Leading from the Clinic: Why Our Stories are Reaching the National Stage

Karlee Dana, MSN, RN & Jacqui Falco, MSN, RN, NCSN

When we first launched School Nurse Compass, we did it out of a deep sense of necessity. We looked around and realized that while acute care nurses have massive support systems when they onboard, school nurses are too often dropped onto a "clinical island." We wanted to build a compass to help you navigate that isolation, find your footing, and realize the immense value of your clinical judgment.

We never expected that the quiet conversations we’ve been having here would catch the attention of national leaders.

Recently, we were interviewed for an upcoming breakout session- Igniting Leadership: Turning Passion into Purpose- at the National Association of School Nurses (NASN) annual conference. The session centers on a truth we hold dear: “Leadership is not defined by a title, but by the courage to inspire change, champion equity, and transform passion into purposeful action.”

They reached out to us because of the work we are all doing in our clinics and together here at SNC, proving that you don’t need an administrative title to be a leader in school health.

The Everyday Leader

When you are wading through a stack of immunization non-compliance forms or trying to explain a complex medical plan to a distracted principal, "leadership" is probably the last word on your mind.

But leadership in our world doesn't look like corporate boardrooms. It looks like the real-life stories being highlighted in this NASN breakout session—stories of everyday school nurses across the country who looked at systemic gaps in their communities and decided to step into the gap.

• It’s the nurse who looks at rising student anxiety and spearheads a peer mental health initiative.

• It’s the nurse who tracks chronic absenteeism, connects it to food insecurity, and coordinates a weekend backpack food program.

• It’s you, every single day, aligning your clinical passion with your school’s priorities to keep kids safe, healthy, and ready to learn.

Amplifying Your Voice

Being interviewed for this session was an incredibly humbling experience, but it also felt like a massive win for every nurse who reads this blog. It means the wider nursing community is recognizing that the challenges you face at your desk every day are worthy of national attention.

Want to share more about your experiences? Click here to take our survey on building stronger school nurse leadership. 

Our stories matter. Your advocacy matters.

Karlee Dana, MSN, RN, and Jacqui Falco, MSN, RN, NCSN are experienced school nurses and co-founders of School Nurse Compass, a platform designed to support school nurses, nurse leaders, and staffing agencies in building confident, school-ready clinicians.