Calvin News

On Friday, June 26, 2026, U.S. Navy officer Laura Rivera ’24 stood in the front of a classroom of middle school students on the campus of Calvin University. Her message to those attending Health Camp was rooted in an oft-quoted verse, Jeremiah 29:11, which says “’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’”

“If you backtrack and see the entire context of that verse,” said Rivera, “it’s this idea that even if you aren’t in the ideal place, God is going to give you a command: bloom where you are planted.”

Blooming where she's planted

For Rivera, that’s currently as a labor and delivery nurse at Jacksonville Naval Hospital, where she feels called to help women during their most vulnerable moment. And she’s not only providing compassion and care for those giving birth, but she is also keenly aware of her team’s needs.

“I love being an advocate for my patients, but I also love creating community with my core men. It’s why I created the Cuterus Award – to be able to see someone and allow them to feel seen, feel cared for, because there are a lot of nursing/healthcare moments that people don’t recognize out loud,” said Rivera. “When you allow someone to feel seen, it trickles down from top to bottom. When you empower people to feel seen, I think it makes a big difference in the world.”

Rivera’s impact in the Navy is being noticed. She was recently promoted to Liutenant Junior Grade, named junior officer of the quarter for her hospital’s Directorate of Nursing Services, and became the lowest ranking officer to be nominated for her hospital’s Junior Officer of the Year Award.

Rivera is clearly blooming where she’s planted now, but that’s a far cry from where she was just a handful of years prior. 

Nearly weeded out of her nursing career

At the time, she was in her mid 30s, working part-time one weekend a month as a reserve in the Navy as a medic. Her aspirations were to be a nurse, but her application for a scholarship had just been denied a third time.

“It was heartbreaking every time,” said Rivera. “I felt defeated.” 

So, Rivera started working on an online accelerated nursing program. What she thought would bring her closer to becoming a nurse instead left her feeling isolated, discouraged, and uncertain whether she belonged in the profession at all.

“It was like I was being purposefully weeded out. It really shook my self-esteem.”

Seeing and seeding potential

So, in 2022, she knew she needed a change. So, she applied to an in-person nursing program. That decision changed everything.

“The first time I applied to Calvin I was waiting to hear back from them and I heard back from Dr. Ayoola. She called me and the first thing out of her mouth was, ‘how can I best support you?’ recalls Rivera. “It was done. That’s when I knew Calvin was it for me. I never had someone from an institution ask me that question, ‘how can I best support you – I think that’s one of those things that sets Calvin apart – it’s their inexplicable desire to make sure every student feels seen and supported.”

In that moment, Rivera found something she had been missing: a guide who saw her potential and was willing to help her get there.

That phone call turned out to be a turning point in Rivera’s life, but her feeling seen and supported would not be isolated to that moment, it was the undertone of her entire Calvin experience.

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Watering the seeds, seeing growth

“That’s what makes Calvin so special, the professors really, really care,” said Rivera.

Rivera recalls having a panic attack when she was doing her first health assessment and in that moment her professor, Professor Schuitema, stopped the assessment and “it was an entire therapy session for 20 minutes,” recalls Rivera. “At no other school is the professor going to say, ‘hold on, what’s going on, let’s check in.’ That’s something as a nurse that I’ve been able to carry in, that compassionate, therapeutic communication.”

She also recalls Professor Kunnen cooking a meal for anyone who was struggling to grasp concepts before a test and then going over the material with them.

“The amount of effort they’ve invested to make sure you feel prepared is amazing, but also the amount of compassion when you don’t get things right,” said Rivera.

Not only did she feel well supported by her professors, Rivera credits Calvin’s emphasis on experiential learning with helping her transition confidently into labor and delivery nursing.

“When they say state-of-the-art, it is state of the art,” said Rivera of Calvin’s simulation lab. “The baby was literally being birthed mechanically through this simulation, it’s literally as realistic as it is now that I know what it looks like. If you are someone who needs hands-on learning … Calvin does that.”

Ready to bloom wherever she's planted next

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While Rivera is clearly blooming where she is planted, she has a dream job in mind too.

“I want to work at Calvin. When someone asks me what’s your dream job? My dream job, if God’s calling, is for me to be part of the nursing department at Calvin or something in global missions, but I want to be associated with Calvin. Calvin thrives because it meets students at their point of need.”

“Who I am as a nurse and a future professor is a reflection of the people who I had before me.” “When I think about what fulfills me, it’s being that bridge between the needs of the world and where God has given me that calling.”

Preparing fertile soil for the next generation

While Rivera waits to see whether God leads her back to Calvin someday as a professor, she is already helping shape the next generation of nurses through a named scholarship she established to support future students. 

“Who I am as a nurse and a future professor is a reflection of the people who I had before me,” said Rivera.

For Rivera, Calvin did more than prepare her for a career in nursing. It equipped her to serve others with compassion, lead with purpose, and become the kind of mentor she hopes to be for future generations.