In this week’s letter from the President, BYU has revealed that they are beginning a new initiative called “Put Your Shoulder to the Wheel.” The initiative, in the form of a required app all BYU students must download, is meant to increase BYU students’ engagement with the “BYU experience,” by increasing the amount of homework a student is assigned, based on how much time they spend at work or any other non-BYU related activities.

In a statement to the press, BYU administrative staff member Philip Seamore wrote “We are honestly disgusted that BYU students spend more than 15 hours a week doing non-BYU related work and activities. This is contrary to the schools’ mission of bringing students closer to Christ; because being away from BYU means being farther away from the Lord.” He continued, “the end goal of this initiative is to make the BYU experience so all-consuming that doing anything outside of it is impossible.”

“Put Your Shoulder to the Wheel” does not penalize students for time spent in BYU jobs or BYU clubs. BYU economists hope that this will create an incentive for BYU students to spend less time away from the sanctified ground that is BYU, where they can spend time doing what truly matters: searching for an Eternal Companion.

While it is unknown exactly how much the initiative will increase homework workloads, BYU is expected to approach this initiative with the same dedication that the BYU football team has to winning games, and the same prudence BYU brings to the development of Learning Suite.