More about Jim... I grew up in south Minneapolis just half a block from Powderhorn Park. My experiences in that park probably fostered my love of outdoor experiences of all types. I am very lucky that my wife and our two boys love running, skiing, and many other outdoor activities. I went to a non-traditional high school, Minneapolis Vocational High School, located at the very edge of downtown Minneapolis. I was captivated in junior high by lithographic printing, a craft that was part close-tolerance custom manufacturing and part alchemy using acids and other chemicals. I was extremely fortunate to be able to start my college career after having worked in that craft for nearly a decade. I graduated from North Hennepin Community College with an Associate’s Degree in Manufacturing Management 1988. After a stint on the business side of printing and publishing, I switched careers again—this time to nursing. I graduated from the University of Minnesota School of Nursing with a BSN in 1995, twenty years after I graduated from high school. I started school nursing as a long-term substitute in January of 2006, and I was offered a permanent position at Open School in August of 2006, so this is really my first school. I love it here. Being a Licensed School Nurse for Saint Paul Public Schools is the best job I have ever had in my life. My philosophy of school nursing is to promote health by working with students, families, and staff  to educate them in healthy behaviors and doing for them what they would do for themselves until they are ready to take on those responsibilities. For an example, consider asthma. I work with students with asthma from the earliest age on up. I start by training the staff about what to be aware of, by intensively helping the students with their medications, and making sure the students are safe in the building. As a student with asthma grows and is able to take on more responsibility, they will learn to manage their own medications, including being able to carry medications safely. My role for those student becomes more of an education resource within the building, to help them to continue to grow in knowledge of the disease and its management, and educating them in their own self care. I have been at Open School since August 2006 and I love it here – it is the best job I have ever had!