Mrs. Younce didn't start out thinking she would be a nurse. She originally planned to either be a physical therapist or an accountant. 

“I really love working with people,” Mrs. Younce said. So when she got to college at Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois, she discovered the nursing program and fell in love with it.

When she got out of school in 1995, she went straight to work. She started working as a nurse in hospitals in Chicago, and its suburbs. Later she moved to Vermont. 

She says she enjoys helping people during difficult times, “meeting different patients in a disease process and encouraging them and empowering them to live and adapt to a chronic illness.” She gives the example of a newly diabetic as someone she can help empower.

Younce says there are some challenges in being a nurse, ”One of the hardest challenges …is seeing your patient and them not being able to see the doctor they need to see in a timely fashion.” 

She first became a school nurse in Illinois, later moving to Vermont and starting here at Proctor Jr./Sr. High School. She has 11 years of experience of being a school nurse. ”Everyday is different, you never know what is going to walk through the door,” she says about being a school nurse.

Developing relationships with the students and getting to know each and every one of them is what Younce says she likes best about Proctor Jr./Sr. High School. Whatever the health need is, Mrs. Younce is there with a friendly smile and is happy to help you.