For the past three years, senior Sai Oicata was one of the students getting tested for diabetes at her school's annual check-up. This year, she was in charge of the student-run screening at Miami Lakes Educational Center.

``Before, I would get excited because I was getting something for free that could've cost me around $50,'' said Sai, 17, whose family only recently got health insurance. ``Now, it's a big accomplishment to run something so large that benefits a lot of people.''

Sai, who is part of the Health Science Academy at Miami Lakes Educational Center, was the head student volunteer for the Annual Student Wellness/Obesity/Diabetes Screening, a partnership between the school and Nova Southeastern University. About 20 students from the high school and 150 faculty members and students from the Davie university's College of Allied Health and Nursing run the screening.

Five years ago, Neil Eichelbaum, a social studies teacher at the high school, was listening to former U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher, talk on television about the severity of diabetes in the country.

``Dr. Satcher was talking about how much of an epidemic diabetes was, and I was later in class with my kids and realized they were part of this epidemic,'' Eichelbaum said.

According to the American Diabetes Association, 23.6 million people in the U.S have diabetes. The U.S. Surgeon General's office says that 12.5 million children 2 to 19 are overweight in this country -- putting them at risk for high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and Type II diabetes, which is caused when the body doesn't produce or properly use insulin.

Eichelbaum then decided to partner with a friend, Dr. Debra Stern, an associate professor at Nova's physical therapy program.

``We were able to provide what they needed,'' said Dr. Stern, who coordinates the volunteers from the university. ``They knew there was a problem, we just helped them out.''

Eichelbaum and Stern then started the annual screenings at the school, which were fully funded by the two friends during the first two years, according to Eichelbaum. Since 2007, the Health Foundation of South Florida has paid for the equipment and materials necessary for the check-ups.

``Nova is community-service oriented. It's part of our mission,'' Stern said.

This year's screening took place Oct. 16 at the high school.

About 700 students from ninth to 12th grade had their body mass index calculated and their blood pressure and glucose levels screened by Nova students.

Sai coordinated the students' check-ups.

Students also completed a survey about their lifestyle, and student nurses gave them a recommendation on whether they needed to see a doctor, based on the combined results of the check-up.

``This is a wonderful program,'' said James V. Parker, principal of the school. ``Children might have a lot of preexisting conditions, and a lot of kids can't afford health care.''

According to the U.S Census Bureau, 7.3 million children under 18 didn't have health insurance in 2008.

``We're finding kids that are sick and don't know it,'' Eichelbaum said.

Four years ago, a student at the school had her blood pressure tested at the screening, and it was abnormally high, Eichelbaum said. She then went to her doctor after a nurse recommended she did, and they found she had a tumor.

``The screening saved her life,'' Eichelbaum said.

Sai was one of the last students to get tested. She was told that she was tall for her age at almost 5 feet 7 inches -- and that her blood pressure was slightly high, most likely from running around planning the event.

Sai said the experience offered more than just a checkup.

``I got leadership and hands-on experience,'' said Sai, who wants to be a neurosurgeon. ``And that's definitely a big thing for me.''

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