We have an exciting proposal: a career exploration opportunity for students in passionate about the medical field and interested in health professions. We are advocating for the establishment of a Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) chapter at Cosumnes Oaks High School. This organization provides students with opportunities to explore careers in the healthcare field through specialized medical competitions and networking events, such as intense subject-area medical knowledge competitions, medical skills competitions (i.e. performing CPR on dummies and dental health skills), jeopardy on medical knowledge, team competitions, and more! However, these activities require funding that our school currently does not provide. 

At the moment, we are currently working to get district approval, however we need your help to prove that we want this at our school! Please take some time to sign this petition form to show that you’re interested in this which will hopefully help us gain district support!

We need three things from the EGUSD School Board: funding for competition fees (Regional, State, and International Leadership conferences), funding for transportation and hotels to the International competition held in the USA (for the outstanding students who qualify by placing), and the Charter Fee. Note that we are willing to contribute our own fundraising money to these expenses if possible, but we are already planning on covering the annual membership fees, ATC testing fees, and many other fees.

The cost of the State conference/competition fees per member attending is $120. The International conference/competition fee is $90 per member attending. The transportation to the International competition (International Leadership Conference) is only necessary for the small amount of students who place in the very top. The one-time charter fee is $200. (Sources: https://www.cal-hosa.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/2024-SLC-Flyer.pdf​ https://hosa.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/2024-HOSA-ILCguide-DTC-v7.pdf Additional info about funding will be discussed with the board.

Cal-HOSA REC (Regional Event Conference) is the first round of competition, with online testing at the local chapter school site with proctors and video submissions if applicable (for speech and research events, for example). It has over 49 individual and team competitive events in the medical field, such as Dental Science, Medical Assisting, Behavioral Health, Clinical Nursing, Veterinary Science, Epidemiology, Sports Medicine, Pharmacy Science, Physical Therapy, Interviewing Skills, Prepared Speaking, and Biotechnology. Examples of team events are HOSA Bowl (a health and medical science trivia event for teams of students), Medical Innovation, and Biomedical Debate.

Cal-HOSA SLC (State Leadership Conference) is an in-person conference at Anaheim Convention Center for students who place in the REC and move onto the next round of competition. In three general sessions, there are leadership workshops for advisors, features workshop speakers, HOSA service project, scholarships, safe networking, team building, a student social event, business meeting, recognition for school service events, and most importantly: the students' competitive events! 

There are over 68 competitive events at SLC - some new ones include ATC (Academic Testing Center) events with the National Geographic Learning Academic Testing Center which are $5 per event per person. We intend on covering those costs with fundraising money. These events are more science-based, such as Anatomy & Physiology, Biochemistry, Biology, General Chemistry, Math for Health Professionals, Allied Health Statistics, Career Development, and more. There are many scholarships offered by HOSA that students may apply for throughout the year, usually requiring essays or nomination. They will be awarded at SLC. 

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, healthcare occupations are projected to grow 15% from 2019 to 2029, much faster than all other occupations (source: BLS). By establishing a HOSA chapter at our school, we can better prepare students for these future job opportunities. We urge you to support this initiative by signing this petition and helping us present a strong case for funding a HOSA chapter at our school.