Amy Smulski Druml, McHenry Community High School Distinguished Graduate for 2026, encouraged McHenry students to take advantage of the school’s new certified nursing assistant (CNA) program that Druml helped build.
“Be open to all of the opportunities in front of you,” Druml, a nursing executive with Northwestern Medicine, said to Upper Campus students on Tuesday, Oct. 6. She visited with about 150 students interested in healthcare careers at Freshman Campus earlier in the day.“Healthcare is huge but it’s also hard work,” she said.
Druml made the visits to Freshman Campus and Upper Campus as part of honoring her as Distinguished Graduate during homecoming week. Her career started as a certified nursing assistant (CNA) to now being a vice president and chief nursing executive for Northwestern Medicine’s McHenry and Woodstock hospitals.
In addition, she has been working with McHenry High School on the growth of the biomedical science program, and she serves on nursing advisory boards for McHenry County College and the College of Lake County.
In sharing her own career story with students, Druml said her first thought about entering the healthcare field happened when she was young and witnessed a car crash. She said she wished she could help, and vowed to get the education and training needed.
After graduating from McHenry in 1994, she went on to get her CNA certification at community college. She encouraged McHenry High School students to take advantage of the certification program in high school to save money.
After that, Druml said she was able to get financial help from employers as she went on to get a bachelor’s degree then a master’s degree while also working.
Read more about Druml and her career journey in this article on the district’s website.