November 19, 2025 — On this week’s episode of The Inside Scoop, host David Owen sits down with Jennifer Hanlan, a consulting school nurse for Cobb’s Area 5, to talk about managing diabetes while at school.
In her role, Nurse Hanlan helps cover schools such as Allatoona McEachern, Hillgrove, and Harrison high schools, with 22 schools in total.
In this podcast, Owen and Hanlin explore how a student’s blood sugar levels being too high or too low can impact them throughout the day.
Nurse Hanlan also explains the signs to look for that indicate a child in school may need assistance, as well as the effects it can have on learning.
A few key signs to look for include a student being confused, lightheaded, sweaty, or experiencing the need to use the restroom repeatedly.
These are things that Lindley Middle School staff are trained to recognize, and sixth grader Mason Kirk helped expand their understanding by sharing his personal story of living with Type 1 diabetes.
In addition to speaking about the signs that blood sugar may be too high or low, Owen and Nurse Hanlan also discuss how Cobb Schools staff make sure every student is able to have a healthy and productive day in school.
Nurse Hanlan said that routinely meeting with parents to ensure everyone is on the same page regarding a student’s care during the school day is an essential part of what they do.
This conversation, during Diabetes Awareness Month, covers everything from symptoms and best practices for care to how Cobb goes above and beyond every day to ensure that students with diabetes still have the same opportunities to grow and learn as their peers.
To listen to this week’s podcast, you can click here.
