GARDEN CITY – Garden City Public Schools director of nursing Michelle Shull has been nominated for the 2021-2022 national LifeChanger of the Year award.
Sponsored by the National Life Group Foundation, LifeChanger of the Year recognizes and rewards the very best K-12 educators and school district employees across the United States who are making a difference in the lives of students by exemplifying excellence, positive influence and leadership.
Shull was nominated by her colleague, Glenda LaBarbera.
“LifeChanger – Michelle Shull. It sounds most appropriate,” said LaBarbera. “She makes a difference every day. We are blessed to have her lead our nursing department.”
Shull oversees the health services of her district, serving approximately 7,300 students and 1,271 staff spread across 21 buildings. It’s also a diverse community, with over 30 languages among staff and students. Shull’s job is challenging in a normal school year, and COVID hit, she and her staff went into overdrive.
Shull wrote new protocols and procedures for COVID cases, procured grants for PPE, and reconstructed a room in each of the buildings to act as an isolation room. She meets with the local health department weekly and maintains district data regarding COVID.
She also collaborates with the community, including the Kansas Dept. of Health and Environment (KDHE), St. Catherine’s Hospital, Finney County Health Dept. (FCHD), Kansas State Dept. of Education (KSDE), Shriners, and other grant affiliates.
This past school year, the nursing department collaborated with these agencies and provided COVID vaccine clinics for staff and students, as well as a flu shot clinic for the community.
Shull handles any emergency or concern that comes her way with a calm and caring attitude. She does this while planning the next First Aid and AED training, offering a staff nutrition education event, or administering Hepatitis B vaccines.
Over 1,000 students had medical alerts throughout the last school year, and another 1,000 staff were seen for medical reasons.
About LifeChanger of the Year
Each school year, LifeChanger of the Year receives hundreds of nominations from all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Eighteen individual LifeChanger of the Year awards will be given during the 2021-2022 school year.
The awards include:
- (1) Grand Prize Winner – will receive $10,000 to be shared with their school/district.
- (4) Grand Prize Finalists – will receive $5,000 to be shared with their school/district.
- (10) LifeChanger Award Winners – will receive $3,000 to be shared with their school/district.
- (1) Spirit Award Winner – This award is given to the nominee whose community demonstrates the most support for their nomination. The winner will receive $5,000 to be shared with their school/district.
- (1) Capstone Award Winner – This award is given to a nominee retiring at the end of the 2020-21 school year. The winner will receive $3,000 to be shared with their school or district.
- (1) Spotlight Award Winner – This award is given to a nominee in a specific discipline each year. For 2021-22, the Spotlight Award will be given to a school nurse. The winner will receive $5,000 to be shared with their school or district.