For many students, their first time stepping onto Azusa Pacific University's campus brings a feeling of affirmation that they are meant to be here. Hannah Frey ’23, MS ’26 learned about APU as she was looking to get recruited for swimming, but it wasn’t until she visited campus that she realized how perfectly everything about APU fell into place for her goals and dreams.
Frey swam in high school, but many of her recruitment opportunities fell through when she was injured at the end of her junior year. Even though she was a lifelong resident of Southern California, Frey hadn’t heard of APU until her dad suggested that she look into the university because it had a great swim team and a coach that would allow her to pursue many of her higher education goals. “People kept telling me I would just know which school was right for me, but I’m a very logical person so that was confusing to me,” she said. “The second I stepped on campus, I felt such a warm welcome and emphasis on community. I knew this was where I wanted to be, not just as my school, but as my home.”
Frey committed to APU as a swimmer and chose to double major in psychology and liberal studies with an emphasis in special education. She always loved working with kids and many of the women in her family were teachers. “I loved teaching, but I really valued the one-on-one connection and intentional time with students,” Frey said. When the opportunity to add a psychology major came around, she decided to take advantage of it. “I loved learning about the psychology of the brain, trauma informed care, emotional regulation, coping mechanisms, and helping families in difficult situations, but I couldn’t figure out what career setting my interests would fit best in.”
Outside of the classroom, Frey spent most of her time swimming and bonding with her
teammates. “Having a group of girls that are not only my sisters in the pool but friends
who genuinely saw and cared about me was such a gift,” she said.
Head coach Tim Kyle also encouraged the team to push themselves and prepare for life after graduation.
“He incorporated lessons that would be applicable for life after college and after
swimming,” Frey said. “Being on the swim team taught me that I am strong, brave, independent,
and capable.”
In her final undergraduate semester, one of Frey’s professors was a child life specialist and encouraged her to look into a similar career. Frey took a gap year to volunteer in hospitals and learn more about the possibilities that could come from the child life program. The more she talked to those around her, the more she fell in love with the field, and Frey returned to APU to earn her Masters in Child Life.
Carissa Howard MS, CCLS, assistant professor, played an important role in Frey’s college journey. The two met early in Frey’s undergraduate studies, and Howard helped her decide if she was a good fit to pursue the MS in Child Life. “The community and relationships I’ve built at APU are such a meaningful part of my life,” Frey said. “I have an APU family, and my professors have encouraged me along the way to figure out who I am and what my calling is which has been so special.” APU’s focus on building a supportive community has been something that constantly surprised and uplifted Frey. “When I experienced a loss in my undergraduate career, I wasn’t just another student to my professors. They genuinely cared about me and even took me aside to pray together,” she said. “Those moments are what made college so transformative because I learned that I couldn’t and didn’t have to go through the hard parts of life alone.” For Frey, community is a tangible form of Jesus’ love.
Frey will graduate with her master’s at the end of the semester, but it is only the beginning of a new adventure for her. After completing an internship at Colorado Children’s Hospital, the hospital offered Frey a job as the Emergency Department/Urgent Care Child Life Specialist. She will transition into her new role making sure patients and their families get the help they need and feel just as supported as Frey did at APU. “My professors talked about child life careers as a form of worshiping the Lord and reflecting on our faith, and that’s something I keep in mind everyday when I’m working with my patients and their families.”