GCHS Seniors Learn Life-saving CPR Skills

Seniors at Glenwood Community High School spent two hours on the gymnasium floor last week learning how they could help save the life of another person.

Fulfilling a requirement for graduation, nearly 150 GCHS seniors completed a two-hour CPR (Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation) class offered by instructors from Iowa Western Community College.

The students received hands-on instruction and coaching on the proper way to administer chest compressions and rescue breathing.

GCHS activities director Jeff Bissen said senior students at the school have been receiving state-mandated CPR training since the 2012-13 academic year.

“It’s important for all of our students to learn the proper teachings of CPR,” Bissen said. “It’s a life-saving skill.”

Assistant principal Rick Nickerson said the CPR training is part of the overall learning experience for GCHS students.

“Seeing to it that our students are prepared for anything is part of our responsibility as educators,” Nickerson said. “The CPR training is also an opportunity for us to have a connection to the community.”

Nickerson said he personally saw the benefits of teaching CPR to students at a previous job.

“I was at a different school when the P.E. (physical education) teacher went down,” he recalled. “The students were doing chest compressions until the first responders arrived. The person lived -  they (students) saved a life.”

GCHS students who take the course have the option of paying $5 to receive a card that shows they’ve successfully completed the CPR class. Students who missed last week’s training can take a CPR class on their own to meet the graduation requirement.