Dr. Vivaldi has been in academics for 25 years.  She started as a Professor for Legal Studies, Criminal Justice at Central Penn College, Pennsylvania. After 5 years she transferred to the Community College of Baltimore County, Maryland, as the Dean for the School of Justice, which housed the criminal justice program and the paralegal program.  In 2007 she took a hiatus to complete her PhD and received her doctorate in Instructional Design for Online Learning in 2011.  In 2010 she took a position with Webster University as the Campus Director at Ft Bliss, Texas, serving our military in their educational pursuit (Master level). She transferred to the Myrtle Beach campus, South Carolina, in 2018 as the Regional Director over 5 campus locations within that state. She retired in May 2021.

Her professional career prior to academics was serving in the military for 22 years as a Security Police Officer in the Air Force.  She retired from the military in 1994 as a Major, and took a position with the state of Pennsylvania providing oversight training for all Deputy Sheriffs and Constables throughout the state.