Curriculum & Instruction

School Nurse Certification
Concentration

School nursing presents
an exciting opportunity
for registered nurses to practice
in an interesting, dynamic specialty.

School nurses utilize professional skills
to promote health, prevent disease,
and solve the health problems
of the young people of our nation.

School Nurse Role

Certification

Health is improved by bringing student health records into compliance with current laws, through education to maintain optimum health and function through life, through education about the current risks to our population such as sexually transmitted disease and teen parenting, and through education to avoid the misuse of drugs.

The school nurse ...

• responds first to illness and injury in the schools, and brings a wealth of knowledge, skill, and judgment to emerging situations.

• helps school personnel identify and treat students who are having difficulty learning, and counsels with students and their parents, physicians, and other school personnel.

• contributes to Child Study Team staffings, and helps determine and supervise medically-related recommendations.

Certification of school nurses began in 1976 at the request of the Illinois Association of School Nurses. Currently, more than 90% of the full-time school nurses in the State hold the School Service Personnel Certificate Type 73 with school nurse endorsement.

National-Louis University's program is approved by the Illinois State Board of Education to prepare registered nurses for the School Service Personnel Certificate Type 73 with school nurse endorsement.

If a student is a registered nurse, NLU can help create a program that meets the professional goal of a Type 73 certificate, whether or not the Bachelor's degree has been completed.

Certification and Degree Requirements

The School Nurse Certification Program leads to a Type 73 Certificate with School Nurse Endorsement. Students may also choose from among three degree options.

School Nurse Type 73
Certification Requirements

Graduate Degree
Requirements

As of July 1, 2004, the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) will move to a standards-based method of evaluating competency in School Nursing.

• A Bachelor's Degree

  
  

• An Illinois license as a Registered Professional Nurse.

  
  

• Coursework
  Although there will no longer be a specified number of semester or quarter hours, the following courses will be required to meet the outcomes addressed in the State's standards.

  • Public Health Nursing / Community Health Nursing (see CIN 508)

  • Human Growth & Development (see EPS 500) — and/or Child Health Nursing

  • Educational Psychology (Theories of Teaching & Learning — see EPS 510)

  • The Exceptional Child (see SPE 500)

  • Social Sciences (Sociology or Psychology or Cultural Anthropology)

  • Mental Health / Psychiatric Nursing

• Graduate Coursework

  • CIN 508 Community Health: Nursing Practice, Theory & Contemporary Problems (3sh)

  • CIN 560 Issues in School Nursing (2sh)

  • CIN 590 School Nurse Internship (4sh)
    This ten week internship is supervised by a certified, experienced nurse.

In addition to obtaining the Type 73 Certificate with School Nurse endorsement, school nurses may apply their graduate certification coursework to complete either a Masters Degree in Education (M.Ed.) or, for those who already hold a Masters, a Certificate of Advanced Study (CAS). Please see the Curriculum & Instruction homepage for a description of these options and their corresponding requirements.

The M.Ed. requirements (34 sh) for the School Nurse Concentration include:

• CIN 508, CIN 560, and CIN 590, as described under the School Nurse Certification Graduate Coursework (in the column to the left). (9sh)

  
  

• Electives (11sh)
  These may include courses required for the Type 73 certificate, if completed at the graduate level, and other electives approved by the academic advisor.
  Note: EPS 500, EPS 510, and SPE 500 meet the requirements for certification coursework and may be applied as electives in the degree option.
  Other recommended electives include the following:

•  

  • Nutrition

  • School Administration

  • Curricula Design

  • Communicative Skills

  • Guidance and Counseling

  • Diversified Occupations

  • Social Case Work

  • Health Education

  • Health Careers

  • Mental Health

  • Child or Adolescent Psychology

  
  

• Program Core Courses (14 sh)
  

  • CIC 503 Curriculum Design and Evaluation (3sh)

  • CIC 504 Instructional Decision Making (3sh)

  • CIC 592 Seminar: Educational Inquiries (3sh)

  • EPS 541 Cognition and Instruction (2sh)

  • ESR 505 Educational Inquiry and Assessment (3sh)

Getting Started

Schedule

Students must apply to the School Nurse Coordinator for the School Nurse Internship at least one quarter before the internship begins.

Those wishing to complete the required program core courses of the M.Ed. and C.A.S. may do so within the following delivery options:

The individual course option is designed for students who desire the flexibility of attending classes on a variety of evenings and/or at a variety of locations. Course availability is highlighted each quarter in The National College of Education Quarterly.

The mini-cluster option is for students who wish to attend class on the same evening throughout the academic year, with the same group of students, and at the same designated location. These students benefit from a fixed tuition rate, which is designated at the time of registration.

Information about projected cluster groups throughout the Chicagoland area may be obtained from the Enrollment Office (800-443-5522 x2743/x3371/x4430).

For more information
about the School Nurse Concentration
program, courses, and/or schedule,
contact Linda Gibbons, School Nurse Coordinator
800-443-5522 ext 5373 or Linda.Gibbons@nl.edu