Lauren Love is a senior from Allen, Texas. She has always known that she wanted to have a career in a health field and that she loved talking with people. Love credits her high school CNA teacher, Mrs. Lakvold, with opening her eyes to the field of nursing.
True to her nature, Love began researching colleges with strong nursing programs. Although the University of Arkansas was on her list, she had not fully committed because she was waiting on word of financial aid packages from other colleges as well. Receiving the Alumni Endowed Scholarship from the Arkansas Alumni Association, however, “sealed the deal” for her and Love has never regretted her decision.
Once on campus, Love joined several groups, including the Student Alumni Association and Delta Delta Delta. With her studies focused on pediatric oncology, Love is proud that her sorority’s philanthropy is St. Jude Children’s Hospital.
A supportive family made it easier for Love to attend college five hours from home, especially as she attended her first three years in Arkansas without a car. Being very family-oriented, Love caught rides home so she did not fully miss her brother’s time in high school.
Love says she knows it was God’s plan for her to come to Arkansas and explore new things. A graduating nursing major, Love is currently serving as the president of the Arkansas Nursing Students’ Association. She credits Dr. Scott, advisor for the student nurses chapter at the U of A, for helping her explore pediatrics, specifically pediatric oncology.
Love first called the Hogs at freshman orientation. She says it is a skill to be acquired and fine-tuned. Love’s fondest memory of a Hog Call is the first time she led the call at the Janelle Y. Hembree Alumni House. The most unusual place she has called the Hogs was at the National Student Nurses’ Association Annual Convention in Nashville, Tennessee.
Love’s time as an undergraduate is almost complete and she will be finishing her honors theses for publication. She is excited to begin a ten-week internship in the hematology/oncology department at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. She will return to the U of A as a graduate student at the Eleanor Mann School of Nursing in December 2019 and is still eagerly looking forward to her career in pediatric oncology.
Love plans to give back to alumni scholarships when she is able and to continue making connections with other U of A alumni. To students following behind her, Love encourages them to “seize any opportunity you are given for leadership and volunteering. If you are given an opportunity to get more than just an education – take it.”
