This is a special edition of “What Happened at School Today” from Brandy Bowlen.
Brandy Bowlen, BSN, RN is a school nurse from Texas who has an important message to share about the reality of school emergencies. There is a shocking difference between responding to emergencies at school versus emergencies in a hospital. When you ask a school nurse what their census is or what grades they cover, you may be missing the bigger picture of who we really care for on any given day.
Brandy Bowlen, BSN, RN
Bio: Brandy Bowlen, BSN, RN received her Associates Degree in Nursing from The Lonestar College System, and recently completed her Bachelor’s in Nursing at The University of Texas at Arlington, and is certified in Action Based Learning. She is currently working as a school nurse at Epps Island Elementary in Klein Independent School District. A strong advocate for student and staff wellness, she involves her students in kinesthetic learning and empowers the entire school community to get involved. Her professional interests focus on obesity prevention and cure, and community engagement. In addition, she serves as Communications Coordinator for the Texas School Nurse Organization and is a member of the National Association of School Nurses. She was recently honored with the Salute to Nurses Outstanding Nurse award for contributions to the field of nursing in Houston, Texas.
Published by Robin Cogan, MEd, RN, NCSN, FNASN, FAAN
Robin Cogan, MEd, RN, NCSN, FNASN, FAAN, is a Nationally Certified School Nurse (NCSN), currently in her 22nd year as a New Jersey school nurse in the Camden City School District. Robin is the Director for New Jersey to the National Association of School Nurses (NASN) Board. She is proud to be a Johnson & Johnson School Health Leadership Fellow and past Program Mentor. Robin is the honored recipient of multiple awards for her work in school nursing and population health. These awards include, 2019 and 2020 National Association of School Nurses President’s Award, 2018 NCSN School Nurse of the Year, 2017 Johnson & Johnson School Nurse of the Year, and the New Jersey Department of Health 2017 Population Health Hero Award. Robin serves as faculty in the School Nurse Certificate Program at Rutgers University-Camden School of Nursing, where she teaches the next generation of school nurses. She was presented the 2018 Rutgers University – Camden Chancellor’s Teaching Excellence Award for Part-time Faculty. Robin writes a weekly blog called The Relentless School Nurse. She also writes a monthly column in My American Nurse, the official journal of the American Nurses Association. Robin’s work is included as a case study in The Future of Nursing Report 2020-2030. You can follow Robin on Twitter at @RobinCogan.
View all posts by Robin Cogan, MEd, RN, NCSN, FNASN, FAAN
