Announcements

We are pleased to announce our newest courses and our learning library:

The SHIELD Special Health Care Needs (SHCN) Library is a pilot site, an online resource built FOR School Nurses WITH School Nurses. The goal of this site is to become a “one-stop shop” for school nurses searching for free, curated resources to support nursing care and coordination for students with special health care needs.
imageNow Open! December 12th, 2024 12:30 - 3:00 PM: Addressing Chronic Absenteeism: School Nurses Leading for Change (Session Two)this live course will provide data, resources, and tools school nurses can use to identify and address chronic absenteeism in their schools and districts. 
imageNow Open! Hands in For Care is the self-paced course of our podcast Hands in For Care. This is a three-part podcast series that focuses on the importance of building relationships and cooperation between school nurses, families, students, and school community members to create the best outcomes for students with special healthcare needs.
Supporting Students with Special Health Care NeedsSupporting Students with Special Health Care Needs: The School Nurse and the IHP, 504, and IEP is a self-paced course that uses readings, videos, and case scenarios to describe the laws and regulations related to equitable access to school and the role school nurses play in advocating for medically complex students.
Spring 2025 CohortRegistration Now Open! Strengthening Your Leadership Presence and Management Practices (Spring 2025 Cohort) is a 3-month virtual course designed to meet the professional development needs of experienced, new, or aspiring school nurse leaders.
UAP CourseMedication Administration for Unlicensed Assistive Personnel is a self-paced course for unlicensed assistive personnel (UAP) training to administer medications.

Other Announcements

A Quick Message About Purchase Orders

 We have received an unprecedented amount of purchase order requests. Thus, we've had to update our timeline to 6-8 weeks. This means you will receive your purchase order invoice within 6-8 weeks. We appreciate your patience!

A Message About Our Price Increase

As announced on our website in July, due to circumstances beyond our control, we had to make the difficult decision to increase the prices of our courses as of August 1st, 2024. We understand that price increases can be challenging. This decision was not made lightly and was necessary to address increased costs due to inflation while also facing a reduction in state and federal funding. For the past eight years, SHIELD has maintained pricing that was well below industry standards. The increased fees reflect standardization across all courses while remaining within typical price points for professional continuing education. We remain committed to providing the accessible, high-quality training you expect from us while keeping costs as low as possible. Should we receive additional funding in the future, we will prioritize reducing our prices again.

Note: Due to budget constraints, only two audit courses are available: (AUDIT) Medication Administration in a School Setting: School Nursing Practice in Massachusetts and (AUDIT) School Health Screenings. However, any course previously completed for credit on our website remains available for re-review at no cost.

Thank you for your understanding,

BU SHIELD

 

Spring 2025 Cohort Flyer

 

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About Us

imageSHIELD is a continuing education program that empowers school nurses and health professionals to manage the full range of health and wellness issues facing our schools and communities. We offer clinical, management, and leadership programs that prepare school nurses and health professionals to serve as school health leaders, provide equitable care, and build effective student health services systems.

A program of the Boston University School of Public Health, SHIELD is funded by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. We partner with the Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine and Barry M. Manuel Center for Continuing Education to deliver continuing education credits that fulfill state licensure and certification requirements.

Our Popular Courses

Mandated Trainings

Public school nurses must be licensed by the MA Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) and complete an orientation program defined by the MA Department of Public Health (MDPH). These four (4) mandated trainings meet the MDPH entry-level educational requirements for school nurses.

The Essentials of School Nurse Leadership

This self-paced online course offers individual learners foundational tools and actionable strategies that align with modern leadership practices. It is designed to enhance knowledge, skills, and behaviors — empowering nurses to be successful in the school setting and act as leaders in their community.

Things You Need to Know

Welcome to SHIELD's learning management system. Click on the "Login" button at the top right of this website and create your account.

Note: This LMS was updated in 2021. Your email and transcript from the former system were imported into this system and are ready for you to access. If you are unable to locate your transcript, email us at shieldbu@bu.edu.

Instructions

The PDF below provides instructions on maneuvering this site:

Instructions

FY25 Calendar

The FY25 SHIELD Calendar is available! Please note that dates and times are subject to change and this calendar will be constantly updated.

New! FY25 SHIELD Calendar (Updated 09/23/2024)

If not updated, make sure to clear the cookies in your browser. 

MDPH School Health Services Resource Page (Padlet)

Padlet - Learning Design & Digital InnovationThe MDPH School Health Services Resource Page is used to store information that school health staff need to support their daily work. In this Padlet, you will find posts regarding Medication Program Updates, Screening Updates, CSHS Grantee News & Resources, and much more!

Be sure to bookmark the Padlet and check it before sending a question to your Regional Consultant or MDPH, as it is updated frequently. 

Need to file a report to MDPH?

Find the requirements and links to reports here.

(NEW!) SHIELD Courses Available

Title Credit Type Event date Cost
(AUDIT) Medication Administration in Schools: What School Nurse Managers Need to Know
    • 4.50 Participation
Enduring $0.00
(AUDIT) School Health Screenings
    • 2.50 Participation
Enduring $0.00
Medication Administration in a School Setting: School Nursing Practice in Massachusetts
    • 2.75 ANCC
      • 2.75 ANCC Pharmacology
    • 2.75 Participation
Enduring $69.00
School Health Screenings
    • 2.50 ANCC
    • 2.50 Participation
Enduring $62.50

Pages

BU CCE Homepage

Looking for the BU CCE homepage? You can find it here! Boston University's CME office contains courses including those with ACCNE accrediation. 

ANCC Accreditation Certification

In support of improving patient care, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.

 

 

SHIELD is a collaboration among the Boston University School of Public Health Lifelong Learning Office, the Boston University School of Medicine Continuing Medical Education Office and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.

Group visibility: 
Public - accessible to all site users