Porter County Career Center was well represented by 10 students in the Health Occupations Students of America State Competition this April. Students from 5 area schools competed against other students from across the state in the event, winning college scholarships and earning trips to the National Competition this June in Nashville, Tennessee.
Ceara Trcka from Chesterton High School teamed up with Paige Smith from Valparaiso High School to win the Public Health event. The students qualified for Nationals, while each earning scholarships for 3 semesters of full tuition at Ivy Tech College. The girls paired up with Boone Grove High School students Dennis Donahue and Jake Krischke to take second place in the Creative Problem Solving competition and earning a bid to nationals. Dennis placed third in the Extemporaneous Speaking event earning another national bid.
Jake Krischke and Paige Smith placed in the top ten in the state in Extemporaneous Speaking, and Paige was also in the top ten for Nutrition. Morgan Eastridge from Portage High School teamed up with Sawyer Kekelik from Hebron High School to place in the top ten in Emergency Medicine.
Portage High School students Megan Bodo, Taylor Baldwin, Faith Velasquez, and Hope Velasquez also participated in the event which included 700 students from across the state.
Instructors: Health Careers/ Health Occupations
Lorna Marcus, BS, RN
Suzanne Edwards, RN, BSN