A chapter of Healthcare Occupations Students of America (HOSA) was started at River Falls High School in November 2023. "The mission of HOSA is to empower HOSA-Future Health Professionals to become leaders in the global community through education, collaboration, and experience." The group is rapidly growing with 55 current members, 35 of whom are competing in January's Regional Leadership Conference. The chapter allows students to explore their interests in healthcare through labs, guest speakers, shadowing experiences, field trips, and competitions. The chapter also supports our local community. For example, the group purchased Christmas gifts and collected dental supplies to donate. 

The Guatemala Literacy Project (GLP) has been called “the gold standard of Rotary international projects”.  It is a long-operating, multi-district, multi-club project involving over 800 clubs, 90 Rotary districts, and more than 10 countries.  The project has four components:  reading, textbooks, computers, and scholarships.  It has served more than 278,000 students over 25 years.

 

Guatemala is the most populous Central American country.  The mountainous terrain means that many isolated rural areas exist with high poverty rates and limited economic and educational opportunities.  About 50% of the population works in small farming with most or all work done by hand.  Spanish is the official language, but over 20 indigenous Mayan communities have their own distinct languages.  The government pays for schooling through grade 6, after which families have to pay for schooling.  Boys generally get first preference for schooling after 6^th grade.  Click READ MORE to read more about GLP and our speaker.