Brock started out caring for pupils at Churchville and Riverside elementary schools.
Eventually another nurse was given the position at Riverside, but Brock remained at Churchville.
She now sees the children of students she helped 20 years ago, said Tara Dedeaux, assistant principal at Churchville Elementary.
"She is such a caring person," Dedeaux said. "It shocked me that she has never received recognition for her work before now."
Shortly after she was named School Nurse of the Year, fifth-graders at Churchville made her a congratulatory poster thanking her for her care, and she received balloons and a fruit arrangement from her many fans at the school.
Although her role has remained the same throughout the last two decades, her job has become more challenging, she said.
"The mission of the school nurse is to provide a safe, healthy, nurturing atmosphere for children," said Brock of Jarrettsville. "But that mission has become more difficult. We have children with insulin pumps, some who require tube feedings, and food allergies are more prevalent."
The placement of the first school nurse occurred in 1902 in New York's Lower East Side to reduce absenteeism and the spread of communicable diseases among young children, Nasuta said.
"Today's school nurses provide direct care of ill and injured students and manage students with chronic health conditions, such as diabetes, asthma, and special needs," she said.
Other duties of the school nurse include participating in vision and hearing screenings, ensuring compliance with immunizations and maintaining required health records. In addition to her regular duties, Brock has created a presentation and video to help teach children the importance of hand washing.
Day to day, working as a school nurse is similar to the job of a triage nurse, Brock said.
"My job is to meet the immediate health needs of the children, whatever they may be," she said, as she assisted a child who fell on the playground and scraped her knee. "I have to handle an influx of children needing care."
Often parents come to her before they take their child to the doctor, she said.
"School nurses have the resources to help parents get what they need to meet the medical needs of their children," she said. "We can send parents to the right place for glasses, and to get signed up for health care when they don't have it."
One of her biggest challenges is caring for children who may not be physically ill, she said.
"There is a reason that children come in to see me, even if they are faking," Brock said. "I talk to them, let them tell me what's on their mind, and then I encourage them to go back to their classroom."
Brock said when the day is done, she comes away with a good feeling.
"Being a school nurse, I get to know all the children and the staff," she said. "Each day is rewarding."
