Rate My Professor Bruce Heyen

Bruce Heyen, Ph.D., serves as Chair of the Department of Chemistry and Geosciences and Professor of Chemistry at Olivet Nazarene University in the Walker School of STEM. He earned a B.S. in 1986 from Abilene Christian University, an M.S. in 1988, and a Ph.D. in 1991, both from Northwestern University. Heyen joined Olivet Nazarene University's full-time faculty in 2016, bringing more than 25 years of prior experience as a university professor, including a position in the Chemistry Department at Tabor College. He teaches general chemistry, biochemistry, analytical chemistry, and introductory chemistry. Heyen is a member of the American Chemical Society and has chaired the Pence-Boyce Research Committee, overseeing summer research projects for students.

Heyen has completed three sabbaticals centered on biochemistry, organic synthesis, and chemical education. He has collaborated with fellow biochemistry educators on initiatives to enhance teaching and assessment in the field. Notable contributions include co-authoring 'Identification of Threshold Concepts for Biochemistry' published in 2014 in CBE—Life Sciences Education and 'Development and use of a construct map framework to support teaching and assessment of noncovalent interactions in a biochemical context' in 2018 in Chemistry Education Research and Practice. Other key publications encompass 'Probing and improving student's understanding of protein α-helix' in 2014, 'Design and Implementation of a Tool to Assess Students’ Understanding of Metabolic Pathways, Dynamics, and Regulation' in 2021, and 'Combustion of Diamond to Carbon Dioxide Followed by Quantitative Gas Chromatography' in 2012. His 16 publications have garnered 578 citations, reflecting impact in chemical education and biochemistry pedagogy. At Olivet, Heyen mentors undergraduate students in research, such as investigations into point mutants of malate dehydrogenase and regulatory enzymes potentially disrupting cancer cell growth.