Cougar Queries: "Work Hard, But Play Hard Too" - BYU News Skip to main content
Intellect

Cougar Queries: "Work Hard, But Play Hard Too"

Cougar Queries is a series profiling BYU employees by asking them a few simple questions about their work, interests and life

Name: Heather Chewning
BYU employee since: August 2008
My job at BYU is? Romney Institute of Public Management Program Coordinator (BYUMPA)

Currently I'm working on... a new recruiting strategy. We're making some big changes to how we think about and approach getting our story out into the world. It's really exciting!

I'm currently reading... Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin. 

I get most excited about my work when... I get to work with our phenomenal Masters of Public Administration (MPA) students. They are so talented, creative, smart, and just an overall joy to work with.

I love it when students ask me... why they should get an MPA from BYU. I wonder, "How much time do you have?"

My advice to incoming freshman is... take every opportunity to enjoy the journey. Don't get so caught up in the "work" that life passes you by. Work hard, but play hard too.

My favorite professor was... Steven Harper [of the Church History and Doctrine department]. He teaches with such passion, power, and precision I can't help but be inspired. 

The best-kept BYU secret is... the BYU MPA Program. We aren't keeping it a secret on purpose, but we're still learning how to best get the word out.

The title of my autobiography would be... Choose You This Day

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Know of another Cougar we should feature? Email Emily Hellewell.

Heather Chewning
Photo by BYU Photo

Related Articles

data-content-type="article"

BYU’s 2025 awards season honors student standouts

May 15, 2025
Rise and shout! Across various disciplines, BYU students have been recognized for their world-class accomplishments.
overrideBackgroundColorOrImage= overrideTextColor= promoTextAlignment= overrideCardHideSection=false overrideCardHideByline=false overrideCardHideDescription=false overridebuttonBgColor= overrideButtonText= promoTextAlignment=
data-content-type="article"

Student inventors help BYU rank as a top U.S. university for newly-issued patents

May 12, 2025
Brigham Young University was just ranked as one of the Top 100 universities in the nation for most issued patents. But the new ranking from the National Academy of Inventors isn’t the story for BYU; it’s who holds the patents.
overrideBackgroundColorOrImage= overrideTextColor= promoTextAlignment= overrideCardHideSection=false overrideCardHideByline=false overrideCardHideDescription=false overridebuttonBgColor= overrideButtonText= promoTextAlignment=
data-content-type="article"

BYU research: Your beliefs about money may reveal clues about your relationship

May 07, 2025
Everyone holds their own beliefs about money – what it’s for, how much we need and how to use it. But a new study from researchers at BYU says personal beliefs about money also shape the health of your relationship.
overrideBackgroundColorOrImage= overrideTextColor= promoTextAlignment= overrideCardHideSection=false overrideCardHideByline=false overrideCardHideDescription=false overridebuttonBgColor= overrideButtonText= promoTextAlignment=
overrideBackgroundColorOrImage= overrideTextColor= promoTextAlignment= overrideCardHideSection=false overrideCardHideByline=false overrideCardHideDescription=false overridebuttonBgColor= overrideButtonText=