by: Bella McDonald
SANFORD – HOSA hosts a Regional Leadership Conference every school year during the fall. This year, RLC is taking place at Lee County High School, on Tuesday, which will be the first time in the club’s history hosting it. HOSA advisor for LCHS is Tiffany Davis is the person in charge of planning the event.
Davis began planning the first layout for RLC in July, after being voted in at the State Conference back in March, after she applied to be a regional representative. “I made a deal with two of my current senior students. They were going to run for state officer, If I applied for that position and they backed out after I applied. And I was the only one that ran, so I got voted in,” Davis laughed.
With being voted in, you get the opportunity to plan and host RLC the following year. She is very nervous because there are still many details that need to be confirmed, plus she has lots of other things happening at the same time.
The main thing that Davis is struggling to figure out is getting enough judges for event competitions. “So the biggest thing at this point is getting the judges, we still need like, seven more judges,” Davis stated.
But many advisors from surrounding schools have been offering their help, which is super appreciated by Davis, as this kind of thing is very hard to execute by oneself. “Some of the other advisors that are region representatives have been great about sharing their resources,” she said. Some of the things they have been providing are items to offer to students while they are not competing, which include fun drink options and potentially a scavenger hunt.
Following the help from advisors, Davis explains that her officers have also played a big role in helping plan for RLC. They have provided her with different lunch options, given input on concessions and have helped organize room numbers that are going to hold competitions. They have also made an agenda and schedule for the day.
“The officers have been really good at helping me plan. We just have to do a little bit more,” Davis stated.
With all this planning going on, it shows how important RLC is to all members of HOSA. It allows them to see firsthand how the medical field will work and provide them with background knowledge before majoring in college in a specific field. Davis explains how competing will also help with workplace skills students will need to master to succeed in their profession.
“So if they have something that they’re interested in,” Davis said, “then diving into a competition is gonna help them kind of see what the career is like.”
“It’s gonna help them with all of those 21st century skills that we’re trying to teach you in all of our CTE classes anyway,” she continued.
HOSA officer Lydia Crissman also agrees that competing in RLC is beneficial to all who choose to compete. Explaining how you learn lots from it, and you get to meet and connect with new people in your chapter. “Competing in RLC has given me a lot of confidence. And I like learning about the different healthcare careers that they display or they show,” Crissman stated.
Competing in RLC happens to be what Davis is most excited for. She is ready to see how they will perform and cherishes their excitement for their competitions. Along with her students competing, she knows those students will also help out if necessary. Davis knows that if there happens to be a problem or conflict, her students will be able to sort it out.
“And I know that whatever comes up and whatever happens, there’s gonna be students there to take care of it and I do believe that it will run smoothly,” Davis explained.
Even though this is a huge opportunity for LCHS HOSA, and Davis may receive spotlight for her hard work, she is not an advisor for that reason. She wants to show how LCHS can be competitive with HOSA and how they can perform well against bigger schools, who may have more money. “I don’t really care about the spotlight that it brings to me. I don’t do it for that,” Davis said.
But, Crissman is excited for the spotlight it will bring to the whole club, wanting it to light the path for new members to see what HOSA is about and potentially join. “I’m hoping that since it’s at our school, we’ll get a lot more attention and people joining the club,”she stated.
At the end of the day, Davis is excited about this opportunity she has been provided with and is very thankful for all the people that have helped her. She is ready to see how the day of RLC will unfold, and hopes that all her students will compete well in their events. And though it may be controversial that she doesn’t want any spotlight to her name, she just always wants to be there for her students.
”I just want to help my students. I want to help them develop skills that they need in their future careers. And I want to give them all the opportunities that they want, in order to do whatever they want to do,” she explained. This shows her dedication to her students and how the club will be successful with their advisor having a mindset like hers.
