For Katie Engelhardt, kindness is key and she always wants to make a difference for every single person whom she meets every single day. This week’s Unsung Hero is one of the certified school nurses and a member of the Bucks County Technical School Education Association partially responsible for the school health care needs of 1,500 students. She believes that academics come first and that physical and mental health conditions can prevent students from meeting their goals.
The students recognize her importance in their lives and the ones who know her best say she is “like a second Mom.” Her nominator noted, “Katie has totally transformed our nursing suite into a nurturing place where students feel very comfortable and supported.” In recognition of the importance of personal hygiene, she also “started a Comfort Closet to assist our students with personal care items, clothes, book bags, and more.” Katie says that so many of the visits to the suite are for issues related to mental health and her students say that she really knows how to make them feel better.
With the $1,000 grant, this Unsung Hero will be able to accomplish two important things. She’ll improve school safety by replacing an older model automated external defibrillator (AED) with a new model geared specifically for use by nonmedical personnel. She will also be able to enhance the offerings of the Comfort Closet to include female and male-specific hygiene and laundry products to increase the health, wellness, and self-esteem of the students. Earning the second $1,000 grant would help to defray the $3,000 to $4,000 cost of expanding the Student Assistance Program of support and preventive services available for at-risk students.
Check out Katie’s video, and the rest of the Unsung Hero videos, and don’t forget to vote! The contest will close at midnight DST on Sunday, May 5. The winner of our Unsung Heroes contest will be announced on Teacher Appreciation Day, Tuesday, May 7.
The link to vote is: https://bit.ly/2Id51E9