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Zoe Letourneau

Bachelor of Nursing, 2021

In anticipation of MRU's first ever Giving Day on Nov. 30, we are celebrating the deep, long-lasting impact of Mount Royal's generous donor community.

 

Zoe Letourneau received the following awards while a student at Mount Royal and provides her testimonial as to their positive effect on her education and her life.

 

Zoe Letourneau in Mount Royal regalia holding her parchment.

 

How did these awards assist in your academic and personal success?

I was extremely fortunate to have received many awards through MRU, including various bursaries through my volunteer experience with Student Learning Services. I just graduated this April and am now working in labour and delivery. It feels surreal to now be an alumna.

With the help of these funds, I was able to focus my time and energy on my studies and on volunteer opportunities. I was able to achieve academic success that would otherwise have been impossible. These awards made my time at Mount Royal university so valuable and meaningful and eliminated a lot of the stress that I would have faced financially. Because I did not have to work full time, I was fortunate enough to be able to get involved with athletics and recreation, participate in the MAPS Peer Mentorship Program, the Peer Learning Program, become a Residence advisor on campus and spend time helping out in the Iniskim Centre. These were amazing opportunities. I also felt that these awards helped me to have more freedom when I graduated. The money that I was awarded helped me to avoid heavy loans and I was able to start thinking about financial planning for my future right out of university.

How important is giving to you?

Giving is very important to me. It was because of my scholarships and bursaries that I felt so strongly about giving back to the MRU community through leadership and volunteer opportunities. I have taken the time to help younger mentees apply for scholarships and bursaries and am an advocate for the amazing outcomes of such awards in a student’s future. I recognize that my Métis heritage was a large part of why certain awards were available to me, and I try to give back in my role as a nurse by staying educated about safe cultural practices and fighting against health disparities.