Okay… So it may seem tedious at first, but within various Black communities, our hairstyles—the time, effort, upkeep, and even the sacred aspects of our curly, coily, or kinky hair—can become compromised when inspecting for head lice. So, how do experienced technicians and nurses respectfully and safely perform head checks with diverse populations? First, engaging and hiring practices that include people of color with formal training and firsthand experience handling these diverse hair textures is incredibly vital to curbing stigma and increasing overall awareness within your school community. When inspecting for head lice, school nurses and lice technicians need to be very cautious about mistaking dandruff for a case of head lice. All hair types and textures are at risk for dandruff, but afros and curly hair textures are more prone to dryness and a flaky scalp due to the natural dryness of the hair. Now, when examining a child with a hairstyle like locs, braids, or weaves, one should know that nits or lice need to be found close to the scalp to raise a legitimate concern. Take care not to undo or compromise intricate braids, weaves, or hairstyles while conducting the check. Checking the crown of the head, around and behind the ears, and the back of the head or neckline will suffice; examining each hair strand is entirely unnecessary unless signs of an infestation are present. In rare cases of infestation, undoing intricate styles during the school day is still inadvisable. A note home, along with key advice for preventing hair damage and breakage during treatment, especially for coily hair, may be useful to parents. The next digital short will cover the ins and outs of head lice removal for curly, coily, and kinky hairstyles. Major takeaways here are that school nurses and lice technicians need to be experienced and knowledgeable in how to safely and respectfully perform these checks. For now, test your knowledge by answering the following questions.