April Newsletter

Exceptional Undergraduate Learning

April 2025

Featured Faculty The Breakfast Club

Only a few blocks from campus, nursing students serve meals to those in need, learning valuable lessons about compassion and honouring

our place in O-day’min

Professor Shepherd-Finlin and her students prepare breakfast at The Rock

his semester, Nurse Educator Catherine Shepherd Finlin in the Department of Mental Health Nursing and Community Wellness took an inspiring approach to service learning: Her students step outside the typical clinical setting to serve breakfast to those in need at The Rock, a Lutheran organization located in the heart of the city. The program operates three mornings a week at 6:30 a.m., offering students the chance to engage with people in a way that extends beyond the confines of a hospital or clinic. Rather than providing medical care, they are focused on giving their time, compassion, and support to individuals who are facing various challenges in their lives. The Rock is a community-driven organization that provides free breakfast to those experiencing homelessness, addiction, or financial instability. For some, it’s a crucial place to get their first meal of the day; for others, it’s an opportunity to experience a moment of human connection and care.

Students are not acting in the capacity of healthcare providers during these sessions, but rather as community volunteers, helping to serve meals and engage with clients. Shepherd-Finlin says this approach allows students to develop a deeper understanding of the lives of people who may one day become their patients and to recognize the broader social determinants of health that impact their well-being. Students gain insight into factors that affect a person’s overall health—factors that might not be immediately visible in a hospital setting but are critical in delivering holistic care. “It’s important to know the community that you're working in: Who is living there, what their needs are, and which organizations are serving those people,”says Shepherd-Finlin. “As registered nurses or MacEwan as a whole, we can partner with these organizations to really help with the health of the population.”

Learn more about The Rock therockedm.ca