At a time when the need for compassionate, highly skilled healthcare professionals continues to rise, TriStar Northcrest of Springfield, TN is helping grow the next generation right here at home. Through a long-standing partnership with area schools—including White House High School’s HOSA program—the hospital is giving students meaningful, hands-on experiences that bring their classroom learning to life.

For WHHS Health Science teacher and HOSA advisor Dani Villafana, MS, ATC/LAT, the collaboration is nothing short of transformative.

“Partnering with TriStar hospitals has been a great opportunity for our program and our students,” she shared. “It’s enriched our curriculum by allowing students to experience real-world skills, converse with professionals in their chosen field, and truly see what their future may look like.”

Students participate in shadowing opportunities, observe healthcare teams in action, and take part in interactive events such as the annual Healthcare Symposium hosted by TriStar Northcrest. For seniors completing Capstone Clinical Internships, the experience goes even deeper as they prepare for the National Healthcare Association’s Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA) exam.

Villafana sees the impact every year. Students return from onsite experiences energized, inspired, and often more confident in their career direction. “It’s exciting to watch them make connections between what they’ve learned in class and what they see in real life,” she said. “We’ve even had students change their career paths after seeing something new at the symposium. I love to see their excitement about their future.”

For many students, those hands-on moments are life changing.

WHHS sophomore Iris Urfer joined HOSA after discovering a love for health science—and drawing inspiration from family members who work as nurses. “The thing that surprised me most was how many different hands-on activities they had,” she said. “It was all very fun and interactive.” Iris shared that her own desire to become a nurse deepened after her grandmother’s battle with sinus cancer. “I want to be that kind person for someone else during a difficult time.”

Sophomore Valeria Garcia echoed that excitement, enthusiastically describing activities like inserting an IV catheter, practicing laparoscopic skills on a pumpkin, and safely using an oscillating bone saw. “I absolutely loved being able to partake in the activities they had for us,” she said. Inspired as a child by Doc McStuffins, Valeria now sees healthcare as a calling. “Advocating for others and seeking the best possible outcome for them is a true blessing.”

According to Holli Moore, BSN, RN, Facility Clinical Professional Development Coordinator at TriStar Northcrest, that kind of spark is exactly why the hospital invests in local students. “Our goal is to inspire these students and open their eyes to all the opportunities in healthcare,” she said. “We want them to see the passion behind what our professionals do every day.”

For the hospital, the partnership brings invaluable connection and collaboration with educators who are shaping the future workforce. And for students, it offers the kind of real-world exposure that helps them imagine themselves in meaningful, community-centered careers.

There’s something especially powerful, Moore added, about seeing local students grow up, return from college, and begin serving the very community that raised them. “The passion the students have is contagious,” she said. “It reignites our own.”

Through this ongoing collaboration, TriStar Northcrest and White House High School are doing more than teaching skills—they’re building confidence, opening doors, and inspiring the next generation of caregivers right here in Robertson County.

To learn more about HOSA, visit here. For information about TriStar Northcrest, check out their website.