Meet Your Nurse: DCSD Nurse Biographies
Coordinator of Nursing Services
I graduated from the University of Colorado with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 1986. Prior to school nursing I worked in both Newborn and Pediatric Intensive Care. In 1994 I became one of four School Nurse Consultants in Douglas County School District until the birth of my third child. After spending several years at home full time, and adding one more child to our family, I returned to DCSD as a School Nurse in 2008 when our youngest entered first grade. In 2010 I earned my Master’s Degree in Health Services and Wellness Promotion. I love hiking, skiing, wellness, and most of all spending time with my husband and kids.
Early Childhood - Child Find Nurse
My career in health care as a Registered Nurse includes varied nursing experiences such as school nursing, emergency department, orthopedic clinic and rehabilitation to name a few. I am a Board-Certified Emergency Nurse (CEN). Part of my professional goal is keeping my BLS, ACLS, PALS and TNCC certification current and being up to date with medical advancements and new research through continuing education. In addition to my professional work experiences, my academic background includes a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing from Thomas Edison State University in New Jersey and a course in Legal Nurse Consultant Training from The Center of Legal Studies in CO.
Prevention Nurses
I graduated from Seattle Pacific University with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing in 1997. I started my nursing career working in a hospital on the Neurology/Stroke Unit. I've also worked as a nurse in Labor and Delivery, in an high risk OB/GYN clinic, in the hospital's Quality and Performance Improvement Department and in Infection Prevention. I moved to Colorado from Oregon in 2015, with my husband and 3 children. I love hiking, reading and trying new recipes as well as attending my children's sporting events, orchestra and choir concerts.
I received my BSN from Regis University in 2009. I also have a degree in Recreation and Tourism Management with a concentration in Therapeutic Recreation from the University of Tennessee Knoxville. I have been a nurse since 2010 working exclusively in pediatrics. From 2010-2020 I worked in the psychiatric emergency room at Children’s Hospital Colorado. In 2020 I started working as a school nurse for Douglas County Schools. In my free time I enjoy being outside, family activities, travel, and being a foster parent since 2015.
Diabetes Resource Nurse
I graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 1979 with my bachelors of science in nursing. Throughout my nursing career I have been fortunate to work as a registered nurse in cardiac and neurological intensive care units as well as, home health. However, for the past nineteen years I have worked as a school nurse consultant for the Douglas County School District - I have loved having the opportunity to empower youth to overcome their individual barriers to health. Over the past three years I have been a diabetes resource nurse for DCSD. Working as a resource nurse, I have been fortunate to team with the Colorado Kids with Diabetes Consortium as well as, fellow Colorado diabetes resource nurses to improve the care of student’s with diabetes in the school setting. In my spare time I enjoy spending time with my priceless family, skiing, ranching, and chasing that little white ball around (i.e. golfing). My job depicts my true passion - improving the lives and health independence of the youth in DCSD.
Nursing Teams
I graduated from the University of Colorado Sciences, School of Nursing in 2003. My career began in Neurology, moving into Neuro and Trauma ICU; transitioning to school nursing in 2014. I am married with two children that keep me on my toes! Outside of work, I enjoy spending time with my family and friends, running and working out, and trying to keep up with my children's sports and activities. 
I graduated from Regis University with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 1997. My past nursing experience includes Pediatric Oncology/Hematology/Bone Marrow Transplant and Pediatric Intensive Care. I have worked at Children’s Hospitals in California, Texas and Colorado. I previously worked as a School Nurse with Children’s Hospital Colorado’s School Health Program and joined the DCSD Nurse Consultant team in 2011. My husband and I have been in Colorado for 10 years and we have two sons and a daughter, ages 18, 15 and 7. I enjoy running, cooking and spending time with my busy family.
I graduated from New Mexico State University in Las Cruces NM in December of 2005 with my BSN. I worked in the NICU, ICU and telemetry floor before going back to school. I graduated in 2010 with my MSN as an Adult Health Clinical Nurse Specialist. I have since worked as an ICU educator, in patient safety/risk and palliative care/hospice. I began working for DCSD in 2023 and am loving working with kids again. I live with my husband and 4 children. I love to watch my kids play various sports, hike and enjoy being active outdoors when I have free time.
I attended the School of Mines and Technology in South Dakota for my prerequisites for Nursing School. I graduated in 2003 from South Dakota State University in Rapid City, SD with my Bachelors in Nursing. I worked on the Ortho/ Neuro/ Trauma floor for 4yrs at the Medical Center or Aurora in Aurora, Colorado. I moved to the ICU at the Medical Center or Aurora from 2007 to 2009. After my third son was born I took a year off from Nursing. I returned to work at Skyridge Medical Center in Lone Tree, CO. I worked on the Surgical floor for 2.5yrs. In 2012 I took a position as part of the float pool at Littleton Adventist Hospital. I worked in the float pool for 2yrs. I was asked by the Manager on the Acute stoke Rehab Unit at Littleton to be there Assistant Nurse Manager and took the position in 2016. In 2018 the floor was changed to an Orthopedic floor and I stayed on as the Assistant Nurse Manager of the Ortho Unit. I’m excited to join the DCSD as a Nurse consultant. I’m married and have 3 boys. I love spending time with my family, we enjoy all sports and being outdoors.
I graduated from the University of North Dakota in 1999 with my Bachelor of Science in Nursing. I worked in Mother/Baby prior to starting my career in School Health in 2009. I’ve worked as a site based School Nurse on the East Coast and more recently as a District Nurse Consultant at a neighboring school district here in Colorado. I am excited to be part of the DCSD team and look forward to providing exceptional nursing services to support our wonderful students, families and staff.
I graduated from Westminster College in Salt Lake City, Utah, with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing in 2004. The majority of my nursing career has been in Women and Children’s units, most recently primarily in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. I have a passion for health and wellness. I worked closely with the discharge coordinator to ensure that each patient had the resources and knowledge needed to ensure the healthiest lifestyle possible upon discharge from the hospital.
I am married with 3 awesome kids, 2 playful dogs and 2 silly chinchillas. I love to be active, playing sports and games. I am a die-hard Broncos fan and enjoy supporting all the Colorado sports. I am thrilled to work with all the wonderful students in the Douglas County School District!
I attended University of Louisiana at Lafayette, but completed my Bachelor of Science in Nursing at Regents College of Nursing. I have been a nurse since 1995. I moved to Colorado in 2012 and started working in DCSD as a school nurse. Prior to working in DCSD, I was a school nurse in Louisiana for 7 years. I have also worked in both the Newborn Intensive Care Unit and on the Pediatric Unit at Opelousas General Hospital. I enjoy spending time with my family in Louisiana, and most of all, exploring all that Colorado has to offer with my husband and 2 children.
I have been a Registered Nurse since 1982. I graduated from California State University at Los Angeles with a Bachelor Degree in Nursing and later achieved my Masters Degree with a concentration in Health and Wellness Promotion. I worked for 5 years in a hospital nursing float pool and worked for 5 years for the Visiting Nurses Association. I started school nursing in Las Vegas, NV and I have enjoyed being a Douglas County School Nurse Consultant since 1999. I enjoy reading, photography, scrapbooking, hiking and being a mom.
I graduated from the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston with a Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing in 1993. I started my nursing career at Texas Children’s Hospital working in orthopedics. Then I transitioned to clinical pediatric nursing in an Ear, Nose and Throat clinic. I have been working in school nursing since 2006. I have been a school nurse consultant for Douglas County School District since 2013. I enjoy reading, baking and spending time in the outdoors with my husband and kids.
I graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia in December of 1999 with my Bachelor of Science in Nursing. My nursing experience includes Telemetry, the Emergency Department, Mom/Baby, and Nurse Consulting for Childcare Centers, Preschools and Charter Schools. I began working for Douglas County School District in July of 2023. I live with my husband, 3 teenage boys and two dogs. I love to travel, cook, spend time with family and friends and love watching my boys play their sports.
Tim Puralewski
I grew up in Michigan and graduated from Michigan State University in 2003 with a bachelor's degree in kinesiology. My wife and I moved to Colorado in 2006 and lived in the Gunnison/Crested Butte area where we enjoyed many outdoor adventures. In 2013 our family moved to the Denver area. In 2014, I graduated from the accelerated nursing program at the University of Colorado Anschutz Campus with a bachelor's degree in nursing. I started my nursing career at Swedish Hospital where I worked in oncology and surgical services as a recovery room nurse. The last few years I worked at a surgery center as a pre-op and recovery room nurse. My wife and I have two kids. In my free time I enjoy spending time with my family and traveling. I also enjoy spending time outdoors, my favorite activities include mountain biking, rock climbing, skiing and climbing 14ers.
Sarah Scott
As a native Coloradan, I graduated from The University of Colorado in 2004 with a Bachelor of Science in Biology, followed by a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Regis University in 2006. I worked as an RN at The University of Colorado Hospital (now UCHealth) on High-Risk L&D from 2006-2013 while completing my Master of Science (MSN) in Midwifery in 2012 from Frontier Nursing University. I joined Rose Midwifery as a full-scope Certified Nurse Midwife in 2013, providing low and (collaborative) high-risk midwifery care to a diverse population. While continuing to practice clinically, I also served as the Director of Midwifery from 2016 through late 2018 when the practice closed. For the next two years, I stayed home with my two kids during which time I also obtained an MBA from Western Governors University. I joined DCSD in February 2021 as a Nurse Consultant, with immense gratitude to serve the families in my community. Outside of work I love traveling with my husband for live music, raising our son and daughter who attend a HR charter school, and being outside with friends.
Before joining Douglas County Schools I had spent most of my nursing career working as a pediatric nurse in the emergency department at Children’s Hospital Colorado in Aurora. I also spent some time as a travel nurse in pediatric ER's in Maryland and New Jersey. During covid times I had the unique opportunity to be part of mobile testing and vaccine clinics in various locations all over the country.
I grew up in Morrison, Colorado, and graduated from Metropolitan State College of Denver with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing.
For fun, I love to play beach volleyball, pickleball, and travel with my wife and our tiny chihuahua. And, I love ice cream.
I graduated from the University of Northern Colorado with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. My nursing career has always been focused in pediatrics. I started my career in Greeley, CO as an inpatient nurse at North Colorado Medical Center, and then 3 years in Texas at Arlington Memorial Hospital. After moving back to Colorado in 2003, I worked at Children’s Hospital Colorado as a Pediatric Clinical Research Nurse from 2003-2021 in both the inpatient and outpatient setting, and I managed the Pediatric Clinical Translational Research Center from 2015-2021. I joined the DCSD School Nurse Consultant team in July 2021. Outside of work I enjoy running, hiking, reading, and cooking and spending time with my husband and two sons.
I graduated from Texas A&M University in 2003 with a degree in Community Health and then went on to pursue my Bachelors in Nursing from Texas A&M University Corpus Christi. I began my nursing career at Children’s Medical Center of Dallas where I spent over 15 years as a pediatric trauma, surgery and orthopedic nurse. I have been a Certified Pediatric Nurse for 16 years. I also spent some of my time working with new moms and newborns as a nursery RN at Medical City Dallas. My husband and I took a leap of faith and pursued our dream to move to Colorado in 2021, and I took on a new role as a Case Manager at Sky Ridge Medical Center. I accepted the opportunity to become a School Nurse Consultant for Douglas County in November 2022. My passion has always been working with children and I am excited to help students and their families in the school and community setting. My husband and I have a 16 month old little boy and a chocolate lab, and one of our favorite things to do as a family is to take our camper on the road and explore new places!
Carmen received her BSN degree from the University of Wyoming in 2012. After graduation sheworked on a Medical-Surgical unit in Scottsbluff, Nebraska. Followed by a float nurse position with Boulder Medical Center, where she worked with over 40+ physicians including 8 pediatric providers. In 2014 Carmen joined the Centura Health team at Porter Adventist Hospital on the Surgical Transplant unit. From there she transferred to the Acute Care floor at Castle Rock Adventist Hospital where she grew her career as a Charge Nurse and an Assistant Nurse Manager for the Acute Care and Pediatrics. Most recently, she has been a part of the Centura Health Physican’s Group (CHPG) as a Clinic Nurse and Nurse Clinic Coordinator where she oversaw 12 clinics in the South Denver Region, and helped to stand up COVID triage call centers during 2020. During her time as an ambulatory nurse she worked closely with pediatricians at Southlands Primary Care doing pediatric phone triage. Outside of work, Carmen enjoys traveling, skiing, stand-up paddle boarding, camping, and spending time with her husband, son, and puppy.
I graduated from the University of Northern Colorado with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 1991. I worked at Swedish Medical Center in the ICU and Emergency Department. In August 2023, I graduated from Grand Canyon University with a Masters in Nursing Education. I am passionate about teaching and developing programs that promote wellness and mental health. I'm a Colorado native. I have been married for 34 years. I have two children. My daughter is currently getting her Master's degree at UCCS in school counseling. My son is in his last year of college right outside of Kansas City MO, getting his business degree and in his final year of collegiate swimming. Our family loves the outdoors hiking 14'ers, camping, road biking, gravel biking, snowshoeing, and hot yoga.
I graduated from Russell Sage College, a small school in upstate New York in 2007. Soon after graduation, I started my career in pediatric acute care at Johns Hopkins Hospital. A few years later I became a travel nurse; my first assignment landed me in Colorado and I never left. In 2015 I became a certified Wound, Ostomy, and Continence Nurse at Children's Hospital Colorado. I carried out that role for almost nine years; providing specialty wound and ostomy care to patients and families in need, and teaching staff best practices in the field. In 2022 I began another role as a pediatric telephone triage nurse, through Children's Hospital Colorado. I have loved reaching the community and helping parents through their children’s illnesses and ailments in such an approachable manner, through a phone call. Empowering patients and families through evidence-based care and encouragement is my passion; from the bedside to community outreach. As a school nurse consultant, I am so excited to work with students and their families in the school setting, helping to optimize their wellness so they can achieve their educational goals. Outside of work, I enjoy playing tennis, biking, camping, skiing, or watching my kiddos play sports throughout the area.
I had a roundabout path to nursing. I graduated from the University of Montana with a degree in Health and Human Performance, with a concentration in Community Health. I ran a children’s oncology camp for years in Montana and was an EMT for a rural fire department. My husband’s medical school brought us to North Dakota and I attended an accelerated BSN nursing program at the University of North Dakota. I was a labor & delivery nurse in Fargo before we moved to NYC for my husband's residency. While there, I went back to school and became a Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner (MSN) and IBCLC and started a private lactation consultation practice. My husband, two daughters, and I are new to Colorado and we’re excited to explore the outdoors and settle into our new community!