HAYWARD -- Not long ago when a student was injured on campus or needed medication, a school nurse was on the spot to respond.

Those were the good old days, a time when California schools were well-funded and highly regarded throughout the country.

In the past 20-plus years, school nurses have become an endangered species. Prop. 13 -- a measure that forever changed the state's fiscal landscape -- is frequently fingered as the culprit for this and the many other budget-related ills plaguing public schools.

Whatever the reasons, though, this much is certain: School nurses are becoming extinct. Nowadays when a student needs emergency care at one of the 36 campuses in the Hayward Unified School District, it's more likely to be given by a principal or secretary.

"Our job is really ridiculous," said one principal who asked not to be identified. "We're really doing everything. It's really sad."