Graduate and undergraduate nursing students at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University will soon be gaining hands-on experience with clinical work by staffing a free health clinic on St. Cloud’s southeast side.
And nursing major Alaynna Kriz ’27 is spending the summer laying the groundwork needed to make that happen.
The clinic – which is scheduled to open this August – is part of a new community outpost being housed in the Salem Lutheran Church Building – a facility that will also include space for the St. Cloud police and fire departments and emergency health services.
The health clinic will be staffed by CSB and SJU nursing department faculty members and graduate students. Senior undergraduate students will also help at the facility, engaging in preventative and educational health activities.
Kriz is spending the summer researching what the role those undergraduate students will play might look like, as well as what services are most needed in the neighborhood surrounding the clinic.
She’s done that by looking through community health assessment data, speaking with the clinic’s partners and getting out in the neighborhood to meet with residents.
She will then present her findings at the conclusion of her 10-week project.
“Right now, I’m kind of all over the place meeting with community partners and reviewing data, which is really cool,” said Kriz, an Anoka High School graduate and junior-to-be at CSB.
“But my end goal is to produce a final product that will be most beneficial to the clinic and for the undergraduate students who will be working there.”
The project is one of 13 being sponsored by the Office of Undergraduate Research and Scholars at CSB and SJU. Each summer, the office provides summer collaborative grants to 13 student-faculty teams, helping them to complete a summer research project.
Kriz is one of over 60 students working on such projects on campus this summer.
Karyl Daughters, the Dean of Curriculum and Assessment at CSB and SJU, said that helps provide students valuable tools for future professional success.
“We know from research that engaged students have better, more satisfying undergraduate experiences,” Daughters said. “Summer undergraduate research is a high-impact form of engagement.
“Summer undergraduate research is a cornerstone opportunity for our students,” she continued. “It is a transformative experience during which students forge mentoring relationships with faculty on meaningful projects that help them develop problem-solving skills, technical proficiency and intellectual curiosity.
“Summer undergraduate research transforms students from learners into creators, contributing to insights and knowledge about the world.”
Kriz said being part of getting such a facility up and running is an incredible opportunity for a college student.
“I’m still so young, yet here I am going to these big meetings with CentraCare, which is one of the largest health systems in Minnesota, and the St. Cloud (Public Safety Foundation),” said Kriz, who is also part of the Bonner Leader Program at CSB and SJU and hopes to one day work in a clinic like the one she is now helping start.
“I get to be part of the work they’re doing to help make other people’s lives a little easier. Then I’m also getting my foot in the door when it comes to public health nursing, which is my ultimate career goal. I’m getting the chance to network and improve my community engagement skills. I think all of that is going to be really valuable for me down the line.”
Rachelle Larsen, a registered nurse and a professor in the nursing department at CSB and SJU, said the work Kriz is doing has been invaluable.
“I can’t say enough about how amazing Alaynna has been,” Larsen said. “She’s taken this ball and run with it. She’s one of the best students I’ve had the chance to work with as far as research goes.
“The biggest benefit for us will come from using the evidence she’s been gathering to best meet the needs of the community we’re going to be serving. She’s figuring out what those needs are so that the students we place there aren’t going to have to start at ground zero. For example, we’ve already been talking a ton about foot care. So perhaps one of the things we can do is set up a day at the clinic that will be focused on that. She’s helping us better home in on how we can be most effective.”
Mary Zelenak, also a registered nurse and professor in the department, echoed those sentiments.
“Alaynna’s passion for this kind of work has already helped us build a strong relationship with the community,” she said. “We don’t always have students, especially after their sophomore year, who are comfortable going out and doing this kind of community work. But she is. I think her Bonner work helped set her up nicely for this role and she’s been a perfect match.”
Kriz is already looking forward to working at the clinic when she reaches her senior year.
“Of course,” she said with a smile. “I’m already trying to figure out a way I can do it sooner!
“I really feel a connection with this community now. I find myself going to coffee shops and businesses over there. I’m truly putting my whole heart into this.”