Dr. Rebekah Freese

BSW, University of Texas at Arlington; MSW, Ph.D., University of Missouri

Dr. Rebekah Freese, LCSW,  is an Assistant Professor in the School of Public Service and Chair of Social Work, Human Services, and Criminal Justice. As founding Practicum Director, she worked alongside the MSW Program Director to build the MSW program, which launched in August 2025. She earned her PhD in Social Work from the University of Missouri, where her doctoral research examined mental health providers’ competence and confidence in conducting client suicide assessments. Dr. Freese teaches across Social Work, Human Services, and Criminal Justice, with courses ranging from Crisis Intervention and Juvenile Justice to Behavioral Health Assessment and Planning and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.

Dr. Freese utilizes her twenty-eight years of practice experience to enrich the learning environment, aiming to develop competent and skilled human service professionals. Her passion for teaching, research, and mentorship of students as well as service to promote social and economic justice assists students in developing critical thinking skills to address real world problems around the globe.

Her research interests include:

• Behavioral Health Across the Lifespan
• Suicidology
• Eating Disorders & Body Image
• Juvenile Justice Reform

Her teaching interests include:

• Behavioral Health and Evidenced Based Practice
• Juvenile Justice
• Suicidology
• Social Justice and Systems