Our region needs nurses. EWU’s $100 million ‘Build Our Future’ campaign is prioritizing solutions.

Something was wrong with 6-year-old Anthony Orozco. He was always tired. His belly hurt. He stopped jumping on his trampoline. His skin was turning blue.

Anthony’s dad rushed him to a Yakima clinic. A doctor pushed on his stomach, and Anthony cried out in pain. A nurse held his hand while someone poked his small arm with a long needle. The little hand squeezed the bigger hand: “It’s going to be okay, Anthony,” the nurse said.

Soon the doctor delivered the diagnosis: childhood leukemia, a form of cancer. Anthony and his mom boarded a helicopter that day to Seattle Children’s Hospital. They would spend the next 14 months in treatment there.

Through it all, Anthony remembers friendly nurses calming his fears and making him smile. “The nurses were super helpful, caring and loving. They left a huge impact on me. Since the day I became cancer free and got to go home, I knew I wanted to become a nurse when I grew up,” says Anthony, 21, now a junior in the EWU School of Nursing and a recipient of the EWU Nursing Scholarship.

Everyone — from birth to end of life — will need a nurse’s help. Unfortunately, there is a nationwide critical shortage of nurses. The federal Health Resources and Services Administration recently projected a gap of close to 64,000 full-time registered nurses by 2030.

After graduating its first cohort of 40 students last spring, EWU’s School of Nursing, housed in the SIERR Building in Spokane’s University District, is now teaching four cohorts simultaneously, meaning 80 students could graduate each year with a fully accredited Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree.

Want to support students like Anthony Orozco and help ensure our region is adequately staffed with nurses? Find a scholarship or program fund at ewu.edu/give/funds. You can also make a transformational gift by naming the School of Nursing, a classroom, study area, skills lab or other space. Contact Kaarin Appel, EWU senior director of philanthropy for the College of Health Science and Public Health, at kappel@ewu.edu or  (509) 220-4418.

‘Eagfunder’ will help students and faculty members bring their ideas to life.

Especially when budgets are tight, even the most promising projects can face significant funding challenges. Eastern students and faculty now have a new way to turn their dreams into reality — by enlisting the Eagle community to chip in.

EagFunder is a new crowdfunding platform designed to help raise funds for projects, events, research, competitions and service initiatives. It’s designed to efficiently connect the Eagle community—including alumni, parents, faculty, staff and friends—with opportunities to invest directly in student experiences and academic innovation.

“Crowdfunding has become a powerful way to connect passion with philanthropy,” said Linda Safford, the senior director of annual giving at EWU, who led the platform’s launch.

Students, faculty and staff who seek to launch their own campaign can apply through the EagFunder website. After approval, project teams receive training and guidance from EWU’s Annual Giving office to ensure they are prepared to engage supporters and maximize results. A key strength of EagFunder is its emphasis on personal networks, says Safford. Successful crowdfunding begins with project leaders reaching out to the people they know best—friends, family, classmates, colleagues and alumni connections. By building on trusted connections, she says, project leaders can turn individual relationships into broader communities of support.

One of the first campaigns to take advantage of the platform, a drive to install new diving boards in the EWU Aquatics Center, has already received a $10,000 gift that brought it close to completion of its $11,500 goal.

Other projects underway include funding to support the comeback of business fraternity Alpha Kappa Psi, support for the EWU wheelchair basketball team, and conference travel expenses for physical therapy and occupational therapy student associations. You can check out the live projects now at eagfunder.ewu.edu.

“EagFunder gives our students and faculty the opportunity to tell their stories,” Safford says. “It will also inspire gifts that make a difference.”

A gift opens doors for students aiming to study ‘America’s best idea.’

Giving Joy Day is an annual fundraiser that — along with its other worthy goals — aims to encourage a joyful approach to building financial support for Eagle students. This year’s event, held on Eastern’s 143rd birthday, was its most successful ever, with donor’s committing more than $900,000 by day’s end.

Among the more notable contributions was that of EWU’s own Bill Youngs, a long-serving professor of history with a keen scholarly and personal interest in our nation’s public lands.   

Youngs’ 2025 Giving Joy Day gift provided funding to establish the “Youngs Endowment for National Park Studies,” a program that will provide resources to students seeking to experience both work and study in these treasured natural landscapes.

Though the creation of the endowment was a closely guarded secret, the big Giving Joy Day reveal didn’t surprise Youngs’ friends and former students. Not only is Youngs’ philanthropic bent well established, his parks-related scholarship is respected across the nation. What’s more, in recent years he has become well known for an online history course that is often taught from inside the boundaries of the very parks he’s highlighting.

“I care about the National Parks because they are beautiful in their own right and because their founding is the result of some of the best instincts in American public life,” Youngs says. “It may sound corny, but when I think of the parks, I think of the reverential tone of America the Beautiful —  of ’crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea.’ ”

The endowment will take Youngs’ passion for national parks and experiential learning a step further, says Shari McMahan, EWU’s president, opening doors for students of all backgrounds to gain knowledge and build careers — all while helping care for this precious public resource.

“Dr. Youngs has spent his entire career investing in our students, and this endowment is an incredible extension of that commitment,” McMahan adds. “Thanks to his generosity, more students will have the chance to learn by doing, whether in our national parks or other real-world settings. We’re so grateful for all he has done, and continues to do, for EWU.”

‘Build Our Future: The Campaign for Eastern’ tops $75 million … and counting.

In the few short months since EWU announced the public phase of its first-ever comprehensive campaign, Eagles everywhere have rallied to support the university. To date, donors have stepped up to pledge more than $75 million of EWU’s $100 million goal, with more gifts arriving daily.

That willingness to “be there” for Eastern is not a surprise. Since the university’s earliest days, the generosity of its supporters has been woven into its DNA. “Build Our Future: The Campaign for Eastern” offers a unique opportunity for alumni and friends to cement their own Eastern legacy by adding their support to these already impressive totals. “Together, we are building a brighter future for our students and the communities we serve,” says EWU President Shari McMahan.

Such a future, she adds, will be transformative for both Eagle students and the communities they will serve as graduates. “Our goal is to make an applied learning experience the hallmark of an EWU degree, ensuring that every student has the opportunity to participate in hands-on learning that prepares them for a good-paying job and a meaningful career,” she says.

View a complete PDF of the 2023-24 EWU Foundation Annual Report.

A successful Giving Joy Day commemorates an Eastern anniversary.

Eastern has for decades celebrated the anniversary of its founding during the first week of April. In more recent years, EWU’s birthday celebration has included an opportunity for Eagles to mark the occasion by giving gifts of support.

Giving Joy Day brings together both the spirit of service and the generosity of donors. It now serves as the university’s largest, single-day philanthropic event, raising funds that fill crucial gaps for students and programs. “Last year, we raised more than $456,000 for student scholarships and program support,” says Linda Safford, EWU’s director of annual giving. “With our community’s help, this year we exceeded our $500,000 goal — funds that will go right to work helping our students stay in school and earn their degrees.”

Samuel Steege is one of those students. For this year’s event, Steege, a hardworking 22-year-old communications studies major, took a moment to share his story — and his gratitude — for the supporters who helped him continue along his path to an EWU degree.

With our community’s help, this year we exceeded our $500,000 goal — funds that will go right to work helping our students stay in school and earn their degrees.

On a breezy day last August, Steege says, he was working the afternoon shift at Cheney’s Farmhouse Café when his cellphone started buzzing. It was an urgent call from his dad. A fire had started along Gray Road near Medical Lake, his father said. Steege raced home to help evacuate.

Two hours later, that fire destroyed their home. Thankfully, no family members or pets were injured. Steege didn’t rely solely on his parents to support his education, but their assistance played a crucial part in making ends meet. When the fire made further financial help impossible, the EWU Student Emergency Fund — one of the many worthy causes supported by Giving Joy Day donors — stepped up to fill the gap.

“It feels good to know that there are resources to help in such a crazy, unexpected time like this,” says Steege, who is one step closer to his dream career in sports communication thanks, in part, to those “genuinely nice people” who support EWU students.

Giving Joy Day 2024 is over, but you can still join in the joy. Visit ewu.edu/give to learn more.

View a complete PDF of the 2023-24 EWU Foundation Annual Report.

Spokane’s historic SIERR building sees new life as a high-tech center for the health sciences.

In its day, the Spokane and Inland Empire Railroad was among the most popular regional “interurbans” in Washington, using its electric rail cars to connect thousands of passengers to points between Spokane and Moscow, Idaho.

Cars eventually doomed the service. But its gorgeous, expertly restored rail-repair facility remains in downtown Spokane, a red-brick landmark that — thanks in part to EWU’s participation — is now home to new forms of community service.

Earlier this fall EWU’s new School of Nursing, along with its Department of Communications Sciences and Disorders, set up shop in the building, officially known as the Spokane and Inland Empire Railroad building, or SIERR. For both programs, the move promises to up the ante on collaborative learning experiences.

Earlier this fall EWU’s new School of Nursing, along with its Department of Communications Sciences and Disorders, set up shop in the building, officially known as the Spokane and Inland Empire Railroad building, or SIERR.

An Oct. 24 ribbon cutting and open house event brought together many of those responsible for both the SIERR restoration and Eastern’s move to the facility. Among them was Dean Allen, chief executive officer of McKinstry Co.

Allen — a visionary health-care advocate and developer of energy efficient buildings — was the force behind turning the 70,000-square-foot building into, first, an LEED-certified office space and, now, a state-of-the-art health science education center. He had long championed the redevelopment of the aging SIERR structure. McKinstry purchased it for its own Spokane home in 2006, and it soon became a model of efficiency, demonstrating that historic buildings can, as Allen says, “be gentle on the environment and serve as exemplars for others to follow.”

More recently, Allen said he was determined to move his company’s operations out of the building to make way for a health-sciences focused “innovation hub.”

“The hardest thing about this project,” Allen told visitors at the ribbon cutting, “was explaining to the people of McKinstry that we wanted to make a real impact in health education. And that to make a difference in rural health equity, we needed to leave our building.”

For Eastern students and faculty (who are joined at SIERR by programs from UW and Gonzaga) being under one roof will indeed provide great opportunities to collaborate, said Lindsay Williams, an EWU lecturer and off-site placement coordinator. “Our classrooms are fantastic — and our technology works all the time. I also like that we are all together,” she said.

David Bowman, dean of the College of Science, Technology and Mathematics and interim dean of the College of Health Science and Public Health, thanked political leaders for their support, while emphasizing the impact Eastern’s nursing graduates will have in the region. And yet, he said, SIERR, and the work happening there, will be much bigger than one program or even one university.

“The vision for this building is really interprofessional,” he said. “It is truly a place for collaboration.”

This year’s Giving Joy Day, the eighth installment of Eastern’s annual service and philanthropy event, saw Eagles from 23 different states make more than 500 gifts to support 110 different university funds.

By events’ end, the university had raised more than $450,000 to support student scholarships and aid programs, according to Linda Safford, senior director for annual giving.

Safford said there were many “generous and happy surprises” during the 2023 event, which is scheduled each year to coincide with EWU’s birthday on April 3. The local office of Gemini Corp., for example, gave $10,000 to benefit EWU design students, while an anonymous donor kicked in $10,000 toward the student-athlete nutrition station (which joins a $70,000 gift from Gatorade | PepsiCo Partners).

The event isn’t just about fundraising, however. As part of what is now a Giving Joy Day tradition, a team of Eastern staff and alumni volunteers spread Eagle affection in the days prior to the event by bringing balloons, chocolates and swag to alumni-owned businesses in Cheney and Spokane. 

Back on campus, meanwhile, students showed their gratitude by providing poignant stories about the life-changing impact of scholarships in interviews posted on the Giving Joy Day website and social-media channels. Students also braved chilly temperatures to manage a booth where currently enrolled Eagles wrote thank you notes to those whose support made their scholarships possible.

“Personally, as a scholarship student, I am so incredibly amazed at so much generosity towards our scholarship programs – and we are very, very thankful,” said Lucas Fyre, president of the Associated Students of EWU.

Lucas Fyre, president of the Associated Students of EWU, later offered up his own message of thanks. “Personally, as a scholarship student, I am so incredibly amazed at so much generosity towards our scholarship programs – and we are very, very thankful,” said Fyre, a 21-year-old psychology major from Spokane Valley. “Thank you so much to everybody.”

EWU President Shari McMahan also weighed in with her appreciation: “Thank you all for providing and sustaining scholarships that will help our students persist in their education. Your support is very, very important,” she said.

Miss your chance to join in the joy? Visit us at ewu.edu/give to learn how you can help.

Eastern’s new “online-only” master’s degree in history is attracting national interest.

History studies at Eastern has a long track record of success, placing graduates in important jobs across the Inland Northwest and throughout the nation. But in recent years lagging enrollment for graduate studies led administrators to make a little history of their own.

This November, EWU’s Department of History introduced an online-only master’s degree program, one of just a handful available nationwide. Already more than 100 graduate students from across the country have enrolled. “It’s been a tremendous success,” says Larry Cebula, an EWU professor of history and one of the founders of the online program.

  The robust online enrollment numbers weren’t a surprise, says Cebula, given the ongoing interest of students looking to the past for their professional futures.

 “A master’s in history has always been a really valuable degree,” he says, adding that Eastern MA recipients, among other desirable jobs, are working as archivists (including at Spokane’s Museum of Arts and Culture), serving in state government and doing historic preservation.

Theresa Mitchell, a Massachusetts resident who works in environmental non-profit management and as a writer specializing in historical nonfiction, is among the program’s first class of students.  

“Throughout my professional life, what was missing was formal training as a historian,” Mitchell says. “I want to approach future work with proper credentials, instead of ‘merely’ writing about the past, as would a journalist.” 

Mitchell says she searched for a year before discovering EWU’s online master’s degree program. She describes it as a “great fit,” and praises the diverse points-of-view she encounters. “The caliber of my fellow students inspires me to do my best,” she says. 

“Throughout my professional life, what was missing was formal training as a historian,” Mitchell says. “I want to approach future work with proper credentials, instead of ‘merely’ writing about the past, as would a journalist.” 

 

One unique feature of the EWU’s online offering is its compressed classes. Typically graduate classes in history run over a 10-week period, but those for Eastern’s degree are only six weeks long. The shorter term, however, doesn’t mean less demanding requirements, Cebula says. “This is not less, this is more. These students work really hard.” 

For students like Mitchell, the hard work is part of the attraction. “The curriculum perfectly suits my learning objectives. The coursework is challenging and I’m grateful for intelligent, kind and compassionate professors invested in their students’ success.”