The Nurse's Office

Your Building Nurse

Jenny Torres

Shepard Middle School Nurse

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If your child will not be in school

If your child will not be in school, please report the absence to the health office by phone or email before 8:00 am. If you do not contact our school nurse by this time, she will contact you at home or at work to ascertain your child’s whereabouts. Children must be diarrhea-, fever-, and vomit-free for 24 hours before returning to school.

Students will only be dismissed to a parent or legal guardian, or to emergency contacts designated in Family Access.

Family vacations during school days are discouraged; however, if your child must miss school due to a vacation, parents/guardians are asked to contact the Shepard health office a few days in advance. Please know that teachers may not always be able to create individual lessons or homework before pre-arranged absences.

Medication in School

In order for the school nurse to administer any medication to a student, prescription or nonprescription, during the school day, a Permission to Administer Medication form must be completed by the student's physician and on record with the student's school.

Permission to Administer Medication (Prescription or Nonprescription) Form Here

School is Better When Your Child is Here

Every school day matters, and absences can add up more quickly than you might think.

A student is considered chronically absent when they miss 10% or more of the school year. In a typical school year, that means 17 or more days, or about two days each month. This includes both excused and unexcused absences.

We know there are times when students need to miss school. Illness, religious observances and family emergencies are just a few examples of reasons an absence may be excused. Even when an absence is excused, it still counts toward a student’s total number of days absent when determining chronic absenteeism.

More information about excused absences and D109 attendance expectations can be found in Board Policy 7:70 and the D109 Student Handbook.

Entering 6th Grade?

According to The School Code of Illinois, physical examinations are required of all students prior to initial entry into school and upon entrance into sixth grade. Students entering 6th grade are required to have the physical examination form and the dental examination form completed and on file with the school health office.

Returning to School After Illness

When to Send Your Child Back to School

As if it weren’t difficult enough to figure out when to keep a child home from school, parents often find it equally hard to tell when it’s time to send their child back to school. Here are a few basic guidelines:

Your child no longer exhibits signs of pain or illness.
Your child is vomit-, diarrhea- and fever-free for at least 24 hours. (100 F)
Your child is sleeping well and appears energetic.
If antibiotics have been prescribed, your child needs to be on the medication for at least 24 hours or longer before returning to school. Be sure to follow the doctors’ recommendations for school participation and turn in notes if there are any restrictions on activity.
The “runny nose” has diminished to the sniffles, easily controlled with wiping and the mucus is clear.
Your child’s cough is infrequent and non-productive.
Your child is eating, playing and pretty much back to normal.

Health Exam and Immunization Records

This form is required for all students who are new to District 109. Any child who has not returned the required documentation of a health examination will be excluded from school on October 15th. According to The School Code of Illinois, physical examinations are required of all students prior to initial entry into school. Parent signature is required.

In Illinois, children enrolled in any grade need proof of up-to-date immunizations. Here are some specific requirements for 6th grade entry:

Students entering sixth grade must show proof of recent meningococcal conjugate vaccination (MCV).
Hepatitis B vaccination series is required for students entering sixth grade.
The State of Illinois requires that all students entering grade 6 provide proof of the Tdap immunization to protect against whooping cough. This immunization has been recommended for children 10 years and older for several years, and most local physicians have been including this as part of the immunization routine.

Dental Exam

Eye Exam

Athletic Physical Guidelines

If your child is planning on trying out for athletics, below are the physical guidelines

As a reminder, your certificate of child health examination and/or your pre-participation examination form expires one year after the initial exam. If your child wants to participate in a sport (including tryouts) one year after their most recent exam, they must obtain an updated certificate of child health examination and/or your pre-participation examination form before participating. For example, if your child receives a certificate of child health examination and/or your pre-participation examination form in February 2025 and plans on participating in track in the spring of 2026, they would be required to obtain an updated certificate of child health examination and/or your pre-participation examination form before they can try out or participate.

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