These Lahainaluna High School HOSA students qualified to compete at the International Leadership Conference this summer in Dallas, Texas.

LAHAINA – Lahainaluna High School’s Career and Technical Education (CTE) program students performed very well at the recent Career and Technical Student Organizations (CTSO) Competition on Oahu.

CTE offers courses in arts and communication, business, health services, industrial and engineering technology, natural resources, and public and human services.

In DECA (Distributive Education Clubs of America) Business competitions, Kiana Bell and Ruby O’Donnell won the second place trophy in Sports & Entertainment Marketing, Hailey Bogar and Ryli Cherry earned fourth place medals in Travel & Tourism, and O’Donnell placed second in the written test.

FCCLA (Family, Career and Community Leaders of America) students Victoria Decoite-Wilsey, Noah Nakamura and Jordan Shibao won the bronze medal in the Culinary Arts competition.

SkillsUSA student Hannah Valencia came in second in Drafting, and Kalewa Kalanikau finished third in Carpentry.

SkillsUSA Automotive students are pictured with their teacher, Mark Palakiko.

And HOSA (Health Occupations Students of America) students also achieved many top finishes, including Nikki Zamani (Physical Therapy), first place; Kaitlin Hodgins (Sports Medicine), first place; Grace Takemoto (Prepared Speaking), first place; Shanel Mangaoang (Medical Reading), second place; Leah Werblun (Job Seeking Skills), second place; Alexis Matias, Anjanette Aveno and Eva Olson (Health Education), first place; Rowel Ansagay and Isabella Omura (Health Career Display), first place;

Sierra Carney (Behavioral Health), third place; Eloisa Tumpap (Transcultural Healthcare), second place; and

Caitlin Baclay (Human Growth and Development), second place.

Lahainaluna High School Career & Technical Education Coordinator Tracy Poouahi noted, “Thank you for your support of the CTE programs and for encouraging all of the students who participated. If you see any of these students in your classes, please help us congratulate them. FFA CTSO (Natural Resources) will be coming up in March.”

She also congratulated teachers/advisors Colin Delos Reyes, Jeremy Delos Reyes, T.C. Luckey, Mark Palakiko, Malia Shimomura, Erin Thomas, Craig Wise, Anne Cook and Marc Watasaki, and thanked Ivy Huerter for helping the group with arrangements.

In related news, the Maui Arts & Cultural Center is sponsoring the first-ever Poetry Slam at Lahainaluna High School on Friday, March 9, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Students spent a full week at the Spoken Word Poetry Workshop taught by Travis-T of Pacific Tongues in Oahu and Moira Pirsch of Youth Speaks in New York in the Lahainaluna High School Library.

This collaboration between Chadwick Pang of the MACC and Art Teacher Kristina Mekdeci of LHS was strongly supported by Lynn Kahoohalahala, the principal of Lahainaluna High School.