His memories begin in fall 1953, when he arrived on the Iowa State Teachers College (ISTC) campus and moved into Stadium Hall beneath the bleachers of Latham Stadium. What might have seemed an unlikely residence became the perfect introduction to college life.

"In a short amount of time, you developed a small family in that room," he recalls. "When we walked across campus, we greeted one another. There was such a sense of camaraderie."

That sense of connection deepened in the classroom. As a student, Froyen enrolled in Iowa history simply because Leland Sage was teaching it. Sage quickly became more than a respected historian.

"I adored that man. To me, he was the epitome of a professor,” he says.

Sage listened to students, encouraged them and treated them as individuals. The example left a lasting impression.

After earning a degree in social science teaching, Froyen completed a master's degree in counseling at Michigan State University. At 25, he became ISTC’s youngest faculty member teaching social studies at Malcolm Price Laboratory School for two years. He then was a guidance counselor in Independence, Iowa, before returning in 1963 as a faculty member in Education and Psychology for State College of Iowa.

When teaching, he carried Sage’s example with him.

"I tried to be excited about things students brought with them to class," he says. "When students could somehow understand what it meant to be a student, that's what I really liked."

The first head of Educational Psychology and Foundations within the newly established College of Education, Froyen also helped create one of UNI's enduring traditions: the convocation ceremony marking a milestone for newly admitted teacher education students. 

By the time he retired in 1994, Froyen had witnessed the transformation from ISTC to SCI to the University of Northern Iowa. Along the way, he crossed paths with leaders Malcolm Price, J. William Maucker, John Kamerick and Constantine Curris; longtime department head Clifford Bishop; and four College of Education deans. He particularly remembers that Maucker regarded the faculty as family and chaired faculty meetings himself.

Retirement never meant leaving UNI behind. A member and past vice president of the UNI Emeritus Association, Froyen worked with university leaders to establish the Lyle Schwarzenbach Memorial honoring deceased faculty and staff who had dedicated at least 10 years of service to the institution.

His interest in gratitude continued as well. In 2013, he published "Gratitude: Affirming One Another Through Stories," later used in UNI human development courses. Building on that work, he and colleague Radhi Al-Mabuk co-authored "Gateway to Forgiveness and Beyond" in 2018.

Whether teaching, counseling, serving as a deacon in the Catholic Church or volunteering with local organizations, Froyen fosters relationships that lead to loyalty and gratitude that sustain those connections. 

"Every day, I was writing and telling my story," he says. "The story is all about relationships. I want the centerpiece of that story to be gratitude as the antecedent of joy."

For Froyen, Panther pride remains an enduring expression of gratitude for the mentors, classmates, students, colleagues and institution that shaped his life.

"We were proud to be students at Iowa State Teachers College," he says. "Today students still feel at home here."