Title
Recognizing and honoring Eileen Duffey-Bernt as the 2021 Pennsylvania School Nurse of the Year by the National Association of School Nurses and for a quarter century of serving and relentlessly advocating on behalf of student health and education justice for Philadelphia children.
Body
WHEREAS, Eileen Duffey-Bernt began her career as a school nurse in 1995, after stints as a pediatric nurse at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and as a sixth grade teacher. She credits her entry into the field to the encouragement of Eileen DiFranco, a school nurse and member of Ms. Duffey-Bernt's church. Duffey-Bernt has been a steadfast anchor of care for her students ever since; and
WHEREAS, Duffey-Bernt has served at a number of District schools and is currently a school nurse at the Academy at Palumbo. With high school students learning virtually this year due to the pandemic, Duffey-Bernt has embraced the changing nature of her role, regularly calling students to check up on their medical conditions and supporting students who are struggling with mental health issues exacerbated by the pandemic; and
WHEREAS, Beyond her direct service work with students in Philadelphia public schools, Duffey-Bernt's tremendous commitment to the health of young people has fueled her advocacy for transformational change in the educational space and broader world; and
WHEREAS, In the wake of a draconian education budget by then-Governor Tom Corbett and the mass layoffs of 47 District school nurses in 2011, Duffey-Bernt organized a 26-week protest at the steps of the School District of Philadelphia's headquarters and decried the endangerment of the health and safety of children in schools without school nurses. This became a multi-year advocacy campaign that resulted in restoration of full-time certified nurses in every District school in September 2016; and
WHEREAS, The District's guarantee of a full-time nurse at every District school made it one of the few large school distr...
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