As a professional organization, the Ohio Association of School Nurses recognizes that school nursing is a unique and special practice of nursing. OASN encourages all registered nurses working in schools to pursue school nurse licensure through the Ohio Department of Education (ODE). ODE Licensure has been proven critical to the professional growth and assimilation of the registered nurse into the educational environment. School nurses are "key to student success".

1. If you have a bachelors degree and are a Registered Nurse in the State of Ohio and you are currently working in a school, ask the central office staff in your Superintendents' office for an "application for temporary licensure".
Then........

2. Take your completed application and a copy of your RN License back to the superintendents' office for signature and they will send it to Columbus to the Ohio Department of Education. You should receive your ODE Temporary License soon after.
Then........

Keep it in a safe place with your RN license.

This license needs renewed each year. (use the same process)

Ohio Department of Education
Office of Certification/Licensure
25 South Front Street, 1st Floor
Columbus, Ohio 43215-4183
614-466-3593

Please be aware of what's new for licensure..........

The Ohio State Board of Education recently approved the following revisions to 3301-23-44 Rule for Temporary Licenses for school nurses. These revisions are now a part of the Ohio Administrative Code. They will be in effect January 1, 2003.

Revisions:
School Nurse - currently valid license to practice as a registered nurse issued by the Ohio Board of Nursing and the holder of a baccalaureate degree.
A temporary school nurse license may be renewed on completion of six semester hours of coursework in an approved program leading to licensure in the area of school nursing.

According to the 1998 Teacher Education and Licensure Standards in 3301-24-08(H), "The school audiologist, school social worker, school speech-language pathologist, SCHOOL NURSE, occupational therapy assistant, and physical therapy assistant licenses may be renewed upon evidence of a currently valid license issued by the respective Ohio licensure board."

This means that if a school nurse showed evidence of a current license to practice as a registered nurse issued by the Ohio Board of Nursing, that the license would be sufficient to apply for the renewal of the Ohio Department of Education School Nurse license without having to go through the LPDC process.