After months of quizzing themselves, practicing for round-two showcases, and choosing the most appropriate professional attire, over 20 Davie High Students attended the 2025 North Carolina HOSA State Leadership Conference from March 26 through March 28. With over three thousand attendees, this dynamic, three-day event was filled with competitions, symposiums, and Goosechases (an app you download that leads you all around the convention center with quests). Held at the Koury Convention Center in Greensboro, the conference united students, educators, and industry leaders with a deep passion for healthcare.
Competitions were at the heart of the conference, with students showcasing their skills in medical terminology, clinical nursing, veterinary science, dental science, CPR/First aid, etc. These skills were shown more extensively in round two, where they showed their skills before a judge.
This conference wasn’t taken lightly by any of the club members, especially not faculty advisor and health science teacher Melissa Sparks. Preparing for this event involved a great deal of moving parts.
“Finding food options that all the students would be able to eat, making sure I had enough hotel rooms for all attendees. Making sure students were prepared for their event when it was really difficult to get all the attendees together around all their other club meetings,” Sparks says.
Through their hard work and dedication, two Davie HOSA members qualified for the International Leadership Conference. Jamie Brown finished 1st on the Healthcare Issues exam. Junior Erik Pope finished 3rd in the Patient Care Technician category.
Sparks has been working relentlessly to make sure all of her team members were able to have an enjoyable three days at the conference.
“I was really stressed leading up to the conference,” Sparks says. “Now that SLC is over, I feel relieved that everything ran smoothly, the students had a great time, and had success in a variety of activities and events. I’m proud that our students represented Davie as young professionals and excited that many students are interested in attending ILC.”
HOSA members also worked tirelessly to make sure everything went according to plan in their respective competitive events.
“Many of our members, this was their first Leadership Conference, so hopefully all my students learned what is great about the conference and how they can get more involved,” Sparks says. “I’d love to have students continue to pursue their areas of interest and start preparing early for their competitive event as well as be more involved in the community service activities.”
