Health Careers Students Take Top Honors; Advance to State Competition

Grand Rapids MI – Three students in the Health Sciences Early College Academy of Kent ISD took top honors in a regional competition last week in Muskegon.  Mackenzie Cunningham and Amanda McKellar, from Kentwood Public Schools, along with Nadine Sunman from Caledonia Community Schools, took First Place in Medical Reading. 

To win the competition, these students read a selection from medical books and then were tested in both written and verbal exams.  All three now advance to the state competition in April.

Johanna Merritt, Rockford Public Schools, and a student in Kent Career Tech Center’s Health Careers, took Third Place in the Veterinary Science category.  She performed a set of veterinary procedures and took a written exam, and will also advance to state competition.

The competition was part of The Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) regional competitions. HOSA is a student organization whose mission is to promote career opportunities in health care and to enhance the delivery of quality health care to all people. Competitions take place in dozens of health-related topics, and both students and HSECA students did well.

Four additional Tech Center students also placed in the Top 10 and will compete again in April:

·         Sarah Baldwin, Kenowa Hills Public Schools, Extemporaneous Health Poster

·         Avry Maier, Rockford Public Schools, and Vanessa Mazariegos, Grand Rapids Public Schools, Health Career Display

·         Rachel Steenhagen, Sparta Area Schools, Medical Terminology

“We have top-notch students from all of our school districts at the Tech Center and we are so proud to see them compete successfully,” said John Kraus, principal.  “Our students are getting a head start on both college and careers in our 20+ programs, which include some of the most in-demand fields in West Michigan.”

“Congratulations to both the students and their instructors,” said Kevin Konarska, superintendent. “Employers emphasize the need for students to be able to apply what they learn in school, and these students demonstrated their ability to do just that.”

Please visit our website, thetechcenter.org  for more information.

Kent ISD is a local educational service agency devoted to achievement for all students.  We serve the community by helping our schools prepare students to be successful in work and life.  We help districts devote more dollars directly to the classroom by providing essential services, collaborative initiatives and valuable learning for the region’s students and teachers.