SCHOOL NURSE ORGANIZATION OF MINNESOTA:

An Inventory of Its Records at the Minnesota Historical Society

Manuscripts Collection

Expand/CollapseOVERVIEW

Creator: School Nurse Organization of Minnesota, creator.
Title:SNOM records.
Dates:1961-2007.
Abstract:Administrative records and historical materials documenting a statewide professional association for K-12 school nurses. The organization was formed in 1968 as a subgroup within the Minnesota Education Association.
Quantity:2.75 cubic feet (3 boxes).
Location:See Detailed Description for shelf locations.

Expand/CollapseHISTORICAL NOTE

The School Nurses Organization of Minnesota (SNOM) was formed in 1968 at the Minnesota Education Association (MEA) annual convention. Previous to that, K-12 school nurses in Minnesota had been members of the Student Personnel Section of MEA. The change gave the nurses some increase in status as a section subgroup; in 1972 their status was increased further when they became a separate affiliated section. The revised charter afforded greater autonomy and visibility for the school nurses, who had difficulty negotiating on a parity with classroom teachers up until that time. It also allowed the association to become a state affiliate of the NEA Department of School Nurses. The stated goals of the association were to improve the delivery of health care and health education to K-12 students in Minnesota, to promote the educational and professional advancement of school nurses, to give school nursing a more effective voice within MEA and NEA, to give school nurses a more unified and effective voice for statewide and local political lobbying, and to support research on student health issues.

SNOM efforts throughout its first decade centered around developing and securing acceptance for its certification proposal, which would require every school nurse to be a licensed RN with additional coursework in public health. The licensure proposal was finally accepted in by the Minnesota Department of Education 1979. Other efforts included lobbying for the nascent association in state government and school districts, and within the MEA, and the development of informational and curriculum materials, such as the Goals of School Nursing monograph. The name of the organization was changed to School Nurse Organization of Minnesota around 1979.


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Expand/CollapseSCOPE AND CONTENTS

The collection, compiled largely by the association historian, provides an overview of its history, mostly through assembled documents; its professional development, lobbying, and publicity efforts; its relations with the MEA and NEA parent bodies; and its general administration. Collection materials include board and membership minutes, newsletters and other print issuances, annual reports of officers and committee chairs, photographs and slides, clippings, publicity and lobbying files, awards, and mission and planning materials.


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Expand/CollapseARRANGEMENT

These documents are organized into the following sections:

Board Files
Committee Files
Public Relations Files
Historian's Files
Related Organizations


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Expand/CollapseADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Availability:

The collection is open for research use.

Preferred Citation:

[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. School Nurse Organization of Minnesota Records. Minnesota Historical Society.

See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples

Accession Information:

Accession number: 15,777; 16,083; 16,268

Processing Information:

NHPRC logo

Processing and cataloging of this collection was supported with a Basic Project grant awarded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC).

Processed by: Dennis Meissner, September 2004 and Jennifer Huebscher, April 2011.

Catalog ID number: 990029441080104294


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DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Expand/CollapseBOARD FILES

Location
147.E.3.1BLists of board members, 1968-2004.
Constitution and bylaws, 1968-1999.
Minutes, 1966, 1968-2000, 2006. 9 folders.
The minutes are fairly substantive, but do not contain copies of reports or other informational materials distributed to the board members.
Executive Committee minutes, 1977-1996.
Annual Meeting minutes, 1968-2001.
President's annual reports, 1972-1999.
Many are missing. There are reports for the years 1972, 1973, 1976, 1980, 1983, 1995-1997, 1999.
Treasurer's annual reports and related materials, 1971-2002.
Reports are missing for the 1968-69 and 1993-94 budget cycles. There are a number of specific financial reports in addition to the more general annual reports.
Board resolutions, 1976-1995.
Position papers and statements, 1969-1983.
Mission, goals, and strategic plans, 1986-2003.
Contracts, 1973-1999.
These are largely SNOM's contracts with the MEA and with the Minnesota Nurses Association.

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Expand/CollapseCOMMITTEE FILES

Location
147.E.3.1BAwards Committee:
Reports and related materials, 1972, 1988-2001.
Includes the documentation packets compiled for Fellow nominees.
Care Committee materials, 1982-1986.
Education Committee materials, 1996-2003.
Information Technology Committee materials, 1995-2002.
Legislative Committee:
Reports to the SNOM board, 1987-2002.
Newsletters, 1973-1999.
The newsletters and legislative alerts summarize current issues and SNOM initiatives in the Minnesota Legislature.
Issues:
Certification and licensure, 1969-2000. 2 folders.
Special education and students at risk, 1987-1991.
Early childhood screening, 1977-1998.
Immunization, 1980-2000.
Lobbying, 1986-1987.
Medication, 1988, 2000.
Health care paraprofessionals, 1995.
Miscellaneous materials: 1984-2004.
Location
147.E.2.7BSNOM legislation and committee reports, 1969-2002.
Location
147.E.3.1BMembership Committee:
Reports to SNOM board and related materials, 1970, 2000-2002.
Membership representatives and area representatives, 1970-2002.
Includes a few reports of the committee chair to the SNOM board.
Membership lists, 1968-2003. 3 folders.
Miscellaneous membership materials, 1969-1972.
Location
147.E.3.2FProgram Committee:
Annual conference program planning materials, 2002.
SNOM conference programs and publicity materials, 1970-2004.
Public Relations Committee materials, 1993-2002.
Research Committee materials, 1972, 1986-1988, 2002-2004.
Special Education Committee materials, 1983-2006.
Task force (various) materials, 1984-2002.
Location
147.E.2.7.BTask force for data computer technology, 1996-2002.

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Expand/CollapsePUBLIC RELATIONS FILES

Location
147.E.3.2FSNOMemo, 1969-2007. 26 folders.
This newsletter is the official house organ of the association.
Brochures and pamphlets, 1968-2003.
The School Nurse: Qualified to Care, 1978. 76 35mm color slides, 2 audio cassettes, narrator's script.
Presenting SNOM's Vision, 1996. 1 audiocassette.
Joint Publications:
Goals of School Nursing: An Interpretive Tool, 1974, 1983.
First and revised editions of a work co-published with the Minnesota Nurses Association.
Managing the Student with a Chronic Health Condition: A Practical Guide for School Personnel, 1986. 1 volume.
Co-published with PATHFINDER, a community network project for children with chronic health conditions funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Bloodborn Pathogen Question & Answer Guide for School Districts, 1995.
Jointly published with several other Minnesota health organizations. An incomplete copy, missing several pages.
Newspaper clippings, 1967-2003.
Articles about SNOM from a variety of Minnesota newspapers.
Miscellaneous articles about school nursing, 1978-2002.
The articles come from journals and from newspapers.
Miscellaneous Files:
Special projects, 1973-2000.
Proclamations and publicity releases for Minnesota School Nurse Day and SHAPE Week, 1972-1986, 2002.
SHAPE, an acronym for "School Health: A Positive Environment," was intended to call statewide attention to the importance of children's health to a favorable learning environment.
Health Jeopardy Game, 1998.
Overview, questions, answers, and points for a health information survey game staged by SNOM at the Minnesota State Fair.
Photographs, 1972-2003.
Photographs of SNOM delegates at NEA convention, 1968. 4 b/w photoprints.
Personal stories and recollections of SNOM members, 1979-1999.
A few very brief personal recollections, largely testimonials to the value of SNOM as an organization for school nurses.
Merger of Minnesota Education Association and Minnesota Federation of Teachers, 1989-1996.
Location
147.E.2.7BMentorship program.
Presentation on the role of school nursing in a reformed healthcare system.
Role development and values clarification strategies, 1983.

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Expand/CollapseHISTORIAN'S FILES

Location
147.E.3.2FSNOM administrative correspondence, 1965-2000.
A sampling of SNOM leaders' correspondence compiled by the SNOM historian, presumably as historical documentation.
Location
147.E.2.7BMiscellaneous correspondence:
1969-1994.
1976-1991.
1978-2002.
Also includes some minutes and reports.
Location
147.E.3.2FHistorian's reports and expense statements, 1972-2006. 2 folders.
Very incomplete set of reports.
"The Beginnings of the Organization," 1961-1999. 3 folders.
A compilation of reports, letters, recollections, printed matter, and conference programs providing historical documentation on the first thirty years of the organization. The file was apparently intended as a reference file to support the writing of a historical booklet. The third folder documents the national organization's history.
Location
147.E.2.7BSchool nurse history.
SNOM logo, 2006.
Miscellaneous certificates, brochures, handouts, and correspondence.

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Expand/CollapseRELATED ORGANIZATIONS

Location
147.E.2.7BNational Association of School Nurses:
General file, 1968-2004.
Newsletters, 1968-1977.
Brochures, 1968-1999.
School nurse specialist packet, 1972.
School Nurse of the Year Award, 1995-2005. 2 folders.
Alliance of Minnesota Nursing Organizations, 1973-1984.
Minnesota Nurses Association joint projects, 1972-1976.
Minnesota Organization on Adolescent Pregnancy, Prevention and Parenting, 1992-2001.
Student Services Coalition for Effective Education, 1985-2002.
Joint task forces (various), 2000-2002.

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Expand/CollapseCATALOG HEADINGS

This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the Minnesota Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.

Topics:
School health services -- Minnesota.
School nursing -- Minnesota -- Societies, etc.
School nursing -- Standards -- Minnesota.
School nursing -- Minnesota -- Political activity.
Organizations:
Minnesota Education Association.
Minnesota Nurses Association.
National Association of School Nurses (U.S.).
Document Types:
Photographs.
Color slides.
Occupations:
Nurses.

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