Moms! Save school nurses

Girls, grab a cup of coffee, sit down and let’s talk. Our governor has just ticked off the wrong group of moms. Sonny “I don’t care about my legacy” Perdue has cut state funding for school nurses. No money means no nurses in our schools. He also tried to sneak it by with no one noticing.

Well, I’ll tell you who will notice. All the mothers of children with special needs or any health issues whatsoever. Maybe U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss can teach the governor a thing or two about the voting power of women. It’s no accident that Chambliss went from a run-off to a substantial win once the “Sarah Palin factor” came to town. The senator publicly acknowledged that he couldn’t have done it without “Sarah’s women.” They vote, and they’re easily mobilized.

Even women who are not fans of Gov. Palin still love their school nurses. They keep us at work; they keep our kids in school; they’re responsible for improved student achievement and they pay for themselves.

Eighty-five percent of students who see a school nurse return to class. One Georgia nurse I know was the first ever in her district. When she visited one school, the secretary pulled open her desk drawer and said, “Here is our medical cabinet.” My friend left with a two-quart pitcher full of medication, much of which was expired and the rest mismatched pills in the wrong bottles. School nurses around the state can share similar stories.

Asthma, juvenile diabetes, food allergies, seizure disorder and a host of other illnesses were virtually unheard of in children when Perdue was a child, but now affect a large percentage of children. The reasons are complex. These students need regular monitoring and, oftentimes, medical intervention to stay in the classroom. Our state test scores are already disgraceful. They will only be worse with tons of kids being sent home from school midday.

Are you mad enough now? Good. E-mail and call your state representative and senator. You can learn more about this issue from the Georgia Association of School Nurses at www.gasn.org.

Many support and grassroots organizations are rallying to this cause. I’ve been receiving multiple Georgia PTA e-mails. They’re organizing a “popsicle drive” by asking all school clinics to collect one popsicle stick for every sick-child visit, bundle them and send them to their state legislators. The Down Syndrome Association of Atlanta has organized a letter-writing push. I hope these organizations create lists of nurse friendly and unfriendly legislators for the rest of us to browse.

OK, girlfriends, put down your coffee and pick up your phones. Let your precious children see what you’re doing on their behalf. You can make a difference. Let the Capitol know that times are changing. In the new Georgia, women’s voices are powerful. We put our children first. And we vote. Now, let’s rock.

> JoEllen Smith is an education activist based in East Cobb.