Living Out Faith: Andrew Haussler finds his career helping families

Andy Haussler (MBA ’13, BA ’01) admits his decision to attend Fresno Pacific University was a bit of a compromise: “My parents wanted me to go to a Christian college, and I didn’t want to go to L.A.,” he says wryly, noting that at the time, there were no Christian higher education options near his home in Sacramento. “And,” he adds, “I loved the idea of being close to Yosemite.”

He soon realized there was more to FPU than its convenient location: “The size was just right, the class size was valuable to hold me accountable and I really enjoyed getting to know my professors and fellow students.”

Those values, honed over years of service, were apparent to Haussler’s friends even as a student. “Over 25 years of knowing Andy, he has been a genuine person who brings compassion, reason and reliability to our friendship,” says Tavarez. “I think that’s a strong base for the professional he is today.”

One of those professors was (now-retired) Peng Wen, Ph.D. Though Haussler initially thought he might pursue a career in teaching, a first semester economics class with Wen changed his trajectory. “Peng really was a sounding board on a career path,” he says. “He showed me how he intertwined his professional goals with his faith. He was very encouraging in that way.” (Years later, when Haussler returned to FPU for his MBA, he chose it over other schools so he would have another opportunity to study with Wen.)

Haussler ended up majoring in business administration, but his evolving faith also set the stage for his post-college plans. He joined a local church and, during the school year, participated in student leadership teams, outreach projects and mission trips. They weren’t just ways to fill time as a student, but were among the first steps he took toward a life of service. Summers were spent working at Mount Hermon, a Christian camp in the Santa Cruz Mountains, where he realized, “Faith needs to be lived out in all aspects of life, not compartmentalized.”

A study abroad program in Washington, D.C., to study public policy solidified this idea. Jerry Herbert, one of Haussler’s professors in the program, “asked hard questions about what you want your life to be. He really impressed upon me that you can do anything, but do it for the Lord.”

His time in that program also led to the realization that he wanted to pursue a career focused on community development. His work seeks to answer the question: “How do we make families’ and residents’ lives better so they can reach their whole potential?”

That question has directed all his career moves, from an early-career job working for utility provider AES Corporation to working on affordable housing projects for the County of Fresno to his current role as Clovis city manager. He’s been with the City of Clovis for nearly two decades, initially in a position in which he was tasked with securing additional resources for the city in the form of housing, infrastructure and business development grants. In early 2025, after stints as the city’s economic development director and assistant city manager, Haussler was appointed city manager.

Employed by the Clovis City Council, the city manager runs the city’s day-to-day operations, overseeing teams that run city services like the fire and parks departments. “I was really not expecting to be city manager,” he says. “I was pretty happy doing development work. But I feel like God has placed me in this position for a reason. Ultimately, the city is providing a platform for families to reach their full potential, and I’m grateful to be in a position to provide a space for them to flourish.”

Thanks to FPU, Haussler has seen his own family and friendships flourish. A former roommate, Chris Tavarez (BA ’01), has remained close as they navigate similar career trajectories. (Tavarez is the interim city manager for the City of Hanford.)

“We’ve been bouncing ideas and issues off each other for the last 20-plus years, and we’re also able to talk about our families and how we’re balancing everything. It’s awesome to have someone with a similar value set and career and perspective on that career to talk through it with,” Haussler says of his long friendship with Tavarez.

But by far his best relationship to come out of FPU, he says, is the one with his wife, Lindsay (Lee, BA ’00). He recalls growing in faith together, noting that they were among the group of young people who first worshipped at Fresno’s The Well Community Church. Together, they have three children: Joy (20), Jacob (17) and Graham (14). When considering the ways FPU changed his life, he says, “everything else pales in comparison. She’s been a partner in ministry and supports me in my career and raising our family in values that FPU helped to shape.”