Rachel Frost and David Hicks met at a statewide conference in Texas while they were each working as communication directors at separate school districts. Soon enough, they had fallen in love and were married. A young couple with two bright careers ahead of them, they decided to take the best next step – earning master’s degrees in Communication Studies together. After some consideration, they decided the UA Online 100% online program that offers a specialization in Organizational Leadership was the right choice.
“Alabama just has a really great reputation as a university, so that was a big part of it. We wanted to pick a prestigious university. And also just thinking about the cost – we were paying for two degrees! So keeping that in mind, we wanted to find a program that was affordable, but also where the content was something that we could apply to our jobs every single day,” Rachel explained.
“We handle a lot of internal communications, external communication, so really the program with The University of Alabama was just a perfect fit for our careers,” David said.
David and Rachel found the program’s content immediately helped them in their careers. “One of the very first courses that we took through the UA Online program was a course in conflict and negotiation. The material in that course was very applicable to what we were doing every day … It was actually very beneficial right off the bat,” David said. Rachel added that the writing skills she honed through the course “really made a difference” in their work.
During the program, Rachel began a new role working as a communications strategist for an architecture firm, where she served as a liaison to public school clients. She said the skills she was learning in the program were easily transferrable to the new job. “Being able to take those leadership skills across from one job to the next really transitioned perfectly because the program taught me how to communicate better with people – whether it’s my own staff or clients I’m talking to. It was extremely beneficial in that way.”
David noted that when he was considering the program, he didn’t realize the value of the specialization in Organizational Leadership, but after completing the coursework and being able to apply it to his work, he has an appreciation for it. “It focused a lot on internal communication and culture within an organization. All of that learning was really beneficial.”
They reflected fondly on the friendships they made in the program. David shared that they would start group texts with their classmates and it helped them feel connected. “Even though we were separated by thousands of miles, we were texting every day, talking about coursework and different projects. So we were able to make some pretty deep connections.”
Rachel also enjoyed being able to mentor other students in the program and shared about one classmate who was a full-time student and had not yet begun her career. “She had a mom who was an educator and didn’t even realize school communication was a potential career field. Making those types of connections and helping other people with their careers was pretty cool.”
David and Rachel graduated together in August 2019, and said the support they found in each other was integral to their success. They also shared that their final grade point averages were probably higher because of the competition between each other on assignments. “The competition was more fun for her because she usually got the better grade,” David joked.
About a month and a half after graduation, David and Rachel welcomed their daughter Caroline to the world! Motherhood isn’t the only new role Rachel has seen since graduation, either – she accepted a job as chief communications officer for the Region 10 Education Service Center in Texas, jumping back into school PR.
“Not saying this to sound cheesy,” she said, “but I really feel like the fact that the graduate program focused on organizational leadership prepared me for this position. It was a great opportunity and an even better fit for my life as a working mom.”
Armed with their master’s degrees and work experience, David and Rachel are equipped to continue making an impact in their careers. They’re a power couple to look out for in school communication! Judging by the love these two have for each other and their careers, maybe it’s true that everything’s bigger in Texas.
Published: August 31st, 2020