She works as a writer and communications consultant to Fortune "Top 50" global health companies and nonprofits, specializing in storytelling and profiles. Professor Heyn established this niche through her longtime reporting at People, where she worked from 1998-2006 as a staff correspondent and then contributor who focused on in-depth profiles. Professor Heyn has written for numerous publications, including Gannett Suburban Newspapers, where she was an award-winning political reporter, Newsday and Parenting. Professor Heyn earned her master's at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, where she served as a longtime judge for its annual social justice award. At NYU since 2001, her classes include "Profiles," "Journalistic Inquiry" and “Covering Food: From Farm to Fork.”