In honor of Valentine’s Day, a pair of Goizueta students and veterans reflect on love, service, and forging a new path together through Goizueta’s Full-Time MBA program.
Some love stories begin with a spark; Monica and Caleb John’s began with shared purpose.
The Johns never do anything halfway—not their careers, nor their ambitions, and certainly not their relationship. Their story spans prep school, West Point, Army service, and now Goizueta, with each chapter adding new pressure and new perspective. This Valentine’s Day, they’re proof that the strongest partnerships aren’t built in perfect conditions; they’re built by showing up, again and again, through whatever comes next.
Both Monica John 27MBA and Caleb John 27MBA are former U.S. Army officers (Monica served as an armor officer; Caleb as a signal intelligence officer), and both will graduate from Goizueta’s Full-Time MBA program in May 2027.
A Meet-Cute with Two Versions of the Truth
If you ask Monica and Caleb how they met, you’ll get what all good couples’ stories tend to include: two answers that don’t perfectly match and somehow fit together anyway.
They met in 2017 at the United States Military Academy Preparatory School, where they were Division I athletes. From there, friendship turned into dating in 2018, and in 2022, they got married.
Caleb describes it as gradual: close friends first, months of spending time together and doing what they called “cool Army stuff,” until it finally hit them: “hey, I think we like each other.”
Monica’s edition is more succinct.
“The first time I saw him during class introductions, I had a thought that said, ‘That’s going to be your husband.’”
The First Move
However, both members of the couple agree Caleb ultimately made the first move, or as Monica describes it, “the world’s most obvious move.”
At the end of a trip to watch the Army–Navy game, she remembers walking through a freezing parking lot to catch the buses when Caleb grabbed her hand to “keep it warm.” As she puts it: “we all know what that really was.”
What They Love Doing Together (And What Always Makes Them Laugh)
Monica and Caleb both relish new experiences—especially traveling, trying new foods, and finding time to watch a sunset, wherever they are.
Turks & Caicos, where they honeymooned, has a special place in their heart. Being on a small island surrounded by the vast, unfathomable ocean made them feel “incredibly small in the best way.” In that stillness, the world felt big, and their meeting each other in it so serendipitous as to be actually destined.
And their favorite thing about being a Goizueta couple? The moment before people connect the dots: “People asking us if we’re siblings or cousins before asking if we’re married.”
A Partnership Built on Service
Between prep school, West Point, professional athleticism and the Army, Monica and Caleb’s relationship has always been shaped by high-commitment environments.
Then, by spring 2025, life changed quickly. After medical separations from the Army, they pivoted—and ultimately secured the last two spots in Goizueta’s Full-Time MBA Class of 2027.
That pivot wasn’t just about a credential: It was about choosing a new environment for growth. They wanted to immerse themselves in a community with diverse backgrounds and perspectives that would challenge how they think and expand what they believe is possible.
In their own words, Goizueta hasn’t introduced “entirely new challenges” so much as it has “reinforced the foundation” they’d already built. They describe their teamwork and mutual support as “organic” to their relationship—and say business school has strengthened it.
The Next Mission: Building Impact Beyond the Uniform
This season is also about building forward. Professionally, both are heading to Charlotte for summer internships with Bank of America—Monica in human resources and Caleb in strategy management.
Longer-term, they share a vision that blends who they’ve been with who they’re becoming: creating a space where they can “train, mentor, and develop others physically, mentally, and spiritually,” and using Goizueta to clarify what that looks like in a tangible, real-world way.
Advice For Other Couples in Intense Seasons
Asked what they’d tell people juggling academics, careers, and relationships, Monica and Caleb point to a classic framework frequently recited at weddings from 1 Corinthians 13:4-8: patience, kindness, humility, and perseverance—and most crucially, “Love never fails.”
For two people who’ve navigated prep school, West Point, military leadership, and now business school, that’s not sentimental. It’s operational.
Goizueta’s Full-Time MBA program supports students navigating meaningful career transitions and redefining what comes next. Learn more about the Full-Time MBA.
