Eastern Washington University

Eastern Washington University

File:Seal.PNG Seal of Eastern Washington University
Former names	Benjamin P. Cheney Academy State Normal School at Cheney Eastern Washington College of Education Eastern Washington State College
Motto	Start Something Big
Type	Public
Established	April 2, 1882
Endowment	US$52,177,934
President	Dr. Rodolfo Arévalo
Vice-president	Dorothy Zeisler-Vralsted
Provost	Dr. Rex Fuller
Academic staff	684
Students	10,750
Undergraduates	8,548
Postgraduates	1,312
Location	Cheney , Washington , United States
Campus	Rural College Town 300 Acres (1,214,056 m²)
Colors	Red & White
Nickname	Eagles
Affiliations	Big Sky Conference
Mascot	Swoop
Website	http://www.ewu.edu
File:Wordmark-of-Eastern-Washington-University.png

Eastern Washington University is a public comprehensive state university. The main campus is located in Cheney with a branch campus in Spokane, Washington. As of fall quarter 2009, it had an enrollment of 10,504.

Eastern offers more than 100 fields of study, 10 master's degrees, seven graduate certificates, 55 graduate programs of study and an applied doctoral program of physical therapy. Eastern offers degree programs in Bellevue, Everett, Kent, Seattle, Shoreline, Tacoma, Vancouver and Yakima. A master's in social work is offered in Everett, Vancouver, and Yakima, and a master's in education is available in Kent. A creative writing Master of Fine Arts, Interdisciplinary Studies, Child & Family Outreach Program, Communication Studies, Social Work Program (part-time Master's), Journalism, Alcohol & Drug Studies, and Counseling Education & Developmental Psychology programs are offered in Spokane.

History

EWU was established in 1882 by a $10,000 grant from expressman Benjamin Pierce Cheney, and was originally known as Benjamin P. Cheney Academy to honor its founder. In 1889 the school was renamed State Normal School and in 1937 to Eastern Washington College of Education. The campus grew quickly in size following World War II. The school became Eastern Washington State College. During this era, Eastern added various graduate and undergraduate degree programs. In 1977, the school's name was changed for the final time to Eastern Washington University by the Washington State Legislature.

Academics

Rankings

• Consumers Digest has ranked Eastern as a national Top 50 Best Value school. Eastern has also made three consecutive appearances in 201 Best Colleges For the Real World.

Research institutes and centers

• Institute for Public Policy & Economic Analysis—created in 2002 to "provide data and analysis about a variety of factors in the region that will be useful for businesses, communities and others as they plan for the future." Headed by Patrick Jones, Ph.D.
• Women's' Studies Center—Women's Studies programs at EWU empower women to achieve dignity and justice through education, scholarship, and social change.
• Eisenhower Center/International Field Study—A program designed for students to travel abroad while earning college credit.
• English Language Institute—ELI is committed to enabling qualified international students who have chosen to come to this program to integrate into the mainstream of higher education.
• Center for Farm Health & Safety—Conducts research and demonstration programs involving Health and Safety of Farm based population groups.

Athletics

File:EasternWashingtonEagles.png

Eastern Eagles athletic logo.

Roos Field

See: Eastern Washington Eagles football team
See: EWU–UM Governors Cup
See: The Dam Cup

Eastern's sports mascot is the Eagle, named "Swoop," and its colors are red and white. The former mascot of the school was the "Savages", which was dropped in 1973 when the student body voted to change to the Eagles. (See Native American mascot controversy.) EWU athletic teams participate in the Big Sky Conference at the NCAA Division I (I - FCS for football) level. The club hockey team participates in the American Collegiate Hockey Association, Division II, Western Region. The club baseball team is in its 14th year of participation in the National Collegiate Baseball Association, Western Mountain Conference West. The Division I baseball program was dropped in 1992. The Men's Soccer Team Participates in the NIRSA NCCSL and was 2007 Region VI Champions.

The EWU football team plays at Roos Field, recently expanded and renovated in 2005 to seat 12,000 with a grass turf. The grass surface was replaced for the 2010 season with a red Sprinturf field. The field was originally named after one of the university's first head coaches, but after a $500,000 donation by former EWU player and current NFL player, Michael Roos starting offensive tackle for the NFL's Tennessee Titans, the field was renamed in 2010. Quarterback Erik Meyer, who played from 2001–2005, won the Walter Payton Award in 2005 for the best player in Division I-AA football and set the I-AA career passing efficiency record at 166.5.

The Eagles basketball and volleyball teams also compete on nearby Reese Court in the Special Events Pavilion, with a capacity of 6,000. The university's most prominent sports have traditionally been its football and men's basketball teams with the women's volleyball team having some good years, finishing the season in the Division 1 top 25 in 2003 (oddly, because they lost the Big Sky Championship game, they were the only top 25 team excluded from the tournament). Originally an NAIA school until joining the Big Sky Conference, the Eagles gained major prominence in the NAIA and Division II winning National and Regional championships, including a National championship in Wrestling (the sport was dropped in the 80's). In 2007, point guard Rodney Stuckey was drafted 15th overall by the Detroit Pistons. The Kentwood High School standout ended up at EWU when he failed to meet NCAA requirements.

The Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League held the majority of their summer training camps at EWU, 1976–1985 and from 1997–2006, from late July to mid August.

Rivalry games

The EWU-UM Governors Cup is the annual college football game between the University of Montana Grizzlies and the Eastern Washington University Eagles. Traditionally, it is in the middle of the regular season, played on the Saturday alternating between Roos Field and Washington-Grizzly Stadium each year. EWU also has a new rivalry with the Portland State Vikings called The Dam Cup, which also serves as a five-sport rivalry.

See: EWU–UM Governors Cup
See: The Dam Cup

National championships

• 1977-Wrestling (NAIA)
• 1982-Men's Cross Country (NCAA Division II)
• 2010-Men's Football (NCAA Division I FCS)

Famous faculty and alumni

• Ernie Afaganis, Canadian sportscaster, particularly for CBC Television
• Jesse Chatman, running back for the New York Jets of the National Football League.
• Dave Christensen, head football coach for University of Wyoming.
• Elizabeth Cook-Lynn, Native American activist and writer.
• Betsy Speare, is Principal Program Manager Lead at Microsoft, spearheading the planning for the future version of Windows Server. Speare was named "Microsoft Women Worth Watching", by ZDnet in 2010.
• Mark Running, president of Roy's Hawaiian Fusion Restaurants, with 31 Roy's locations around the world - 23 in the continental U.S., six in Hawaii, one in Japan and one in Guam.
• Colin Cowherd, current host of The Herd with Colin Cowherd on ESPN Radio and SportsNation on ESPN2.
• DeNique Ford, Former AFL2 player for the Spokane Shock
• Thomas Hampson, Grammy-nominated opera singer.
• Todd McFarlane, creator of the Spawn comic book series and current co-owner of the NHL's Edmonton Oilers.
• Launi Meili, gold medalist in women’s three-position smallbore rifle shooting at the 1992 Summer Olympics.
• Aaron Olson, Australian NBL player for the New Zealand Breakers
• Jeff Ogden, Former NFL Wide Receiver
• Michael Roos, starting offensive tackle for the NFL's Tennessee Titans.
• Kurt Schulz, NFL player
• Rodney Stuckey, NBA player for the Detroit Pistons
• Isaiah Trufant, UFL player for the Las Vegas Locomotives, younger brother of Seattle Seahawks cornerback, Marcus Trufant.
• Raul Vijil, AFL player for the Spokane Shock
• Jess Walter, acclaimed author
• Lee Watkinson, professional poker player.
• Scott West, United States Army general.
• Chris Crutcher, acclaimed author of several young adult novels
• Wayne Havrelly, TV News Anchor/Investigative Reporter at KGW previous NW stations include KIRO and KHQ
• Ed Simmons, NFL 11 yrs Washington Redskins one of the 'Hogs'.
• Scott Elnes, TV Weatherman at KTUU-TV, Anchorage, AK
• Edward Kienholz, american installation artist
• Brandon Hansen, co-founder of Just South of North.com
• Casey Knopik, co-founder of Just South of North.com

External links

• Official Site
• EWU Eagles on Facebook
• EWU Eagles on Twitter
• Eastern on Linkedin
• EWU Photo on Flickr
• EWU Video on YouTube