Faculty Profile - Donna Berizzi
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Profile: Donna Berizzi
Hometown: Bronx, New York
College: Georgetown University
Family: Married with two kids
Hobbies: Walking her two chocolate labs. Going to the beach
Favorite Movie: "Beatlejuice"
Years at DHS: Two years
Favorite Part of the Job: The kids
Walking through the doorway it was clear I had just stepped into Darien High School’s best kept secret: the nurse’s office. The room is ensconced in the G building. Obviously, this destination dispenses cough drops and Band-Aids. But the nurse's office doubles a place to go when a student is free to just sit and relax in times of high stress.
What makes the nurse’s office a popular place is the high level of trust and confidentiality that both Donna Berizzi and Gina Givore work to establish. Both nurses are in agreement about the unbelievable amounts of stress kids at DHS are put under and struggle to deal with in their lives.
Donna views the nurse’s office as a “safe haven for kids to come and talk if they need to.” Many kids take Donna up on her offer. Kristen Rossbach takes advantage of Donna’s offer saying, "Going to Donna's is like going to therapy. It’s very relaxing and is a way for me to escape all the stress, at least temporarily."
While dealing with stress is not the main purpose of the nurse’s office, it is one that Donna feels is very important for kids to have access. Both Donna and Gina are very trusting of the kids who come into their office for assistance. Their one rule is that students cannot be missing a class and if they are they must have permission from their teacher allowing them to be in there.
Most students seem to adhere to the policy of not missing class to hang out in the nurse's office. They show up with passes or go during free periods. Junior Julia Ozanno, a frequent visitor, said "I don't go to the nurse to get out of doing work; I go to talk to Donna and just hang out during my frees when I have nothing else to do."
"It doesn't matter why the kids come here; all that matters is that they are not taking away from the kids needing medical attention," Donna said. Since providing medical assistance to students who need it is her primary responsibility, she is careful to make sure nothing gets in the way of her ability to provide necessary treatment.
Donna has successfully created a place for students to go no matter what their needs. Her ability to give students help as both a nurse and a friend is the reason why the nurse’s office is such a popular place for kids to go and spend their time to take care of both medical and emotional needs.
