March’s spotlight of the month for LeCroy Career Technology Center is Debra Sosa.

Sosa has worked in Chilton County for 33 years. She holds an associate and bachelor of science degree in nursing from the Ida V. Moffett School of Nursing, Samford University.

She began working at the local hospital as soon as she had completed her BS degree in nursing as night supervisor.

This is her 30th year as the health science instructor at LCTC.

Over the past 30 years, she has taught 11th and 12th grade students from all six county schools who wish to pursue careers in the health care industry. Many of her former students have gone on to become nurses, pharmacists, physical therapists, respiratory therapists, hospital administrators, and a few doctors.

Sosa has also served as the advisor to the career technical student organization HOSA. HOSA allows students to show off their skills through competitive events and their leadership ability by being officers.

She has had several students that have served as officers at the state level. Students from Sosa’s class have placed at state competitions and advanced on to national competitions.

Through this experience, she had the opportunity to travel with students to the HOSA National Leadership Conferences in Anaheim, Calif.; Dallas, Texas; Louisville, Ky.; Orlando, Fla.; Atlanta, Ga.; and Nashville, Tenn.

At the national level, Sosa had one student to finish in first place in Medical Assisting Skills, a team to finish in seventh place in the health education event, a student to finish in the top 20 in nursing assistant and many others who represented Alabama to the best of their ability.

Sosa is a firm believer in career technical education. She believes career technical education prepares students to make realistic career choices. It prepares students for entry-level job opportunities in a chosen career and/or post-secondary education in the chosen career.

“Over the years, I can point out many situations in which students who chose not to take health science and enter nursing programs only to drop out due to failing grades their first term and students who came through the health science program have made comments on just how much health science helped them make it,” Sosa said.

Sosa is a valuable asset to the LCTC family, officials said. She provides her students with the skills needed to successfully pursue a degree and a career in in the Healthcare Industry. She genuinely cares about her students and wants to help them achieve the goals, they said.