 Hiemenga graduated from Calvin Theological Seminary in 1905 and served as the pastor of six Christian Reformed congregations in Michigan, New Jersey, New York, and Indiana during his 42 years in the active ministry.Active in establishing Christian schools in Passaic, NJ and Grand Rapids, MI, he was appointed the first president of Calvin College.In the fall of 1920, Grand Rapids Christian High School, which Hiemenga had helped organize, assumed responsibility for teaching the high school and began a full, four-year program.