff. NPUSC HOSA Advisor Tonya Aerts provided a symposium to advisors and students titled 'Find Purpose, Change the Culture, & Maybe Save a Life- Become a Heart Safe School'.
New Prairie High School was designated the 1st Heart Safe School in Indiana through Project Adam- Riley Hospital for Children in May 2020 through the efforts of Aerts. Following the loss of senior Mark Mayfield in 2017 to sudden cardiac arrest, it is the mission of NPUSC HOSA to spread awareness of sudden cardiac arrest, AED (automated external defibrillator) awareness, and to create heart safe schools across the Hoosier state.
To learn more about heart safe schools or to follow NPUSC HOSAs efforts, follow New Prairie HOSA on Facebook at New Prairie HOSA or Instagram at npusc_hosa.
To learn more about becoming a heart safe school, contact Tonya Aerts at taerts@npusc.k12.in.us