LifeChanger of the Year Nominee Profile

Brandi Traylor was nominated by her spouse, family members, her principal, and multiple colleagues. Below is a collection of quotes from her nominators.

Ms. Traylor is a registered nurse who has worked in the medical field since 2002. Since the start of her career, she has provided care to her community in multiple different settings. Since 2015, Ms. Traylor has found her passion and love for school nursing by fulfilling the nursing needs of many schools across the parish. Ms. Traylor has taken pride in caring for and assisting all staff/students in need. She loves the relationships she has developed with her school, families, and students. She strives to maintain a healthy and safe environment for everyone on campus.”

In addition to providing nursing services to her assigned schools, she is responsible for conducting medication trainings for district staff. She's a member of the district LA4 hearing/vision screening team, and she's also a certified CPR instructor who assists in the AED team trainings for all schools in the parish. Ms. Traylor is dedicated to her job and always gives 100%. This is why she truly is a LifeChanger for her schools, the students, and the parish.

"Nurse Brandi is one of the most professional people I have had the pleasure to work with," said Cheryl Justice, a colleague. "I have seen her handle situations in which she is always, and continually, diplomatic and tactful. The only concern she has is for the safety and well-being of all of our students. She has sympathy and empathy for her students. She follows up on all cases and is very informed on each one. I don't know how she does what she does with such a great attitude on a daily basis, but she does. I feel Nurse Brandi would be the ultimate 'poster girl' for this award. It's well-deserved, and I believe she has earned some recognition.”

“Mrs. Brandi is very compassionate, straightforward, straight to the point, and understanding," said Joy Carter, a colleague. "If there's a problem, she'll make sure she takes care of it. If she can't fix it, she'll make sure the right person does! She's very energetic and full of love. I've never seen her get upset or complain about anything!”

“Nurse Brandi is very caring and gentle when helping my special needs kids," said Randi Mercier, a colleague. "She has gone out of her way in communicating with concerned parents. Her ideas are useful, and her trainings are thorough. I am glad to have her as our school nurse.”

“Brandi always goes above and beyond to help the students who need her," said a family member. "She rarely misses work because she wants to be there for them. She grew up in the area she works in and wants to better the community by being a team player. Brandi has always been a helper to those who are sick, or those who need her for anything."

“Nurse Brandi comes in daily to Nesom and assess what's need to be done," said Tiffany Mitchell-Davis, a colleague. "I appreciate that she begins with the principal and administration first by checking in on our well-being. She is a quick troubleshooting queen! She is positive and works extremely hard to keep everyone safe. Brandi has small shoulders physically, but carries a large load. We appreciate her has a friend, sister and nurse.”

And lastly, from her spouse, Lance:

“What can I say? When Brandi took the school nurse job seven years ago, as her husband, I was really excited. Of course, I was excited for her that she landed her dream job, but I was selfishly excited for me because she would now be off during weekends, holidays, summers, and evenings! This was going to be an easy job! No one likes to admit when they are wrong, but I could not have been more wrong with my assumptions.”

“Let me start by saying Brandi loves her job, but anything worth having is often a challenge. Brandi has a 'home base' school in Lucille Nesom Middle School and is also responsible for the Southeastern Louisiana University Laboratory School. She also travels to each school in the district to assist other nurses with screening. There are days when she will travel back and forth to each of her schools multiple times in order to meet the needs of the students and staff.”

“Another misconception I had was that she would be off on nights and weekends. However, all too often I go to bed, leaving her to deal with the mountains of paperwork that must be completed. Brandi would much rather take care of her 'people' first, so that they don't get neglected if she were trying to complete her charting during the normal school hours. She believes her people are worth her time. She is a very strong person, but caring for kids who don’t have it easy can be hard emotionally, and it’s hard to turn it off when the school day ends.”

“Although I don't personally get to see her interact with her kids at school, I know she has made an impact with her positive outlook. There have been many times in the community, whether it be at the grocery store or a local festival, where I hear a child screaming 'Nurse Brandi! Nurse Brandi!' I've seen them literally running to hug her and to just be able to talk with her. Brandi treats each one of them with the love and compassion that a parent is supposed to show, knowing that not all of her students receive this at home.”

“Lastly, the past year and a half dealing with the pandemic has been a challenge for everyone, but it has been especially challenging for the schools. Brandi spends countless hours, at school and at home, contact tracing, calling parents, and calling staff members trying to decide the best and safest path forward. She has immersed herself so much in COVID awareness and training that her colleagues go to her for advice (i.e.. long phone calls assisting other school nurses during her off time)."

“I would find it hard to believe that there are many school nurses who care more or who have devoted themselves to their 'people' as much as Brandi has. She thinks that without her people, nothing else matters.”