Please contact members of the Joint Finance Committee of the Delaware General Assembly!

The FY 2026 Governor’s Recommended Budget included a recommended reduction of the school nursing subsidy from $620,400 (FY 25) to $403,300 (FY 26). School nursing care in all educational settings is a public health imperative! It is also a subsidy rightfully provided to taxpaying Catholic and Independent School families!

Consider this:

•  Based on data from the Delaware Department of Education (2023), the average cost per student in Delaware public schools is $20,231. Hence, every Delaware resident pupil educated in a Catholic school represents considerable savings for the state taxpayer. The total savings to the state in any given year can be counted in the millions.
•  School nurses provide front-line care that is vital to individual pupils and is of benefit to the entire school and broader community. That care is a public health imperative and one that is funded in a public school context by taxpayer dollars that Delaware Catholic school families pay just as the families of public and other independent school pupils pay.
• School nurses are essential to safeguarding children with allergies, for monitoring and administering prescribed medications to pupils and providing initial care to students who present with a variety of symptoms, from the common cold and influenza to more serious conditions.
• School nurses coordinate with other health and educational professionals and families on matters directly impacting the well-being of the children who are in their care.
•  School nurses serve an important role in detecting and reporting (when needed and/or mandated) signs of abuse, mental health concerns, and other essential matters that directly impact the well-being of the children in their care.
• These nursing professionals also serve as a key life-saving asset when a medical emergency occurs on school property. School nurses, over the years, have performed CPR – for students and for adults - during unforeseen events.

The modest, but greatly appreciated and essential, school nursing subsidy represents a meager return in support for taxes paid that is far outweighed by the savings that Catholic and other independent schools generate.

Joint Finance Committee Members with Contact Information:

• Chair: Kimberly Williams (D-19th RD) kimberly.williams@delaware.gov (302) 744-4351 
• Co-Chair: Trey Paradee (D-17th SD) Trey.Paradee@delaware.gov (302)744-4162

Senators:

• Darius Brown (D-2nd SD) Darius.Brown@delaware.gov (302) 744-4286 
• Stephanie Hansen (D-10th SD) Stephanie.Hansen@delaware.gov (302) 744-4138 
• Laura Sturgeon (D-4th SD) Laura.Sturgeon@delaware.gov (302) 744-4135 
• Eric Buckson (R-16th SD) eric.buckson@delaware.gov (302) 744-4169 
• Dave Lawson (R-15th SD) Dave.Lawson@delaware.gov (302) 744-4237

Representatives:

• Stephanie Bolden (D-2nd RD) stephaniet.bolden@delaware.gov (302)744-4351 
• Nnamdi Chukwuocha (D-1st RD) nnamdi.chukwuocha@delaware.gov (302)744-4351 
• Krista Griffith (D-12th RD) krista.griffith@delaware.gov (302) 744-4351 
• Charles Postles (R-33rd RD) charles.postles@delaware.gov (302)744-4171 
• Daniel Short (R-39th RD) daniel.short@delaware.gov (302)744-4171

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