Beth Carder, the new Eagle Grove High School and Robert Blue Middle School nurse, is anxious to get the new school year underway.
“I am so excited to be a part of this community, and I am even more excited to get the school year started,” said Carder.
She and her husband, Jared Carder (who is also the new Eagle Grove Elementary principal) and their two sons (Coleman – 7 and in 2nd grade, and Corbin – 6 who will be in 1st grade), and their Goldendoodle Reggie moved here this summer from the Iowa City area. Although she has 10 years of nursing experience (most of them as an ER nurse), she spent the last year as a school nurse for the Iowa City School District at Liberty High School, Penn Elementary, and Christine Grant Elementary (all schools in North Liberty). Carder also comes to the job with some nursing management experience and is currently working on her Master’s of Science in Nursing degree with an emphasis in Health Advocacy at Mount Mercy University. She already has a Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing from Mount Mercy University in Cedar Rapids.
Carder said there are many things she is looking forward to about being a part of the Eagle Grove Area School District.
“If I had to pick one thing, though, it would be the small community/district atmosphere. Growing up in a small community (Williamsburg), there is really nothing like it and I enjoy the connections and relationships that can form in smaller communities,” said Carder.
She is also excited to meeting and helping the kids at school.
“I want the students of Eagle Grove to feel as comfortable and safe as possible in returning to school. I want them to be healthy and happy this school year. Healthy students are better able to learn, which is the foundation of school nursing,” she pointed out.
Carder knows that this will be a very different kind of year with COVID-19 on the minds of many, and she is ready to do her best to help everyone through it.
“As a nurse, the health and safety of the students and staff is always of the most importance. With the pandemic being such an ever-changing situation, remaining flexible and having the ability to pivot quickly has been and will be necessary. There are many things that are being worked on to ensure the health and safety of students and staff is met. Knowing that we are all in this together is important and keeping a positive attitude will be even more important during the pandemic,” she said.
In her free time, Carder enjoys family bike rides, running, walking, home projects, being outside, and just hanging out with family and friends. She said golfing may be added to the list soon as they recently tried out the Eagle Grove course.
“Although it will be a different kind of year than we’ve ever had, I look forward to making it the best we can!
