Karen Graf recently was elected president of the Montana Association of School Nurses. The MASN also honored her with the Montana School Nurse of the Year Award for 2021-22.
Graf, BSN, RN-BC, APHN, manages the RiverStone Health School-Based Nursing Program that serves numerous rural school districts in Yellowstone County. She serves on the board of the National Association of School Nurses and as NASN Montana state director.
Graf is known as a fierce advocate for her team of school nurses—ensuring they have the support they need to care for their students. She is a preceptor for nursing students every year. In her public health role, she has worked at COVID-19 vaccination clinics and leads a team of school nurses coping with the challenges of keeping students healthy and schools open during the pandemic.
She has co-authored NASN position statements, reviewed school nursing textbook chapters and served the American Nurses Association by authoring a chapter and reviewing chapters for the 3rd Edition of the ANA Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Nursing: Scope and Standards of Practice.