Nursing Delegation in the School Setting
How is nursing delegation different from the delegation of other tasks in the school setting?
Delegation is not a foreign concept in the school setting. Teachers and administrators delegate on a daily basis; for example, a teacher may delegate reading support for a student to a teaching assistant. But nursing delegation is different.
Nursing delegation in the school setting is the assignment by the school nurse – not a school administrator – to a competent unlicensed individual (also called unlicensed assistive personnel [UAP]) the performance of a selected nursing task in a selected situation for an individual student. The school nurse facilitates the UAP training, evaluation of UAP competence, and provides for ongoing supervision of the UAP and evaluation of the student’s health outcomes. The nursing process can never be delegated.
State Resources
Contact your State Board of Nursing and the Nurse Licensure Compact for state delegation guidelines.
NASN Resources
Recommended Qualifications for the Unlicensed Assistive Personnel
Sample Skills Checklist for Unlicensed Assistive Personnel Training
National Association of School Nurses (NASN) Position Statement: School Health Services (SHS) Teams - Supporting Student Health and Learning. The Journal of School Nursing. 2025;41(4):519-521. doi:i:10.1177/10598405251332806
National Association of School Nurses Position Statement: School-Sponsored Trips - Equitably Addressing Student Health Needs. The Journal of School Nursing. 2024;40(5):584-585. doi:10.1177/10598405241244714
Page updated December 2025.