Carson City school nurse honored as Nevada State Education Support Professional of the Year
Submitted by Jeff Munson on Wed, 04/12/2023 - 9:22am
The Nevada State Education Association honored Carson City School District’s Kerri Finn, School Nurse - Clinical Aide at Pioneer Academy, as Nevada’s statewide Education Support Professional Employee of the Year.
The honor was bestowed in a surprise announcement from Dawn Etcheverry, president of NSEA, during Tuesday’s School Board. The recognition comes for Finn’s outstanding work as an ESP in Carson City as well as within the Carson Educational Support Association (CESA) and NSEA.
As the Nevada State Education Support Professional of the Year, Ms. Finn will serve as an ambassador for education support professionals in Nevada, advocating for the needs of students, families and fellow educators across the state. She will also represent Nevada at the national level as a nominee for the National Education Association's Education Support Professional of the Year award.
Last year, Finn was selected from 25 site winners including 11 teachers and 14 ESP employees who were selected from peers and administrators from various sites and schools within the Carson City School District. Each candidate endured a series of strenuous interview questions from a panel of comprehensive judges.
Upon conclusion of those interviews, the panel then made the difficult decision of selecting “one” ESP employee of the year. As the ESP employee of the year, Finn then went on to represent the Carson City School District among the other 17 school districts in the state of Nevada. Ultimately, Finn was selected outright and recognized Tuesday evening.
About Kerri Finn
Ms. Kerri Finn is a product of the Carson City School District and attended Fritsch Elementary School, Carson Jr. High School and graduated from Carson High School. She has a passion for supporting her fellow coworkers and serving as the President of CESA. She can often be found rallying in front of the state Legislature building speaking to state officials about making education a priority in Nevada and increasing funding for all school districts in the state.
She is always thinking about everybody else. It’s just in her nature to care for others, which may be part of the reason why she chose healthcare as a profession. What stood out during her interviews last year when she was selected as the ESP Employee of the Year representing Carson City School District was she considers the big picture in various cases and considers how things will impact or affect paraprofessionals, custodians, office assistants, etc. When asked why her co-workers chose her, she said it likely had a lot to do with the pandemic. Sometimes she visited 2-3 sites a day, and for a nurse or healthcare professional, that’s hard. But the judging panel also believed people just like her.
Finn is always triumphing for the benefit of those unheard or in many people’s minds unnoticed. She also does some amazing things for the students. She has a good sense of humor, but much of what she deals with on a regular basis is not so funny. She has students who are experiencing very adult-type situations, and she is there for them when others may not find the time to care. Her burden is often heavy to bear. But in the end, the biggest takeaway from her interview was she said she wants every student to know that she cares and that they matter.
