Graduation is an exciting time on college campuses, as seniors get ready to begin their professional careers and the next phase of their lives. That’s especially true for Viterbo nursing major and commencement speaker Lana Yeakel, for whom an adventure of sorts awaits.

Yeakel has accepted a position as an ICU nurse in a hospital in Greenville, S.C. She is moving to the Palmetto State with her boyfriend, fellow Viterbo graduate and Italy native Matteo Galeotti, who will attend North Greenville University to earn an MBA. The couple met when they sat next to each other in their freshman theology class.

“I chose nursing because the profession allows me to not only help people, but also connect with them,” said Yeakel, who comes from Mazeppa, Minn. “We care for patients often at one of the hardest times of their lives, whether it be because of an injury or serious illness. We’re their strength when they don’t have enough strength of their own.”

Yeakel explained that working in an ICU will allow her to connect even more deeply with those in her care because nurses there are only assigned two patients at time. She chose to attend Viterbo because of the outstanding reputation of its nursing program, and she has been very happy with her educational experience.

“I like that the nursing education is so values-based and holistic,” she said. “And the university’s liberal arts curriculum complements it very nicely. The faculty really provide support and want us to become excellent health care professionals.”

Yeakel has been very involved on campus as a member of the women’s track and field team (sprints and long jump), the Viterbo Student Nurses Association, the Student Athletics Advisory Committee, and as a tutor. She worked as a nurse technician at Mayo Clinic in Rochester. In her very limited leisure time, Yeakel enjoys the outdoors, hiking, walking, reading, and shopping.

 “Eventually I’d like to return to school to become a nurse practitioner or a nurse anesthetist,” she said.