Notes from the Nurse

I do not have much interaction with the great parents of Renner students outside of sending your students home when they're sick, so I wanted a place I could relay information to you and provide you with an easy way to get ahold of me if needed. My goal is to publish monthly, and have a bigger "deep dive" into relevant topics a few times per year.

As cooler weather arrives, so does cold and flu season. Here at Renner, we want to keep every student healthy, learning, and thriving. Below are some reminders and tips to help prevent the spread of illness and ensure your child stays well this fall and winter.

1. Know the Difference: Cold vs. Flu

Common Cold: Usually comes on gradually. Symptoms include a runny or stuffy nose, sore throat, and mild cough.
Influenza (Flu): Often appears suddenly with fever, chills, body aches, fatigue, and cough.
If your child has a fever, body aches, or seems unusually tired, it’s best to keep them home and contact your healthcare provider.

2. Keep Germs at Bay

Handwashing is the #1 defense! Encourage your child to wash their hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. When time doesn't allow for a wash at the sink, encourage hand sanitizer in the meantime, and plan to get to the sink for a proper hand wash as soon as possible.
Remind them to cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue or their sleeved elbow, and wash their hands or use hand sanitizer after blowing their noses.
Avoid sharing water bottles, food, utensils, or lip balm.

3. The Importance of Sleep & Nutrition

Healthy habits make a difference!

Encourage 8–10 hours of sleep each night.
Provide balanced meals with plenty of fruits, vegetables, and fluids.
Daily exercise and outdoor time also help boost immunity.

4. Flu Vaccinations

The CDC recommends a yearly flu vaccine for everyone 6 months and older. Many local clinics and pharmacies offer flu shots — and it’s not too late to get one! Vaccination is one of the best ways to protect your student, our school, and the community.

5. Wash Backpacks, Water Bottles, Lunch boxes, Coats

These items are often forgotten as common germ locations, so make sure to add them to your regular cleaning schedule!

6. When to Keep Your Child Home

Per Plano ISD's sick policy, please keep your student home if they have:

A fever of 100.0°F or higher
Vomiting or diarrhea within the past 24 hours

**Students should be fever-free for at least 24 hours without medication before returning to school.**

This NIH site has a great graphic comparing flu/allergy/cold symptoms.

The droplets from sneezes can travel up to 100 miles per hour, and each sneeze can produce up to 100,000 droplets!

This is why it's so important to cover your mouth and nose (with a tissue or your shirt sleeve) each time you cough or sneeze, to minimize the spread of germs.

For more information, go here.

October 31, 2025

What: PTA Sponsored Fall Social
When: 2p - 3:30p
Where: RMS, north field outside

November 3, 2025

What: RMS Electives Fair
Who: 6th and 7th grade parents
When: 6:30p - 7:30p
Where: RMS, library
Why: Information on elective choices for next year

November 3, 2025 & November 5-6, 2025

What: Basketball tryouts - boys
When: 3:45p - 5:15p
Where: RMS main gym
Contact: 8th grade Coach Feltman - asher.feltman@pisd.edu or 7th grade Coach Allen - elijah.allen@pisd.edu

November 4, 2025

No school for students
Parent/teacher conferences
General and Special Election, info for voting in Collin County can be found here

November 5, 2025

What: Multilingual Parent Night
When: 6pm - 7pm
Where: RMS, Library
Contact: Mrs. Milsap at shayla.milsap@pisd.edu for questions
See flyer below

November 5-7, 2025

What: Basketball tryouts - girls
When: 6:45am - 8:15am
Where: RMS main gym
Contact: 8th grade Coach Pavelka - mackayla.pavelka@pisd.edu or 7th grade Coach Omorodion - monica.omorodion@pisd.edu

November 10, 2025

What: Journey to Shepton
When: 6:30p - 8p
Where: Shepton High School, 5505 W. Plano Pkwy, Plano TX 75093
Why: Electives information/discussion for incoming 9th graders

November 15, 2025

What: Lion's Club sponsored vision clinic
When: Appointment required, must meet qualifications and complete an application to be given an appointment
Contact: Nurse Reece - charrissa.jones@pisd.edu

November 24-28, 2025

No school - Thanksgiving Break

pdf

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Parent Night November English & Spanish.pdf

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For 6th grade parents:

The state requires 2 vaccines for 7th graders, before the school year begins. As you take your student for their well-child checkup this year, please make sure your student receives the Tdap booster and the first meningococcal vaccine (MCV4).
You do not have to wait until the summer to send me vaccine records - you can take a photo of the record and email it to me at any time throughout the year, so it's one less thing you have to do heading into 7th grade!

Healthcare consents:

Senate bill 12 went into effect on September 1, 2025. On August 28, 2025 Plano ISD opened a tile within Skyward for parents/guardians to provide or decline consent for physical and mental healthcare. Shortly after implementing the law across the state, TEA (Texas Education Agency) provided guidance for the implementation of SB12. As a result, Plano ISD removed the old tiles, changed the consents entirely, and posted new, in-depth consents that require parent/guardian attention. If you previously submitted the two drop-down healthcare consents (one for mental health and the other for physical health), please note that those have been deleted by the district and are no longer viewable to staff. When you login to Skyward Family Access, you will have a green tile waiting for your submission. Once you make your selections and submit, the tile will disappear completely. Should you change your mind about the choices you made, you can only change them by emailing myself or one of our counselors directly. You can access Skyward Family Access here. **Please note - if you agree to allow PISD staff to provide all care to your student, you still must access the tile within Skyward and submit the form as-is. If you wish to decline any services, you'll need to use the drop-down menu to indicate that you're opting your student out of that particular service. If you have any questions about SB12 or PISD's implementation of the bill, you can email me ("Contact" button down below) or email our lead counselor Mrs. Brandi Moore at brandi.moore@pisd.edu.

Medications and action plans:

Students may not carry medications in their backpacks. There are only 3 exceptions to this rule, per Plano ISD's guidelines, and those are albuterol inhalers, epinephrine, and/or glucagon/insulin. Those exceptions require a current action plan, completed by the prescribing physician, and a medication authorization form for each and every medication that may be used while here at school. All action plans must be revised by the doctor each school year.

Any medications to be taken once-per-day should be taken at home. Any medications that require dosing for longer than 10 consecutive days require a doctor's signature on the medication authorization form.

Allergy action plans can be found HERE.

Asthma action plans can be found HERE.

Seizure action plans can be found HERE.

All diabetic paperwork can be found HERE.