Dr. Rivera grew up in ‘Āhuimanu on the windward side of O‘ahu, and is a graduate of James B. Castle High School in Kāne‘ohe and the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. Her past scientific research centered on marine population genetics and terrestrial molecular systematics in Hawaiian fish and terrestrial invertebrates. After completing her PhD at UC Berkeley followed by a postdoc at HIMB, she spent a year working as a policy fellow in Washington DC, then returned to UH Mānoa and ultimately to HIMB in 2005 to help coordinate and manage the HIMB-Northwestern Hawaiian Island (NWHI) Research Partnership, a multi-million dollar effort to study the ecosystems of the NWHI and to create opportunities for Hawai‘i students to participate in marine science through education and outreach programs. Today, her efforts largely center on creating marine science research opportunities for Hawai‘i students, with a focus on supporting transitions from high school to early college careers in STEM. Dr. Rivera is currently graduate faculty in Marine Biology and the College of Education.