Heather Frederick, PhD

"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." Nelson Mandela

Northcentral University’s online degree programs represent a fundamental change in the way that education has traditionally been delivered, and if you’re looking for a refreshing change, look no further than Dr. Heather Frederick. Dr. Frederick doesn’t look – or act – like your stereotypical VP, cloistered away in some stuffy Ivory Tower. In fact, Heather Frederick looks – and vibrantly lives her life – like a California surfer girl! NCU’s very own “Gidget” actually has a trophy that she earned in a tandem surfing contest.

As you can probably guess, Dr. Frederick is completely fearless (One of her favorite quotes is from Joan of Arc: “I am NOT afraid …I was born to do this.”), and one of her greatest passions is helping students overcome the obstacles that might prevent them from continuing their education, which can often halt professional acceleration. This enthusiastic drive emanates from the happiest day of her life (on dry land, anyway), which was the moment immediately following a grueling oral defense when Heather’s Mentor took her hand and said, “Congratulations, DOCTOR!!!”

In between designing and teaching courses in statistics, cognitive psychology, research design, human motivation, and thesis and dissertation research, Dr. Frederick takes time to live her life ON PURPOSE. She has worked in Head Start communities with an emergent literary project, and she has committed hours to various volunteer projects, including painting orphanages in Mexico, working on non-partisan voter campaigns, and feeding the homeless. Frederick’s “Joie de Vivre” is grounded in sound pragmatism:
“Let’s face it: life is rarely a walk in the park…but if you look for it, you can find something meaningful in just about any situation.”

Before returning to her role as Vice President of Academic Affairs, Dr. Frederick pauses and her mind returns to the ocean when asked what she would do with just one more day on this planet.

“I would take my kids, a camera, and a camcorder to the beach (rain or shine). I would record our last moments and document what they have meant to me, along with any nuggets of wisdom I could think of…”

Dr. Frederick's Curriculum Vitae.