Eagle Excellence: January 2026

The Eagle Excellence column is launching today to recognize outstanding work that shines a positive light on Eastern Washington University and supports its transformational mission.

Developing technology to improve the lives of people with debilitating health conditions; gathering data to protect vulnerable wildlife populations; contributing to genomic findings that will advance our understanding of a crucial infectious-disease vector: these are just a few of the ways EWU faculty, staff and students have made a difference in recent weeks.

Here are the Eagle Excellence shout-outs for January 2026:

• Mathematics graduate student Jessica Doner and faculty advisor Frank Lynch are collaborating with Providence St. Luke’s and the EWU Computer Science Department to develop an Apple Watch–based tool aimed at anticipating agitation in PTSD and traumatic brain injury patients. This process traditionally requires electrocardiogram (ECG) equipment. Creating an app would increase access to patients in need of real-time, real-world monitoring to improve their quality of life.

• Grace Barthelmess, a master’s student and graduate service assistant in biology, recently worked with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife on a local project to capture and band wild birds and then release them to gather data on migration, survival, lifespan and population health. She helped select banding sites and deployed acoustic monitoring units and game cameras at Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge. Barthelmess helped band more than 200 ducks and geese, making the site one of the most productive in Washington this year. The activity helps researchers understand and protect bird populations.

• Biology Professor Krisztian Magori was part of a group of scientists that sequenced the genomes of both modern and historic samples of Culex pipiens, a mosquito common to our planet’s temperate regions. The study, published in the journal Science, shows how human impacts, such as agriculture and urbanization, have affected the genetics and evolution of this major vector for a number of disease-causing viruses.

• Student Success: Members of the Degree Completion Team presented EWU’s integration of EdSights student voice data within the Early Warning System at two national conferences. The team returned with new strategies to strengthen student belonging.

• Faculty Awards: The Schools of Business and Professional Accounting named their 2025 faculty award winners. Rajeev Dwivedi, visiting associate professor, received the Excellence in Research Award, and William Shaw, assistant professor, received the Excellence in Teaching Award.

**Please help us highlight the many successes at Eastern. Let us know about your own accomplishments or give a shout-out to a student or member of your team, by using this link to submit your recognition item.