HOSA will have its Area Leadership Conference on Jan. 29 and 30 at the Killeen ISD Career Center. Students attending this conference will have an opportunity to attend the HOSA ceremonies and showcase their talents and skills for live judges.

“I haven’t gone on a trip with a group of students in a couple of years now,” science department head and HOSA sponsor Julie Cone said. “There’s just a lingering issue with COVID-19 in their background, but I want the students to be able to participate [in this competition] because it’s good for them.” 

The area competition is the second HOSA event of this school year and the first in-person event since January of 2020. The event hosts a variety of competitions that relate to healthcare and medicine. Junior Julia Joseph will be competing in Health Career Display, an event where teams are expected to present information about a chosen healthcare occupation.

“We hope to spread awareness about specific careers for those who are interested in going into healthcare,” Joseph said. “[Competing] will be a great experience [since] I want to go into the medical field, and [competing in HOSA] events gives me a good start.”

Aside from learning about healthcare-related events, the area competition allows students to connect with those with similar strengths and interests. Senior and HOSA secretary Daniel Song is competing in a team-based event called Creative Problem solving, an event he has been competing in since freshman year. 

“Creative Problem Solving gives us a good opportunity to expand on our unique interests while building necessary skills such as cooperation and speaking,” Song said. “We’re given an opportunity [to come] together as a group and work to solve modern issues. Although it is a competitive environment, everyone is really nice, and [the atmosphere] becomes really social.”

HOSA members have historically performed well at the area competition, with many students advancing in their competitive events. Despite experiencing setbacks such as COVID-19, Cone said she has high expectations for this trip. 

“Many students did really well in the online testing events and advanced to area and state [in previous years],” Cone said. “I’m very proud of the HOSA students, and I love watching the students grow and realize that they can do the impossible. It’s going to be a lot of fun.”