CARPENTERSVILLE – All school District 300 nurses now have the opportunity for advanced training to better meet the growing demand and complexities of student medical needs, union officials said.

The new three-year contract that the district board and its teacher union, Local Education Associated of District 300, agreed to last month now paves the way for the district’s 28 full-time nurses to receive state certification for nursing students at all grade levels, LEAD 300 President Kolleen Hanetho said.

In the past, district nurses who received certification either had to take a job at the high school ranks to receive a pay bump or look elsewhere for employment at districts that accept certified nurses at the elementary, middle and high school levels, Hanetho said.