Seven Mercer Island High School students earned awards in the virtual Washington HOSA State Leadership Conference. HOSA is a career and technical student organization for students planning to pursue health professions.

Annika Bhananker took first place in the Cultural Diversities & Disparities in Healthcare category.

Sophia Rosales placed third in Medical Assisting.

Elsa Lanctot took third in Physical Therapy.

Ava Schwartz placed fifth in Human Growth & Development.

Divya Krisnaswamy took sixth in Cultural Diversities & Disparities in Healthcare.

Isabel Leal placed eighth in Sports Medicine.

Emily Patacsil took ninth in Physical Therapy.

The competition involved a 100-question 90-minute test covering topics on health promotion and cultural competency in healthcare. The event required participants to be proficient in statistics and information on diversity and health outcomes in the U.S., as well as cultural health practices and histories within specific minority communities.

Students finishing in the top three in their category qualify for the international leadership conference to be held virtually in June.