One School, One Nurse Act of 2025
HB305, the One School, One Nurse Act of 2025, would create a federal grant program within the U.S. Department of Education to help states and local educational agencies ensure that every elementary and secondary school has at least one full-time registered nurse on staff. The bill states that grants would be competitive, last for five years, and be aimed at districts with persistent nurse shortages, especially high-need local educational agencies and state-district partnerships serving multiple high-need districts.
The bill directs grant recipients to use funds for recruiting and hiring school nurses, converting part-time positions to full-time positions, improving retention through measures such as salary increases, and maintaining recommended nurse-to-student ratios. It also requires annual reporting on progress, staffing levels, demographic data on nurses, and how the grant helped address student health and wellness needs. The Secretary of Education would have to issue regulations within 12 months to define key terms such as full-time school nurse, underrepresented populations in public health professions, and recommended nurse-to-student ratios, in consultation with the Secretaries of Health and Human Services and Labor where applicable.
If enacted, the bill would add a new federal education grant program and related regulatory responsibilities for the Department of Education. It would not directly mandate that every school hire a nurse, but it would use federal funding and reporting requirements to encourage local educational agencies to staff schools with registered nurses and to improve nurse-to-student ratios. The bill would also affect state educational agencies, local school districts, and school health staffing practices, particularly in high-need districts and schools with persistent shortages.
Based on the bill text and the absence of recorded committee debate or votes, the overall sentiment appears supportive and policy-oriented, with the bill framed as a student health and school safety measure. The findings emphasize widely accepted benefits of school nurses, including improved attendance, better chronic disease management, and stronger health outcomes, suggesting the measure is intended as a broadly positive public health and education initiative. No formal opposition or recorded vote history is available in the provided materials.
The main potential points of contention are likely to be funding, federal involvement in local school staffing decisions, and how the new standards would be defined in regulation. The bill leaves several important terms to the Secretary of Education, including what counts as full-time work, the recommended nurse-to-student ratios, and which populations qualify as underrepresented in public health professions. Those regulatory choices could draw scrutiny from school districts, states, or stakeholders concerned about administrative burden, labor costs, or hiring priorities, even though no specific objections are recorded in the provided context.