Talia Rivera

Every Sunday evening, Talia Rivera checks in fellow Dunbar residents and asks them about their weekend. Rivera focuses on engaging the new students and making sure that their weekends were both fun and productive. “It’s a way for me to help out the new kids because I was new, too,” she said.Before she came to Exeter, Rivera struggled to find rigorous academics at her school. “I wasn’t really challenged … I’d sit in class not learning and teachers wouldn’t pick me because they knew I knew the answers,” she said. “I was just bored.”Rivera applied to the Academy after reading about its wide range of academic and extracurricular opportunities. Once on campus, she was motivated by the intellectual environment to learn again. “I was really excited to [finally learn] something interesting and challenging.”However, Rivera also found something even more valuable to her than hard classes: “genuine and nice people.” Rivera was surprised by the immense generosity and warmth of the community. “It was weird and nice being around so many sweet people.” With the support of upperclassmen, Rivera quickly became involved in Exeter life.Upper Anna Rose Marion said that Rivera is excited about everything she does. “She has a lot of passions that she actively explores, and she never does anything that she isn’t passionate about,” Marion said. One area where Rivera’s enthusiasm is especially apparent is the dance studio. She began dancing at nine years old and originally signed up for classes due to convenience. “My parents couldn’t take me to sports practices because they worked during the day. Dance just happened to be one of the only things that were available after they got home from work,” she said. After taking a hiatus from dance for a few years, Rivera reintegrated it as exercise into her daily schedule at Exeter. “When I came here, the fact that there was dance and that it fit into my schedule made it so perfect. I couldn’t not take the school up on this opportunity.” Now, Rivera enjoys dance as both a creative and physical pursuit. “[Dance] is such a beautiful way to express and convey emotions of a song or how you’re feeling. It’s super fun,” she said. “You get into your body and learn about yourself too.” Dancer Sarah Liberatore ’19 was amazed by Rivera’s dedication to learning difficult dance moves for choreographed pieces. “She showed incredible persistence, and we spent many extra nights in Goel drilling time steps, Cinicinnatis and formations,” she said.Marion, a fellow dancer, believes that Rivera’s devotion coupled with her optimism makes her a more emotive dancer. “When she dances, she lights up the stage. Her personality is just so infectious. She has [a huge amount of] stage presence,” Marion said. “It’s really fun to watch her move and to watch her express whatever she’s feeling onstage.”Dance Instructor and Rivera’s advisor Allison Duke noted that Rivera carries her high spirits out of the dance studio and into her dorm and advisory. “We have shared many smiles and laughs in the dance studio, in our advisory group and in the dorm,” Duke said. “[Her] positive energy is infectious and she is able to light up a room.”At Exeter, Rivera also combined her interests with her passion for teaching children through leading ESSO. “I love children,” she said. “It’s such a positive feedback loop and we make each other happy … Their excitement makes me excited.” She affectionately described children as “little pint sized people who are just running around with so much energy.” Rivera hopes to become a pediatric surgeon, a career that “people have told [her] is really fitting which makes sense because [she] loves kids and STEM.” Rivera extends this same passion she finds in connecting with children to bonding with anyone in her life; she is a valuable friend and source of positive energy for countless Exonians. Upper Morgan Lee recalled Rivera’s assistance in helping her become more outgoing at Exeter. “Exeter can be a very isolating place, but [she] is someone who has brought me out and made me more social,” Lee said. “She values connections so much, and I give her a lot of credit for just feeling comfortable when meeting people and for many of the friends I have.”Senior Patty Fitzgerald believes that Rivera has a balanced personality. “[Rivera] knows when to be fun and when to be serious. She gives really good advice, and you can always tell that she cares.” According to upper Annie Shin, Rivera is the kind of friend who leaves a bag of food, tea and candy outside her room when she has a bad day. “Talia knows that it’s the small acts of kindness that can truly light up someone’s day,” Shin said.Liberatore, too, attested that Rivera will make sure that the people around her feel loved. “Even now, when I’m off at college, an hour long Skype call with Talia on an otherwise boring night ends in me going to sleep happy and full and love,” Liberatore said.Overall, Rivera has learned from Exeter the importance of being kind. “That not only means being kind to other people but being kind to yourself,” she said. “There’s only one you, and you only have one life. You have to make sure that you are living it in a way that makes you happy, and that also means being nice to yourself.”