Nicole Rivera

Helping students find their home away from home is what I strive to do. 

My name is Nicole Rivera At 7 years old, I moved to the US with my mom and was reunited with my dad and brother. Coming to the US from the Philippines meant that I had to learn English. Fortunately, I became an American citizen at 11 and this allowed me to attend college. Here I am today, at SSU as a bilingual, first-generation college student. I use she/her/hers pronouns and I am a third-year. I’m currently working on declaring biology as my major. My goal is to become a Hematology Clinical Lab Technologist. I’m passionate about volunteering, helping others, and spreading the word of getting involved. I always try my best to make sure that I am creating a welcoming and inviting environment for people that surround me.

At Sonoma State I have had a couple roles that have helped shaped my leadership style. I am currently the Vice President of my sorority, Lambda Kappa Pi. I absolutely love our philanthropy, Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. We help raise money and awareness for blood cancers. This organization has helped me understand what responsibility entails and played a pivotal role in my choice of a career path. I was fortunate enough to become an Orientation Leader for the summer of 2019. I loved working with leaders who were from the various departments and organizations on campus. I work as a student assistant in Student Involvement. It was through this job that I had learned about the Emerging Leaders Retreat. I worked with other students on campus to help new and upcoming leaders know about opportunities and help gain an understanding of what being a leader means. Helping other students find their home away from home here at SSU is what I strive to do.

Overcoming challenges plays a big part in learning more about myself. When I first applied to SSU I wanted to be a nursing major. Despite not getting into the major, I stayed. I also later found my passion for studying blood diseases and disorders. I also found myself struggling financially. College is not cheap, and I didn’t want my mom to sacrifice her wellbeing for me, so I found a second job. Finding time to do homework and study is a challenge when I also need to make money to support my education. I learned very soon that I’m here to learn and that earning money is not my first priority. Of course, I’ve also had the challenges such as maintaining a social life and most importantly my mental health. These challenges have helped me gain an understanding of learning to be an adult and how I wanted care for myself.

Some positive experiences I’ve had here at Sonoma State would have to be meeting the people. Everyone here comes from different backgrounds and what’s beautiful about this is that I work with people who are passionate about using their diverse backgrounds to keep them driven. I’ve met people that will be in my life forever. Sonoma State isn’t just where I go to school, it isn’t just the college I’m attending, it’s become my second home

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