The complexity and demands of the school nurse role have changed greatly over time. Our aims included determining tasks and knowledge relevant to modern school nursing in the United States, identifying continuing education needs of school nurses, and describing anticipated changes to the professional role. A secondary analysis of a cross-sectional web-based survey of 750 school nurses was performed. The study team evaluated calculations of mean importance and frequency for school nursing task and knowledge statements. Conventional content analysis was used to analyze open-ended responses. School nurses rated most tasks and knowledge as relevant to practice, underscoring the great depth and breadth of education and training school nurses need to meet the demands of students today. The results of this secondary analysis may be leveraged to accurately describe the school nurse role, advocate for nursing services, and support school nurses as they strive to better the health of school communities.

Nurse residency programs for newly licensed RNs are a critical component in bridging the clinical practice gap between education and practice. In May 2013, the Institute of Pediatric Nursing invited leaders from pediatric nursing organizations and children's hospitals to attend a forum on nurse residency programs for pediatric nurses. This article presents a summary of the discussions that occurred during the forum and makes recommendations for addressing issues related to nurse residency programs.

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This article discusses the need for board leadership development of nurses. The authors provide an overview of the Sigma Theta Tau International Board Leadership Development program based on the experiences of nine Fellows who completed the program. Elements necessary for a self-developed board leadership development program are presented. Rationale is discussed as to why the Sigma Theta Tau Board Leadership Development program and future similar programs need to include the critical success factors in the development of nurses as board members. The authors discuss the variety of professional and personal benefits of a program of this importance.

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