Despite her parent’s initial lack of support for TCU, senior Andrea Hein has made the university her second home. 

Hein was born in Flower Mound, Texas, and lived there for 16 years before moving to Colorado.

“I knew I wanted to come back to Texas, but I didn’t know I wanted to come to TCU until they started sending me mail,” Hein said. 

Hein’s parents did not want her to come to the university because they felt it was too expensive, Hein said. 

“I applied to a bunch of different schools because my parents didn’t want me to come here,” she said. “They said ‘You do not need to go to a private school, you are not a private school person, that’s not our life, not our family.’ They were really against it.”

TCU was the only school she wanted to attend, the senior speech language pathology and strategic communication double major said. 

“It was actually the only school I toured because it was the only school I wanted to go to,” she said. “TCU was the only school I saw myself at; I felt like this was the place that I was supposed to be.”

TCU has been a great experience for Hein, especially because of her involvement in many organizations and the development of lasting friendships, she said. 

Junior speech pathology major Anna Chavez wrote in an email that she enjoyed her time at the university with Hein. She wrote that Hein is a good friend.

“Andrea is a kind-hearted person with a great heart and contagious smile,” Chavez wrote. “She is so friendly to everyone, and she will always make it a point to say ‘Hi’ when she sees anyone she knows around campus.”

Chavez also wrote that Hein loves the university and will “tell anyone who will listen how great TCU is, and she will mean every word of it.”

Senior movement science major Effie Bates wrote in an email that Hein is passionate and displays a lot of school pride. 

“Andrea is the first person in the football stadium and the last one out. She is always there for me whenever I need her,” she wrote. “She has made my experience here at TCU what it is!”

Senior broadcast journalism major Caressa Bateman wrote in an email that Hein is selfless and humble. 

“I would describe Andrea as a true TCU Horned Frog fan. The girl bleeds purple like no other,” she wrote. “She is someone who is always smiling and having a good time and always a lot of fun to be around. She makes others feel special and valued. Andrea is a great friend.”

Hein has enjoyed her time at the university and said her greatest memories were from her sophomore year, she said. 

“Sophomore year was my favorite because everyone lived on campus and [there were] all the concerts in the commons,” Hein said. 

Going to concerts was not the only thing she enjoyed doing during her sophomore year. She loved any time when she got to have fun with her friends, Hein said. 

“One of my best memories was definitely the Rose Bowl game. Getting to go to that was amazing,” she said. “It was just amazing to get to witness and experience how great our football program was.”

One of Hein’s most memorable moments from her sophomore year was the week school got cancelled because of snow. 

“We would just go into the commons and play in the snow and stay up all night watching movies and eating pizza because school was cancelled,” she said. “It was just fun. I had a group called the ‘Sam Fam’ here, so we just all hung out and it was really fun,” she said. 

Bateman wrote in an email that the snow week was one of her best memories she had with Hein. 

“Andrea and I, as well as a group of our friends, had so much fun having snowball fights in the commons, making snowmen, watching movies, ordering pizza, tie-dying tshirts and more,” Bateman wrote.

Her involvement in her sorority was also a big part of her time on campus. She is a member of HIS, or Eta Iota Sigma, Hein said. 

“Being in the HIS sorority brought a lot of fun memories, and I met a lot of fun girls,” she said. “The goal is get Christian women grouped together to shine their light on campus for other students.”

Hein also said she enjoyed being able to be a part of homecoming and the new stadium. It is something she will always remember, she said. 

“Fall semester of this year was really memorable with all of the opportunities I had, like being able to give tours in the stadium when it first opened,” she said. “That was amazing. I’m like obsessed with TCU football, so that was a lot of fun.”

“Being a part of the whole homecoming process, I think that is going to be the most memorable thing I look back on after graduation,” she said.

Hein has been a resident assistant for the last three years, has had many leadership positions around campus and has earned the Miss TCU title. She said she has accomplished a lot at the university and wants to be just as successful when she graduates. 

“Right now I’m interviewing for jobs in DFW for PR and advertising based jobs with the hopeful intention that I’ll return to grad school for speech pathology eventually once I’ve saved up and paid off some loans,” she said. “It also has been a dream job to work at TCU, but I’m not sure if that’s going to work out or not.”

The things that Hein learned at the university have been useful, and she said she knows what she learned in the classroom will be applicable to the real world. 

“TCU has been the better four years of my life, and it is going to be very emotional to leave, but I’m excited for the next stage,” she said.