U-46 students excel in state Future Health Professionals competition

Twenty students from the Elgin Area School District U-46 HOSA - Future Health Professionals team composed of Streamwood, Bartlett, and South Elgin high schools are advancing to the international competition in Orlando, Fla.

These students placed in the top three of their category at the HOSA Illinois state competition in March, where they competed against more than 1,200 other students.

HOSA-Future Health Professionals is an international service and leadership organization focused around health care related competitions at the state and international level.

Students can compete in more than 50 areas, including sports medicine, pharmacy science, and CPR/first aid. Students are able to showcase the knowledge gained in their coursework at these competitions, to which more than 8,000 students qualify and compete in each year.

"HOSA's values of learning, leadership, service, and innovation serve to prepare students for both college and career," said Lela Majstorovic, assistant superintendent of secondary schools, instruction and equity. "Being a part of this organization gives students the type of real-life opportunities that motivate them and help them envision themselves as leaders in the health care industry."

The U-46 International HOSA team is coached by Bartlett High School teachers Susan Hoch and Valerie Putek, South Elgin High teacher Patrick Doranski, and Streamwood High School teacher Jackie Gordon.

The team will travel to Orlando to compete in the HOSA International Leadership Conference which runs June 19-22.

"The HOSA competitions give students hands-on experience that empowers them to become leaders in the medical field at an early age," Doranski said. "Our students have been diligently preparing themselves to compete and we are excited to see how they perform on the international stage."

A list of the U-46 International HOSA Team members and the category they are competing in is below:

South Elgin High School

• Alissa Farmer, CERT Skills

• Eviana Giardina, Health Career Display

• Toni Herz, CERT Skills

• Kylee Hunter, Original Medical Innovation

• Jordan Lenox, Original Medical Innovation

• Eileen Lopez, Health Education

• MacKenzie Molina, Sports Medicine

• Shruti Patel, Original Medical Innovation

• Tulsi Patel, Health Education

• Margaret Pavilk, Medical Reading

• Kaitlyn Petratos, Health Education

• Karolina Terlikowski, Health Career Display

Bartlett High School

• Anuj Ghandi, CERT Skills

• Sahithi Manne, Knowledge Test: Transcultural Healthcare

• Jhil Patel, Prepared Speaking

• Esha Sachdev, CERT Skills

Streamwood High School

• Gabriella Bongiovanni, Extemporaneous Writing

• Monica Voravong, Extemporaneous Writing

• Reeya Patel, Community Awareness

• Archana Patel, Community Awareness