Walking down the middle school halls of Triton it is easy to get a sense of warmth from a classroom down the 8th grade hallway. This classroom isn’t an ordinary classroom though, it’s the nurses office where Ms. Gwen McDonald is  waiting to meet all of this year’s patients. 

Walking into the nurse’s office, it is easy to get a welcoming feeling from McDonald herself. During McDonald’s first days working at the school, she was stuck in the office doing paper work, but soon enough all the kids were back in school and she was seeing her patients.

 “The first day went really well. It was exciting to see all the children and get to know more of the staff” McDonald stated. 

 A news reporter with the Triton Voice recently interviewed McDonald in Triton Regional Middle School. The teacher discussed how her first day went and why she wanted to become a school nurse. McDonald went from working in environmental science to working as a middle school nurse here at Triton. 

This isn’t McDonald’s first time working at a school; she has previously worked at other high schools and she currently volunteers as a caregiver at the Merrimac Feline Rescue Society. 

Nadine Marcheterre, the high school nurse at Triton, has been mentoring and guiding McDonald on her nursing journey in the middle school. 

Marcheterre stated, “It is so rewarding to help someone get accustomed to a new work environment. 

It’s really nice to have another nurse on the Triton campus to collaborate with.” 

McDonald grew up in many places including  New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, and New England.. 

During McDonald’s college days she studied natural science working at an environmental science unit for years before going to grad school to get another degree this time in nursing. She decided to get this degree as she loves working with kids, watching them bloom into young adults and learning more about kids growing. 

“So far this year my interactions with her have been good. She seems very sweet and nice, and overall pretty helpful.” Stated Arianna Hite a Triton middle schooler, who has visited the nurse. “ I do like the new nurse, and from what I know so far she is sweet to most students, helpful. I think she’s a good nurse, and she does help when needed.”

McDonald may be new but she is already thriving on her journey in middle the school. She stated she is hoping for a long journey at Triton.