A Season to Remember
up front
Dear Alumni and Friends: What an exciting year! Our athletic seasons were amazing. We hosted four thousand people on campus for the National Council on Undergraduate Research. We continue to see strong enrollment. Campuses in Cheney and Spokane are thriving. On May 1, the campus and community came together for my investiture. The beautifully organized event underscored the serious role of a university president but also highlighted our diverse campus and the talents of our students and faculty. At that event, I outlined a vision for EWU. I stressed that, as economic and social realities change, as our students change, our academic offerings and student supports will reflect and anticipate those changes. We’ll also provide a dynamic environment for faculty and staff, enhanced opportunities to learn and work together. EWU can become known nationally for the exceptional ways we foster professional and intellectual life. We’ll strategically strengthen connections with educational and business partners. I’m creating a President’s Regional Advisory Council composed of leaders who will provide counsel and ideas regarding the university’s community engagement and long-term strategies. As part of our commitment to our region, Eastern will be a leader in environmental sustainability. I’m particularly delighted that we’re exploring opportunities for a living building, a nationally recognized sustainability center that reflects the most advanced approaches to sustainability possible today. We’re also continuing to craft a fundraising campaign for the Gateway project, transforming our stadium to be an even more vibrant addition to the university and community. Fundraising for scholarships is crucial to Eastern’s future. In the fall, we’ll launch Inspire Awesome: the scholarship campaign for EWU students. The campaign will reach out to thousands of people around the state and around the globe as well as close to home. Our goal, in three years, is to generate $5 million of additional scholarship support over what we now provide for students. My husband, Jeffrey, and I are excited to provide a matching lead gift of $50,000. For every dollar that comes in from EWU faculty and staff, we will match dollar for dollar up to $50,000. At Eastern Washington University, we’re not just starting something big. We’re doing something big. Thank you so much for all your enthusiasm and support. Go Eagles!
Mary Cullinan, President Eastern Washington University
Mission Statement: EWU expands opportunities for personal transformation through excellence in learning.
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features
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The Promise of Our Future
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EWU’s Capitol Investment
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Eagles Reach Rarified Air
Investiture of President Cullinan
Helping shape state policies
Men’s basketball team – a season to remember
Alumni bring life to the student cheering section
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Cybersecurity
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Publicist to the Stars
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Social Work Alumni Give Back
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Flight Club Takes Off
EWU graduates on the forefront of new enterprise
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Jessica Boyer finds rewarding career at the Oprah Winfrey Network Graduates continue to participate in the EWU experience
on the cover Eagles Celebrate Big Sky Tournament Championship - Photo courtesy Ryan Donckers
departments
2 up front 4 letters to the editor 6 on the road 8 eastern etc. 30 faces & places 37 class notes 45 in memoriam 46 final thoughts 47 events calendar
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Letters to the editor write to us
Send your letters or notes to easternmagazine@ewu.edu or to Eastern magazine, 300 Showalter Hall, Cheney, WA 99004. Letters are edited for clarity, style and length. Please include your full name and address.
Kudos for the winter issue of Eastern magazine I just wanted to take a moment to congratulate Jeff Bunch on his excellent piece on Jess Walter (Citizen Jess). He really captured what that dude’s all about while also making certain the reader understands how much he has accomplished – just a tremendous article. I also enjoyed his story on the photographer, Dustin Snipes (Behind the Lens). I had no idea he was from Eastern. Last but certainly not least, I want to thank Kandi Carper for her story on Sonya (Gaubinger) Elliott (Peace, Love, Basketball). Count me among the thousands of young men who constantly drooled in her presence when attending Eastern. She always seemed like a really nice person. I’m so happy she overcame that horrible tragedy – very inspiring. Howie Stalwick ’77 Post Falls, Idaho I enjoyed your article on Jess Walter (Citizen Jess). It makes me happy that a hometown boy has achieved the success he has. As a fellow graduate of his two alma maters, East Valley High School and EWU, it feels even better. For most of my life, it seemed like my high school, my college, and my hometown suffered from an inferiority complex. More likely, it was a reflection of self, but as Walter says, Spokane and its schools, including Eastern, have a lot going for them. Maybe we’ve always been a bit of a cultural backwater and too provincial, but it’s changing. The likes of Jess Walter, Sherman Alexie and many talented young people coming up have put Spokane on the map. I love it here and hey, we do have highways and an airport - we’re not that isolated. Thanks for the article and thanks for your writing, Jess. Dick Shute ‘04 Otis Orchards, Washington Thank you for publishing the wonderful article about Abe Ferris (Manic or Not, Here I Come). When I was on the (Spokane City) council for 10 years, I remember meeting Abe and getting to know him. He was devoted to his family and to his job in city hall, and was truly a wonderful man. It was wonderful to read about his life and to see that he is still making a big difference in our community. Nice to see the photo of his wife and daughter as well and sending prayers to his brother. Sheri Barnard (Mayor of Spokane, 1990-94) Spokane, Washington Congratulations to Attorney Francis Adewale, a man of excellence (Paying it Forward). Glory to God for his life. Many more accolades to his name in the future. Dr. Olugbemiga Ekundayo, EWU associate professor of Public Health
EASTERN
SPRING 2015
THE MAGAZINE for Eastern Washington University Alumni and Friends
Editor Kandi Carper ’05 ART DIRECTOR Ryan Gaard ’02 Contributing Writers Jeff Bunch ’88, Kandi Carper ’05, Lisa Leinberger ’98, Dave Cook, Dave Meany Contributing designers Ginny Baxter ’05, Steve Bateman Copy Editors Jeff Bunch ‘88, Ruth reynolds Photography David Lane, Pat Spanjer ’80, Jeff Bunch ‘88, Austen Frostad
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Editorial Board Steve Blewett ’69, Cassie Devaney ’96, Brendan Genther ’00, Karene Garlich-Loman ’03, ‘98, Nick Lawhead ’07, Lisa Leinberger ’98, Kayla Northrop ’08, Robin Pickering ’03, ’97, Nancy Tsutakawa ’70 Vice President for University Advancement Michael Westfall Director of Alumni Advancement Lisa Poplawski ’01, ’94 Director OF marketing & Communications Teresa Conway EWU Alumni Board President Tom Capaul ’97, ‘94
Contact Us Email: easternmagazine@ewu.edu Phone: 509.359.6422 Write: Eastern Magazine, 102 Hargreaves, Cheney, WA 99004-2413 Eastern magazine is published fall, winter and spring by EWU Marketing & Communications, and is mailed free to alumni of record in the United States. View this and previous issues online at www.ewu.edu/easternmagazine.
SUPPORT THE EWU ALUMNI ASSOCIATION WITH EVERY PURCHASE!
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on the road with eastern magazine Where will Eastern magazine be spotted next? You are invited to send photographs holding up the latest issue. Include some information about yourself with your submission. We may not be able to publish every submission. Extras will be posted on the Eastern magazine Facebook page and on the magazine’s website. Send to easternmagazine@ewu.edu or Eastern Magazine, 102 Hargreaves Hall, Cheney, WA 99004-2413.
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A Molly Gwinn ’09, Bryan Utigard, Cherie Gwinn ’05 and Jamie Gwinn ’05, celebrated Cherie and Jamie’s 10th wedding anniversary on the island of St. Lucia. Jamie is the EWU University Recreation Center operations manager. They took a photo of Mike Campitelli ’00, ’97, director for Campus Recreation, with them. B A group of ladies celebrated a future Eagle (baby shower) in Airway Heights, Washington. L-R: Kiersten Nielsen ’12; Kendal Coscia; Morgan Walker; Brandi Abrams ’13; Hannah Long ’13; Kaitlyn (Seth) Garza ‘13 (with the magazine and carrying the future Eagle. Father is David Garza ’13); Jordyne Duncan; Kaitlyn Absher; Michelle Weeks; Samantha Armstrong Ash (EWU’s Associate Director for SAIL); Stephanie Saulnier ’13; Kinda Marker; Briana Hess, ’15 and Kylee Welch. C Donna Berschauer Papera ’73, visited Vienna, Austria. She’s photographed in front of a statue commemorating the end of the plague in 1679. D Tom Clark ’87, and Dave Clark ’91, spent a week in Death Valley, California. They rode their motorcycles through Titus Canyon, Badwater Basin, Aguereberry Point and Dante’s View. N
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E Mark Bergman ’84 and his wife, Shelley, on the island of St. Martin in February. The couple lives in Anaheim, California. This fall their sons, Tanner and Tyler, will be attending Eastern. F Kathleen Snyder Currier ’83, ’75, is retiring after 37 years of teaching. She and her husband, Mark, celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary snorkeling off the coast of Belize. G Vern Reynolds ’71 is the coach of the 2015 Oregon State Championship Cheerleaders from Kamath Falls, Oregon. He was a member of Eastern’s gymnastics team that placed 2nd in the NAIA National Championships in 1965. H Jerry Mellick ’67, visited the USS Arizona Memorial, located at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Hawaii, in February. I Taunya Brown ’94 and Ron Brown ’94, vacationed in Kauai in February. Taunya is the principal of Orchard Middle School in Wenatchee and Ron is director of instructional technology and assessment for the Wenatchee School District.
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J Laura Glasgow ‘13, Samantha Harwood ‘14, and Nicole Huth ‘11, ‘13 at Walt Disney World. Laura attends graduate school at the University of West Florida, Samantha attends graduate school at Clemson University, and Nicole is a school counselor in Cloverdale, Oregon.
K Catherine Moss ’10, ’06, and her daughter, Amanda Gimbel ’05, in Nosara, Costa, Rica. Catherine is the executive assistant to EWU President Mary Cullinan. Amanda is a senior associate with Gavrilov Law Corporation in Sacramento, California. L Gary Greenwood ’00 and April (Franck) Greenwood ’02, ’00, at the Colorado River while backpacking rim-to-rim-to-rim at the Grand Canyon. M Gayle ’74 and Mike Van Matre ’76, with their daughter and son-in-law, Kelli ’02 and Sean Crooks ’01, and granddaughters Charlotte and Olivia, visited Lovers’ Beach in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, in March. N Bill Shaw ‘73, and his wife, Diane ‘91, at Machu Picchu, in Peru, in April. They are both retired from EWU and are enjoying retirement. O Frederick Adebayo ’80, visited Olumo Rock, a historic place for the Egba people in Abeokuta, Nigeria, Africa. Fred is a Peoplesoft HRMS at ITFORCE-INFOSYS, Inc. in Maryland. P Kory ’98 and Tracy Kelly ’99, on vacation in Bermuda in April. Kory is a senior territory manager for GAF – Northwest Region and Tracy is the HRIS manager at Gonzaga University. E ASTERN: SPRING 2015
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eastern etc. O’ Hanlon Named Founding Dean of New College Laureen O’Hanlon, PhD, has been selected as the founding dean of the College of Health Science and Public Health, Eastern’s newest college, established in 2014. She will assume this leadership role in July. Previously, O’Hanlon served as the interim associate dean and administrator in charge of the College of Engineering and Computer Science at California State UniversitySacramento. In addition, she served as associate dean in the College of Continuing Education for one year in 2013. A tenured professor since 2003, O’Hanlon chaired CSUSacramento’s Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology for seven years prior to her service as dean. She holds a doctorate degree in speech-language pathology from the University of Kansas; an MA in speech-language pathology and a BA in communication disorders, both from San Diego State University.
Arévalo Student Mall Dedicated The EWU board of trustees initiated the installation and dedication of the Arévalo Student Mall in the center of campus. The Arévalos returned to campus for the dedication April 23. The granite marker reads in part, “…he was ALWAYS quick to remind people that student success should be the driving force behind everything we do on campus. That is the reason he and his wife, Nadine, were proud to live in University House, right in the middle of the college grounds, where they immersed themselves in the campus community. Seeing hundreds of students pass by their front door on a daily basis served as a constant reminder to the Arévalos that they were here to serve the students and to help them excel.” Photo courtesy of John Buchanan In January, the board unanimously voted to name Rodolfo Arévalo “President Emeritus.” He becomes the fifth EWU president given emeritus status, joining previous presidents who have received this honor: Otis W. Freeman, 1954; Donald S. Patterson, 1967; Emerson C. Shuck, 1982, and H. George Frederickson in 1987. Arévalo served as Eastern’s 25th president from 2006 to 2014. He is the first Latino president at any public four-year college or university in the state of Washington. During his tenure, Arévalo guided the university to record enrollments, the expansion of STEM programs, and the creation of the new College of Health Science and Public Health. He also helped strengthen the school’s commitment to the communities it serves, while increasing the university’s profile as the institution of choice for underrepresented and first-generation students. 8
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eastern etc. Weir Named Washington Sportscaster of the Year Larry Weir, the radio play-byplay voice of Eastern Washington University since 1991, was selected in January by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association (NSSA) as the 2014 Sportscaster of the Year for the state of Washington. Weir recently completed his 24th year calling the play-by-play for Eagle football games and his 22nd for basketball. “This is a great and well-deserved honor for Larry,” said Eastern Athletic Director Bill Chaves. “He has been the voice of Eagle Athletics for nearly a quarter century, and for many of our fans, parents and student-athletes, he is the link to them and Eastern Washington University.” Mike Boyle (Spokane Chiefs/Spokane Indians) and Dave Grosby (ESPN 710/Seattle University basketball) were the other finalists. Weir is one of only three broadcasters from the eastern Washington region to have won the award, joining Frank Herron (KNEW in Spokane, 1959) and Bud Nameck (KXLY in Spokane/WSU Radio Network, 1994, 2008) as recipients.
Eastern Signs Agreement with Prominent University in Italy Former EWU Provost Rex Fuller and Catherine Dixon, executive director of Global Initiatives, traveled to Messina, Italy, in March to visit new partner Università degli Studi di Messina (UniME). Established in 1548 in Sicily, Italy, UniME provides a comprehensive academic offering at all levels covering a wide range of academic fields. A memorandum of understanding was signed to facilitate the establishment of cooperation between EWU and UniME. This agreement includes initial areas of focus such as student, faculty and staff mobility, academic opportunities and joint research grants. Former EWU Provost Rex Fuller, UniME Rector Pietro Navarra and Vice Rector Antonino Germanà in Messina, Italy, in March
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eastern etc. EWU Wins Marketing Awards The Spokane Regional MarCom Association recognized Eastern’s marketing efforts at its annual SPARK awards ceremony April 22. Eastern’s Marketing & Communications department won an “Excellence”award for Eastern magazine and for the wrap designed for Athletics’ football equipment trailer. The group also received “Merit” awards for the 2014 football billboard series and for IncREDible EWU, the 30-second TV spot that aired nationwide on ESPN, promoting the kickoff of the 2014 football season. The SPARK awards honor the process, and the results, of a well-designed communication effort. Award winners meet the highest standards of performance in the profession and are judged by professional communication specialists in various markets throughout the area. David Lane, multimedia specialist; Kandi Carper, editor, Eastern magazine; Ryan Gaard, senior graphic designer
University Bookstore Receives National Industry Recognition The EWU Bookstore has received recognition from its peers, recently earning the ICBA/ ICSR College Stores’ Best Practices and Top Performer Award for Outstanding Insignia (logo-branded) Product Performance. The award was presented to EWU’s Lynn Grytdal ’97 (marketing coordinator for the bookstore) and Kristin Zitterkopf ’10 (retail merchandise analyst) at the group’s national conference in February, in San Diego. Eastern was chosen from the 96 stores across the United States and Canada that participated in the 2013-2014 Operating Survey. “Our staff is proud and excited to have earned this national performance award from ICBA and to be able to share it with the Eastern community,” said Bookstore director Bob Anderson ’72. “Critical to our success is that the majority of our staff are graduates of Eastern and they embody the Eagle spirit and want to share it with all Eagle fans. Our greatest reward is seeing how many students, staff and other members of Eagle Nation proudly wear our merchandise.”
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eastern etc. The National Council on Undergraduate Research Comes to Eastern
Years of planning and months of logistical efforts culminated when EWU hosted the prestigious National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) in April. More than 3,000 students from 369 universities throughout the United States and from 11 countries, including the United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia, participated by presenting thousands of research projects, ranging from the sciences to visual and performing arts. Planning involved nearly every department across campus: from academics to event planning, dining services, facilities and information technology. The university believes that exposure to research, even at the undergraduate level, can enhance the overall college experience by getting students involved so that they stay in school, improve their options for graduate school and enhance their résumés.
Renowned Scientist Jared Diamond Shares Discoveries Eastern Washington University and the Daniel and Margaret Carper Foundation presented an evening with Jared Diamond in Spokane in April. With his unique blend of anthropology, sociology and evolutionary biology, Diamond, a Pulitzer Prize-winning and bestselling author of Collapse and Guns, Germs and Steel, discussed his popular book, The World Until Yesterday: What Can We Learn from Traditional Societies? He offered a firsthand picture of the human past as it had been for millions of years and considered what the differences between that past and our present mean for our lives today. Currently a professor of geography at UCLA, Diamond has received some of the world’s most prestigious awards, including the National Medal of Science, America’s highest civilian award in science. The Daniel and Margaret Carper Foundation supports and encourages the highest goals of the Liberal Arts tradition. It has shown generous support of EWU through the many scholarships endowed each year as well as in the creation of a Chertok Professor’s Chair, the holder of which teaches at least one course a year dedicated to critical analyses of current academic discussions. The International Speaker Series is a component of the Chertok course, with the speaker addressing students in that class.
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EWU Women’s Team Has One of Best Seasons in History
The Eastern Washington University women’s basketball team had one of the best seasons in its 33-year NCAA Division I history (21-12), tying the record for victories in a season and recording its first Division I postseason win. Eastern’s win total matched the 1983-84 team for most victories in a season. In her 14th season, Coach Wendy Schuller led Eastern to at least 20 wins for just the third time in the program’s D-I history. The Eagles made their third appearance in the WNIT under Schuller and earned their first postseason win in program history, defeating Pac-12 Conference team Washington State on the road. EWU’s season ended with a second-round road loss to Big Sky Conference opponent Sacramento State. Eastern’s women recorded a number of key victories in the regular season. The Eagles beat Missouri Valley champion Wichita State and earned their first win over a Southeastern Conference (SEC) team by defeating Florida in its tournament. Each of the Eagles’ starters earned Big Sky Conference all-league awards: Hayley Hodgins, Jr., first team; Lexie Nelson and Melissa Williams, Srs., second team; Jade Redmon, So., honorable mention and Delaney Hodgins, Fr., outstanding freshman.
Fuller Named President of Western Oregon University
In April, Western Oregon University announced Rex Fuller, PhD, as the university’s incoming president, starting July 1.
Fuller has served as EWU’s provost and vice president for Academic Affairs since 2011. Prior to that, he served as dean of the College of Business and Public Administration and as executive dean of EWU Spokane. In a statement announcing Fuller’s move, EWU President Mary Cullinan said, “His leadership skills have helped support and enhance our academic mission as well as EWU’s reputation for excellent academic programs. I deeply appreciate the outstanding work that Dr. Fuller has done at EWU, and I wish him an enduring and successful presidency at Western Oregon University.”
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Promise of Our The
Investiture of President Cullinan
President Mary Cullinan and George Pernsteiner, president State Higher Education Executive Officers Association
Mary Cullinan was formally installed as the 26th president of Eastern Washington University during an investiture ceremony in historic Showalter Hall May 1. “The idea of having an investiture, or an inauguration, is for me, one of the wonderful connections that a university has with its roots in the Middle Ages,” said Cullinan. “It’s a celebration most of all. It brings people together.” People like June ’78 and Ray Johnson ’77, alumni who came from Renton, Washington, to attend the celebration. June is very fond of President Cullinan. She and Ray were invited to a football game event with the president last fall, but they couldn’t attend because of a death in the family. “The president sent us the nicest hand-written condolence card. That meant so much to us,” said June. The Johnsons, who met at Eastern, are very proud of their alma mater and wanted to be there for this historic event. “Eastern made us who we are,” said June. Deans and faculty members, representing all of the departments on campus and dressed in their traditional academic regalia, gathered at the one-room schoolhouse on campus before proceeding to the Showalter Hall auditorium. With her family, friends, colleagues, dignitaries and the university community looking on, the Honorable James Murphy, vice president of the board of trustees, placed the gold-plated “Chain of Office” around the new president’s neck. The president’s Chain of Office was first used at Eastern in 1999, though long recognized as a symbolic object of authority at universities around world. The chain will be handed down from president to president as an enduring symbol of the presidency of Eastern Washington University – a
fine way to promote lasting honor in a style befitting the importance of the occasion. Investitures usually occur nine months after a president takes office, giving them time to get to know the university before establishing their own vision. Cullinan assumed the leadership role of the university Aug. 1, 2014. She is Eastern’s first permanent female president. The investiture of President Cullinan was an opportunity to showcase the university’s efforts to ensure that students graduate successfully and the many ways EWU provides research and leadership for the economic and cultural development of our region, state and nation. Investitures often include associated programming that marks important work or turning points in a university’s history. In her investiture speech, President Cullinan unveiled the start of a major new initiative to support students, "Inspire Awesome." This campaign will generate more money for student scholarships. The president announced that she and her husband, Jeffrey Kelter, will start the campaign by matching, dollar for dollar, each gift from faculty and staff up to $50,000. A month of exciting events led up to Cullinan’s investiture, including: the annual Get Lit! Festival; the opening of a student art gallery in Brewster Hall; hosting the 29th Annual National Council on Undergraduate Research (NCUR); speaker Jared Diamond appeared as part of the Daniel and Margaret Carper Foundation International Speaker Series; Athletics hosted the 33rd Annual Killin Dinner, Dance and Auction and a ceremonial tree planting was held on campus. To view the investiture of President Cullinan visit, ewu.edu/about/administration/president/investiture.
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EWU’s Capitol Investment
Their paths cross daily as they buzz about the Washington State Capitol Campus in Olympia; sometimes they stop to chat about work and, frequently, their alma mater. By Jeff Bunch '88 Eastern Washington University alumni from a wide range of backgrounds serve roles in the state’s legislative process. Some of them lobby for new laws, one passes bills and countless others interpret and enforce the law for elected officials. Each has in common a background on the Cheney campus where they learned about the ideals of democracy. They are now integral pieces of a process they learned about in books and in classroom lectures in places such as Patterson Hall. Their careers have been about adapting and tempering theory against practicality. Officially, EWU governmental relations professionals David Buri and Alicia Kinne-Clawson ’07, BA government, represent the university’s interests. However, EWU’s Olympia contingency includes a legislator, legislative aides, veteran lobbyists, interns and many others.
Eastern’s voice in Olympia
Buri and Kinne-Clawson are a dynamic duo who bring complementary skill sets to their jobs. Buri is an outgoing, well-respected veteran who attracts friendly faces as he works the Capitol’s complex of buildings. The small-town eastern Washington product knows the ropes of the lobbying process inside and out. As a former staff member and legislator, he knows the right people and has an outstanding reputation that has carried through to his current role. “I’ve always been surprised at how much the Washington State Legislature and the process run on trust, honesty and relationships,” said Buri, who was a State Representative from 2004-08 before moving to his current role with EWU. Kinne-Clawson began working alongside Buri during the 2015 legislative session. The pair are, not only raising the profile of EWU and shepherding through requests, but also are developing a professional chemistry that is effective. Much of their efforts go on behind the scenes, first by preparing for the session ahead of time with a series of internal meetings with key stakeholders on campus, where priorities and agendas are set
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and accompanying strategies are developed. During the session, they update President Mary Cullinan and the administration regularly, as well as facilitating visits to Olympia. This year, they accompanied Cullinan as she introduced herself to legislators. They advocate for Eastern’s top priorities, including capital requests such as funding a new campus science building. “Our jobs as government relations specialists are to let the legislators know what the needs are,” said Buri. “Their job is to figure out how to prioritize those in a way that makes sense.” Buri and Kinne-Clawson also serve as a key two-way conduit of information between Olympia and Cheney harmonizing any potential differences in the legislative agendas of the administration, faculty and students. “What we really try to do is work as a team as we try to move our issues forward,” said Buri, noting they have seen many visitors from EWU’s ranks. “We are the government relations department for (all of) Eastern Washington University.” The pair watch over a variety of issues for the institution, both policy and budgetary focused. In a long session, where a two-year budget will be set, financial issues are the big debate. It has been especially true in this year’s session as everyone in the process tries to fund some costly voter and court mandates. Funding sources are always a hot topic and spending priorities bring in myriad considerations. Eastern and other state universities (with a few exceptions) have coordinated their efforts with a joint request the past two sessions. Such a tactic isn’t just good practice, but helps to ensure priorities get full consideration. “There was an agreement going into this session that if there was a way to find unanimity for higher education in that same way, we thought we’d be a lot more effective than we could be as individuals,” said Kinne-Clawson. The result was a joint $198 million request to fund higher education. In addition, issues such as accessibility and affordability of education have been important to Eastern and to legislators over the past few sessions. Alicia Kinne-Clawson and David Buri in the Rotunda of the Washington State Capitol. Photo: Patrick Hagerty
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Kinne-Clawson is a zealous advocate for Eastern, something that began with a memorable campus visit when she was exploring her options for college. When she and her dad arrived on the EWU campus for a self-guided weekend tour, someone approached them to ask if he could help. It was former president Stephen Jordan, who then took them on an impromptu, personal tour of campus. Kinne-Clawson was immediately sold on Eastern and would become a two-time ASEWU president (2005-07). She cut her teeth as the student body’s legislative affairs director the year before her presidency started and had only one goal. “When I was in student government, I really believed my dream job would be the lobbyist for Eastern,” said Kinne-Clawson, who took a circuitous route back to Eastern. “I let that go and I wasn’t sure that was the right path for me. So, this year has been sort of a surprise. But this job has been more fun than I ever expected it to be.” Colleagues say Kinne-Clawson is an intelligent, energetic and hard-working advocate for Eastern with a natural instinct for the political process. “It’s just been so great working with Alicia, because she’s so smart. She has an extraordinarily good political sense – and some people don’t. Some people are policy smart, but maybe don’t have those people-sensitive skills. Alicia’s really great at that,” said Buri. “She loves her university and that comes through.” Although she’s now eight years removed from her time as a student and nearing the achievement of earning her , the diminutive KinneClawson jokes she is still sometimes mistaken for an intern. Not that the comparison would be bad. Eastern’s group of interns has developed a top-notch reputation among their colleagues over the past several years. They serve in a variety of roles and are seen as leaders. They are supported by a team of academic advisors and internship program staffers in Cheney and Olympia, as well as by a network of successful graduates. EWU interns often move on to serve in roles as paid legislative assistants.
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The office of Sen. Michael Baumgartner has been staffed exclusively for the past two sessions by a group of Eastern alums, including former intern Joseph Jackson ’13, BA communications. He is now the staff legislative assistant, a position he describes as “the first line of defense” for his senator and his 140,000 constituents. It seems it’s truly a great time to be an Eagle in Olympia. Even Gov. Jay Inslee on his morning walkaround the capitol. “Go Eags!” Alumna Shannon Waechter ’91, BA government, is a legislative assistant for State Rep. Timm Ormsby of Spokane. Waechter put herself through college, made her way into the political arena, and went on to serve on the staff of the late U.S. Rep. Thomas Foley, the former Speaker of the House, and longtime U.S. Sen. Patty Murray. She has an engaging, self-deprecating personality and works quietly at the end of a humble row of legislative assistant desks in Olympia’s Legislative Building. She says she wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. “I love it here,” said Waechter. “It’s real hands-on work. It’s one of the most honest jobs I’ve ever had. This process moves so quickly and it’s so fast-paced when it’s happening. It’s exciting to see how all that develops. This kind of dynamic four months that we do, it’s really cool.” Waechter was a mother and a returning student who was heavily influenced by her time at Eastern – where mentors nurtured her natural passion for government.
Leaving the Eagles’ Nest
Several people have graduated from the role of representing EWU in Olympia to becoming in-house, self-employed or state agency legislative lobbyists. Veteran Jeff Gombosky ’94, BA government, is one of them. He is a former intern who was elected as a state legislator, rose through the ranks of House leadership and eventually served in Buri’s role before leaving to become a self-employed lobbyist in 2006. He’s seen a rise in the visibility of Eastern among legislators.
“I think Eastern has been very well positioned,” said Gombosky. “I think Eastern’s focused on its core. I think Eastern’s message of student success and providing opportunity for who traditionally come from underprivileged backgrounds has gotten through. I think Eastern’s presence is more significant in legislators’ minds (over the past 20 years).” Gombosky cites as evidence a host of statistics about student success and the significant investments made in EWU’s campus infrastructure during that time. It’s a sentiment echoed by fellow self-employed lobbyist and Eastern alumnus Michael Moran ’93, ’85, MS communications, BA government. He is in his 20th year in Olympia, working his 32nd session. “The regional universities have stepped up and provided that high level of undergraduate care that today’s students require,” said Moran. “When you think about it, Eastern is probably the strongest of the four regional colleges. It is an entirely different school than it was when I went there; yet it is so lovingly familiar.” There is a lot of Eastern pride bursting at the seams of the Capitol campus. Toni McKinley-Camp ’04, ’87, BA government, BA pre-law, has been in Olympia since leaving Cheney, first as a lobbyist and now as the Secretary of State’s legislative relations director. She studied pre-law, but prefers the process of how law is crafted and passed. She particularly enjoys that lobbyists are the ones who help draft the language in proposed legislation that is eventually sponsored by legislators to be passed into law. There is even an Eagle alumnus sitting as a legislator. Colfax resident Rep. Joe Schmick ‘80, BA accounting, represents the 9th District, whose boundary begins just south of Cheney. He is currently serving his eighth year in the legislature and uses his accounting and economics education to help decide budget issues before him. He agrees with the consensus view that the rising cost of education in the state the past few years is troubling. Regional universities such
as Eastern traditionally attract more students who work to pay for school; that is less possible today. “I always worry about what it costs to go to school – it’s expensive,” said Schmick. “You have more first-generation students going to Eastern than at any other school. I think that shows the outreach that Eastern has done with recruiting. I think they do a wonderful job. It’s a great place to go to school.” E Photos from top (left to right): State Rep. Michael Baumgartner, left, with Legislative Assistant Joseph Jackson; Shannon Waechter, legislative assistant for Rep. Timm Ormsby; lobbyist Jeff Gombosky; EWU alum Toni McKinley-Camp, left, with former Gov. Gary Locke; lobbyist Michael Moran; and State Rep. Joe Schmick, left. Photos by Patrick Hagerty (except McKinley-Camp).
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Eagles Reach Rarified Air It was certainly a season to remember. The EWU men’s basketball team endeared itself to Eagle Nation, as well as much of the country, in a record-setting campaign that resulted in an NCAA Tournament berth. By Jeff Bunch ’88 The Eagles soared to new heights in setting a school record for wins (26-9) and capturing the imagination and the hearts of Eastern fans and college basketball aficionados. A road win over Indiana was the first chapter in a storybook season bookmarked by going toe-to-toe with Georgetown in the NCAA Tournament. “As I reflect back on the season, probably the most gratifying thing was that we reached our full potential as a team,” said Coach Jim Hayford, after completing his fourth season. “That resulted in all this great attention for the school and each player really got the most out of their ability.” The recipe for success resulted when a perfect mix of talent and maturity were combined. It showed on both ends of the floor – especially offensively, where Eastern was one of the top scoring teams in the nation. The Eagles also played a brand of smart, hard-nosed basketball reflective of the personality of their coach. It was the team’s joyful spirit that earned it a special place in the hearts of Eastern’s fans. Led by Australian big man Venky Jois, EWU played with a level of emotion and passion that endeared them to anyone who followed their Cinderella season. “As I look back, there were probably three mountain-
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top moments,” said Hayford, citing the Indiana win, a rare regular-season win at Montana and the Big Sky Tournament championship run against the Grizzlies on their home court. Meanwhile, EWU was creating its own home-court advantage at Reese Court, where bigger crowds showed up with each win and the players and fans showed their mutual admiration for each other as Eastern’s “Flight Club” took off (see story page 22). In a postgame press conference after a late-season home win, seniors Parker Kelly and Drew Brandon were in awe of the support the team was receiving. Hayford pointed out that players such as Kelly, a product of nearby Gonzaga Prep in Spokane, and Brandon came to Eastern on the promise that such days might come. They were among a group of veteran players who raised the program to new heights. The national media also took note of Eastern during the season, particularly after the Indiana win. In late January, national website SBNation.com proclaimed, “The Eastern Washington Eagles are your new favorite team, you just don’t know it yet.” The article included a prediction that EWU could “make some noise” in the NCAAs.
The Eastern Washington Eagles are your new favorite team. you just don’t know it yet. E ASTERN: SPRING 2015
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I was just amazed with how many people on the national level picked up the story. I mean, every major national sports publication wrote about it.
They would do so, but Eastern still had to win the Big Sky’s automatic berth as tournament champion on Montana’s court to ensure a trip to “The Big Dance.” Eastern advanced to the title game against the host Grizzlies, but had to stage a comeback from an 11-point deficit in the final six minutes for the win. It set off a wild celebration inside Dahlberg Arena that was broadcast nationally; confetti flew from the rafters as Hayford, the coaches, players and fans hugged on the court. “I looked over and our cheerleaders are awesome, our band was there, and I looked at that one section across from our bench and it was all red in the middle of this hostile gym,” said Hayford. “It just felt so gratifying that there was that much Eastern pride in the gym. To celebrate the win on their court … it’s just one of those special moments that will be a highlight of my career.” Eastern was then off to a first-round NCAA pairing in Portland, where Eagle fans showed up in droves for the rare tournament berth. Eastern had only one prior NCAA Tournament appearance, a 2004 first-round loss to Oklahoma State. “The amount of support in Portland was just amazing, from the pregame rallies to the postgame back at the hotel,” said Hayford. “It was just awesome to see all the support and Eagle pride that was happening. We were playing one of college basketball’s blue-blood programs.” Many experts predicted an EWU upset over Georgetown, including Hayford infamously on a national radio show. The Eagles fell to the Hoyas, but more than showed they deserved the tournament berth and that they had arrived nationally.
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Tyler Harvey, Jr. : All-America, NCAA Division I, Honorable Mention; Academic All-America, First Team; National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) All-District 6, First Team; All-Big Sky Conference, First Team “I wish we could redo the middle 10 minutes of that game, because I thought we showed, for more than half the game, that we were the better team, but we just dug too big of a hole,” said Hayford. “But we were right there, we competed, and made all those Eastern fans proud.” The record season of the team and postseason honors were impressive, including a co-Big Sky Coach of the Year award for Hayford. Yet there was no bigger individual story than that of EWU junior redshirt guard Tyler Harvey, who led NCAA Division I in scoring offense with an average of 23.1 points per game. No one but Hayford recruited Harvey out of high school in California. Hayford was at Whitworth at the time, but Harvey followed him to EWU and became a deadly 3-point shooter and team leader before leaving school to pursue his NBA dreams. In just two-plus seasons, Harvey put himself in the ranks of all-time EWU greats. He surpassed NBA veteran Rodney Stuckey on the school’s career scoring list and finished second to Ron Cox, while becoming the school’s all-time 3-point leader. Honors flowed to him following his stellar season. In addition to being named MVP of the Big Sky tournament, he was an Honorable Mention All-American and a first-team Academic AllAmerican. He declared for the NBA draft April 1. A couple of teammates joined him on the school’s all-time rankings. Kelly played in a school-record 126 games over his four-year career and ended up second to Harvey on the all-time 3-point field goal records list. Jois, who returns as a co-captain next season, shattered the career for blocked shots (184) after a single-season record 69 and is in the top 10 in several all-time categories with a year of eligibility remaining.
Venky Jois, Jr. : National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) All-District 6, First Team; All-Big Sky Conference, First Team Bogdan Bliznyuk, Fr. : Big Sky Conference Freshman of Year Drew Brandon, Sr. : All-Big Sky, Honorable Mention
All the efforts of Hayford and his staff are now focused on the future and reloading. They have been working hard to assemble and blend another juggernaut consisting of returning veterans, redshirt players, prep signees and collegiate-level transfers. When asked what he thought made the past season’s team so special to Eastern’s fan base and college basketball fans around the nation, Hayford didn’t hesitate. “The Indiana win helped a lot, because the national media loves the underdog,” said Hayford. “Then we had the ultimate underdog in that the nation’s leading scorer – a walk-on that no one wanted, except for this brand-new unproven coach at Eastern Washington. You put it all together and it just makes for a perfect story of what you can do if you just put your head down and work hard. “I was just amazed with how many people on the national level picked up the story. I mean, every major national sports publication wrote about it, all the websites were behind it. I don’t know if anything like that will ever happen again because it’s not something you can produce or replicate. It just has to happen and it happened that this little school in Cheney was a national media darling and it was a really fun ride.” E
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Flight Club Takes For the past several years, Brian Patterson ’89, sat in the stands of Reese Court and complained to those around him about the lack of an enthusiastic student section at EWU men’s basketball games. As the success of the program continued to grow under head coach Jim Hayford, Patterson finally had enough. Eastern had a great team, a great coach, a great facility but not much of a student section. It was time to take action. “The idea for Flight Club (an organized student cheering section) has been there for a couple of years but it never really got off the ground,” said Patterson. “I made some T-shirts a season or two ago, but the students just sat. They didn’t seem to know what to do. I’ve been at good games, when we’d hit three 3-pointers in a row and the whole student section was sitting down texting,” said Patterson. Patterson knew a strong student section would not only provide a welldeserved home-court advantage for the team, but he also wanted the students to have more fun at the games, including his son, Erik, a senior, and his daughter, Ashley, a freshman. Patterson decided to hire someone he knew could fill the student section and light the fire needed to get this thing up and running. That man is Brad Bishop ’12. Bishop would become Flight Club’s maestro, leader, cheer coach and concierge. He has collegiate and professional mascot experience along with a career as an applied behavior analyst. Bishop feels that these two seemingly different careers actually blend well for a Flight Club leader. “I’ve known Brad as a mascot,” said Patterson. “He’s very dynamic and energetic and I knew he was an Eastern alum. I told him, ‘I don’t care what it takes. The students can’t do it on their own yet.’ The goal is that when
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the students leave the game they’re asking, ‘When’s the next game? That was so much fun.’ We want students marking their calendars for the home games.” “It was a huge win-win,” said Bishop. “Not only am I continuing one of my passions (as a mascot) but I’m evaluating running other things.” Bishop took this challenge very seriously. He mounted a GoPro video camera on the opposite side of Reese Court to observe himself and the crowd’s behavior. He could see what worked and what didn’t. He approached it much like a science experiment. The results? “Considering that we went from four students to 135 within seven games, I consider it a success,” said Bishop. During the games, Bishop lead chants and cheers, welcomed students to the section with a red Flight Club T-shirt and a smile, and kept them encouraged by throwing out bottled water, soda and candy as incentives. Bishop even met with Gonzaga University’s Kennel Club liaison to get some ideas to improve Flight Club. “Why not? They have a fantastic club and they have a liaison who bridges the gap between the student club and their athletic department,” said Bishop. “That’s going to be a key piece if Eastern wants to make it bigger and more effective. They were willing to help and eager to encourage
s Off
By Kandi Carper ’05
Brian Patterson (black shirt, white hat), with his daughter, Ashley, and son, Erik; hanging from the railing is Brad Bishop
us.” Bishop could see himself in this type of liaison position. In addition to the incentives Patterson provided, Ken Halpin, EWU’s associate athletic director for external affairs, supplied free pizza to students prior to the home games as an enticement to get them to participate and to get them to the games before tipoff. “Ken Halpin and Kyle Hoob (EWU’s director of Athletic Marketing & Sales) have been very supportive in Flight Club’s initial and ongoing process,” said Patterson. “Ken is now firmly onboard to make Flight Club the best it can be. I really appreciate that commitment, because coach Hayford and his team deserve our best efforts. With Brad doing his thing, the Eagle students are in for a great ride, a great opportunity, and hopefully a long lasting tradition.” Coach Hayford says that Patterson’s effort to provide a home-court advantage paid off. “I got to the radio show one night and Brian Patterson said, ‘Coach, you’ve got a great team that deserves great student crowds, and we’re going to make this happen.’ Obviously winning helps, but to think that an alum would say ‘I’m going to make this happen,’ to take it on himself … It was just amazing.” “There have been times when Reese Court was a pretty neutral environment and we turned it into as hostile an environment as there was in the Big Sky Conference,” said Hayford. “I think that with each game, it grew more and more, and the students were enjoying it more and more. Now, they’re looking forward to next season. Having that college basketball experience is a really fun part of being in college and I’m just really glad that we had the teamwork between all these different people to get behind our team and make Reese Court a rocking place.” E
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EWU Grads on
the Forefront of
Cybersecurity Eastern alumni are on the forefront of the worldwide fight to help maintain a secure Internet – a task that is becoming ever harder to accomplish. A host of EWU alums are developing strategies, implementing them and creating software to help Fortune 500 companies keep their systems secure. Intrinium and RiskLens (formerly CXOWare), are two local companies with Eastern graduates at the helm that protect companies around the world. Other EWU graduates work at companies ranging from Microsoft and Amazon to startups. The professional stories of these Eastern alums are intertwined with their personal ones, which are classically EWU: humble origins, a strong work ethic and drive to succeed, fueled by key moments of finding their way during their time in Cheney. None of this is surprising to the people who head up Eastern’s computer sciences program, which recently celebrated its 30th
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They didn’t realize at the time, but a generation of EWU computer science students have long been preparing for roles in today’s complex world of cybersecurity. By Jeff Bunch ’88
anniversary and 10th year in its building. Chair Carol Taylor and Dean Judd Case oversee a program that has produced more than 3,000 high-demand graduates and continues to place them in industry. “It’s exciting to see a program that really has had that longevity (in a field) that has continued to grow,” said Case, who is completing his ninth year as dean of the College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (CSTEM). Taylor, an expert in networks and security, began in the field the same time Eastern’s program was starting. She was attracted to what was an emerging area of personal computing – an era before the World Wide Web rose in the early ‘90s. “I would have never imagined it (the virtual world) would have gotten this small, this fast; it’s just happened so quickly in our lifetime,” said Taylor.
Steve Tabacek, CEO of RiskLens (formerly known at CXOWare)
Taylor and Eastern graduates in the field follow closely the rapid iteration of technology, where one can multitask in every way from smartphones and connected devices, a universe referred to as the Internet of Things (IoT).
"The Internet of Things has a growing number of cybersecurity problems," -Forbes.com. The proliferation and accessibility of technology around the world creates amazing opportunities for collaboration, but also brings along with it big challenges. It seems as if security breaches are in the news almost daily from major retailers, health insurance companies and financial institutions. Those challenges are why companies such Intrinium and RiskLens exist. They have a connection of EWU alums leading them, but the companies’ stories and business models are disparate. RiskLens CEO Steve Tabacek ‘98, BA business, was stationed at Fairchild AFB when he began taking business classes at Eastern. He worked in the private sector after graduating, but always remained inspired by the entrepreneurial education and mentorship he received at EWU. It’s what inspired him and the
company’s founders to not just come up with a unique algorithm, but a new way of looking at risk. Jack Jones, a former colleague of Tabaeck’s, came to him and said, “I’ve found a way to quantify IT risk in terms of dollars and sense,” recalled Tabacek, who had started and just sold another company with a number of EWU graduates, IT-Lifeline. RiskLens was then born from an algorithm that was crafted into a product. The company’s success as a mature startup is due to a combination of being in the right place at the right time with novel proprietary ideas and a disciplined execution of its business plan. The company has raised more than $1 million in investment. All those pieces have come together with EWU graduates in key positions, including the person who is responsible for the implementation of the company’s product roadmap and managing the software development team. Chief Technology Officer Bryan Smith ’13, ’06, MS, BS computer science, came to RiskLens from the Washington State Archives, a digital storage facility housed on EWU's campus – where he started with as a student. Tabacek said the company’s bright future is due to the team of experts from EWU that Smith has built at RiskLens. “There are a lot of people out of Seattle, and now Silicon Valley who ask, ‘Why did you start a cybersecurity company in Spokane? Why would you do that? If we’re going to invest in you, we want
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Stephen Heath, left, and founder Nolan Garrett of Intrinium
you to move.’ But you can’t get the kind of (technical) talent that you need to run a company like this,” said Tabacek. That same talent pool is how Intrinium has grown. Founder Nolan Garrett ’05, BS computer science, was a whiz kid. He was still in high school as a Running Start student when he started his studies at Eastern. It wasn’t long before he graduated and launched a business, one that focused early on the financial industry. The company has since grown its security business and works with an increasing variety of sectors, including health care and technology. Intrinium focuses on a service-based model, versus the software as a service (SaaS) model of RiskLens. Yet they have a commonality: the majority of technical staffers are Eastern alums. “We find that the Eastern graduates seem to be pretty wellrounded and technically sound,” said Garrett, whose company merged with Cloud provider Interlink in 2012. Stephen Heath ’10, ’05, MS, BS computer science, heads the company’s security services business and teaches as an adjunct professor at Eastern. He joined the firm after completing his master’s degree. He’s always enjoyed testing systems from the mindset of a would-be hacker. Security, in every aspect, has been his obsession. “I zeroed in on the networks and the security (at EWU) and then I was just hooked,” said Heath. 26
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“I thought, ‘Wait a minute, I can break things? I get to do things people go to jail for and get paid for it instead?" - Stephen Heath "Every class, I was the security guy,” said Heath. He brought security into every project for his master’s program and now is a guest speaker on local and national panels. Heath, who took a meandering path to cybersecurity, is now single-mindedly focused on it. That journey is similar to that of Keith Turpin ’98, BS mechanical engineering technology, a late-bloomer who built a global cybersecurity team for Boeing. Turpin came from a working-class family and wasn’t sure he wanted to attend college out of high school. It was only after a corporate restructuring a decade later left him unemployed that all that changed, but he didn’t go to study cybersecurity. He wanted to work for Boeing and decided to pursue engineering at Eastern. Turpin had an EWU summer internship with Boeing and accepted a full-time offer to work for the company – but then layoffs hit. A supervisor advised him the best way to remain with the company was to move to the information technology (IT) team. Turpin reluctantly agreed, but the long-term relationship worked out well.
More Consumers are Vulnerable to Breaches
Cybersecurity breaches are one of the top subjects in the news. A number of highprofile breaches in the past couple of years prove the problem is increasing.
Keith Turpin led a worldwide secure coding standard project
“The kind of personal support and the kind of support of a (department) chair really going to bat for me (with the Boeing internship), I don’t know if I would get that at a larger college,” said Turpin. “That kind of support ended up playing a huge role in my career.” He currently is the top security official at an aviation and aerospace company in Houston, Texas. He is in the position because of a self-taught expertise in cybersecurity and his designation as the U.S. representative on worldwide projects. He led the development of secure coding practices for the Open Web Security Project. Those practices are the type Eastern weaves into its curriculum. Many of the security breaches that happen around the globe occur because a program’s flaw is exploited. A better approach is to prevent compromises, rather than patching them. Meanwhile, the field is growing – from consumer-facing systems to behind-the-scenes work being done at the web- and local networks-level as technology spreads. Dean Judd Case points out that Eastern graduates are on the cutting edge of areas such as developing solutions for the digital storage and transmission of medical records. EWU alums are also helping power companies to secure systems and grids against attacks. Yet history has shown that it’s impossible to predict what challenges await the next generation of cybersecurity experts. E
Attacks on Sony, Target and others, along with some of the largest financial and health care companies in the United States, make headlines - but there are countless others. Keith Turpin, a cybersecurity expert, says there isn’t a pattern to the breaches: different forms of data have differing values to hackers, whose motivations vary. Consumer information is just one commodity on the worldwide black market. RiskLens CEO Steve Tabacek, whose company has developed software to analyze cybersecurity risk, says the Target breach is a good case study of the problem. “Everyone’s familiar with the Target breach, it’s easy to pick on them,” says Tabacek. “Prior to the breach, they bought $90 million worth of cybersecurity insurance. Everyone would have thought, ‘That’s a lot of cybersecurity insurance.’ Right? But their losses to date are about $2.4 billion.” Tabacek says most companies, their boards, and executive teams don’t know how to properly calculate such possible losses. They are also often lacking information on what resources need to be allocated, or which vulnerabilities should be prioritized. Turpin says the Target breach occurred when hackers tapped into the system of a Target facilities vendor. Once inside the network, they searched for other data and exploited it. The area is complex to understand, from a technical standpoint. Yet the average consumer is at risk more than ever, says EWU Computer Science Chair Carol Taylor. “It’s becoming important for everybody to know a little bit about it, because your data is out there; you’re leaving data out there all the time in databases, on credit cards and personal stuff; on Facebook … You really do need to know a little bit about cybersecurity, your own personal security,” said Taylor. Intrinium’s Stephen Heath says the top causes of breaches are human factors, i.e., people failing to use common sense or safe practices (such as with keywords) while engaging online. As an example, don’t click on that link that says it’s from a relative. Ultimately, there is no insurance against attacks and credit cards are now regularly replaced. The experts say that if a consumer is affected by a breach and services such as free credit monitoring are offered, it is wise to take advantage of them. E ASTERN: SPRING 2015
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JESSICA BOYER
By Kandi Carper ’05
Jessica Boyer’s summer job on a commercial fishing boat, miles out to sea from her hometown of Wasilla, Alaska, taught her how to be resilient, fearless and self-confident. This character-building experience guided her as she made the 3,300mile trek south to the bright lights of Hollywood and a career as a public relations executive in the entertainment business. Boyer made this journey with an important stop along the way – at Eastern, where she earned her BA in communication studies in 2003. Her parents, both educators, were originally from Washington, so when it was time for Boyer to visit universities she explored several in the state. “The minute I visited Eastern, I knew it was the place for me,” said Boyer. “It just felt like home.” “I’m very proud to be an Eastern grad,” said Boyer. “I even have an EWU coffee cup at work.” By work, Boyer is talking about her job as the director of communications for the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) in Los Angeles. The 34-year-old is now walking the red carpet with talent and executives from OWN. She leads PR campaigns, manages
press events, premieres and develops corporate communications initiatives for some of entertainment’s leading companies, executives and talent. Boyer began her career in 2005, at the Los Angeles office of the leading PR agency Rogers & Cowan. She managed clients such as the Food Network, Cooking Channel, IMAX, Lionsgate and the legendary actor Kirk Douglas. In fact, one of her most memorable experiences was escorting Kirk Douglas to the British Academy of Film and Television Arts Awards. Douglas missed a photo op he was scheduled to attend because he was busy chatting with his old friend and former leading lady, Lauren Bacall. “He was quite a gentleman and very witty,” Boyer recalled. Boyer said that Eastern helped prepare her for her career in PR. While serving as a residence hall coordinator she learned valuable leadership and crisis management skills. Teaching English to Japanese students through EWU’s Asia University America Program prepared Boyer for the work she currently does in mentoring and managing interns and assistants at OWN – something she really enjoys. Boyer also has a minor in government and credits her experience on the Mock Trial team at Eastern for helping hone her presentation skills and the ability to think on her feet. It was her political science professor, Jim Headley, who encouraged her to apply for graduate school. She got her master’s degree in communications/PR from University of the Pacific in Stockton, California. Boyer said that attending graduate school and pursuing a career in Hollywood likely wouldn’t have been possible if Eastern hadn’t been so affordable. Because of the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE), she was able to attend EWU at a cost lower than regular outof-state tuition. Alaska is one of 15 western states that has a reciprocal agreement with public institutions in the state of Washington. “I know people with significant college debt that impeded their ability to pursue valuable career opportunities,” said Boyer. “I feel grateful to have been given the opportunity to attend Eastern and receive a world-class education at a reasonable cost.”
Left to right: Tim Norman, Jessica Boyer, Robbie Montgomery and Jared Hopkins
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Working with celebrities can be glamorous, but the thing Boyer is most proud of is having the opportunity to inspire viewers though her work promoting television series and documentaries with a positive message.
I am very passionate about my work and representing a brand whose mission is about positively impacting lives... Some examples of Boyer’s work include her promotion of the Emmynominated OWN documentary Running from Crazy, in which actress and mental health advocate Mariel Hemingway, granddaughter of author Ernest Hemingway, attempts to understand her family’s history of suicide and mental illness. “It’s so important to encourage people to talk about these important issues and educate people on the signs, to help prevent this tragedy,” said Boyer. Boyer also manages publicity for Welcome to Sweetie Pie’s, an OWN docu-series about Robbie Montgomery, a former backup singer for Ike and Tina Turner. When health issues ended Miss Robbie’s singing career, she supported herself by selling soul food from the trunk of her car. She is now a nationally acclaimed chef with multiple Sweetie Pie's restaurant locations. The NAACP Image Award-winning series chronicles the ups and downs that she and her family face as their business expands. Miss Robbie has given many ex-offenders a fresh start through employment opportunities at her restaurants.
Jessica Boyer at the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) office. “To hear viewers express how Miss Robbie inspired them to keep up hope after a setback and reinvent themselves – it’s wonderful to be a part of that,” said Boyer. Publicists’ official business hours are often 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., but because of the nature of the business, this isn’t often the case. It can be intense at times – companies have millions of dollars invested in their projects. Boyer admits there are aspects of the entertainment business that can resemble the TV show Entourage. “I know people who get frantic, 3 a.m. calls from their clients,” said Boyer. When asked about her current position at OWN Boyer said, “I am very passionate about my work and representing a brand whose mission is about positively impacting lives. I’m also learning the importance of attempting to find work-life balance and make time for what really matters.” In her free time, Boyer enjoys hiking, visiting with her family, spending time with her rescue cat Lucky – and, of course, watching cable television. E
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1. Young Professionals Network – Jan. 15, Spokane 2. Young Professionals Network – Feb. 12, Spokane 3. Men’s Basketball vs. Sacramento State – Feb. 12, Cheney 4. Big Sky Basketball Tournament – March 11-14, Missoula 7
5. NCAA Basketball Tournament – March 19, Portland 6. Alumni Event, March 21, Phoenix 7. Annual Killin Dinner and Dance, April 25, Cheney
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A group of alumni from EWU’s School of Social Work wanted to find a way to stay connected to the program that opened so many doors for them. By Lisa Leinberger ’98 They wanted to give back to the program with their time. They wanted to reconnect with faculty and friends they met along the way, and they wanted a way to meet new graduates to discuss updates in their field. From those “wants,” the Social Work Alumni Network (SWAN) was born in 2013. It is the only formal alumni group working with the department or school at Eastern. “We’re acknowledging what getting a degree from Eastern meant to us,” said Diana Valdez, Class of 1984, who serves as the chair of SWAN. Valdez, along with Ann Shea ’91, Kateri Bishop ’96, and Jim Lippold ’90, started the group using funds donated by Sonja Matison, a retired faculty member of the School of Social Work. SWAN decided on three goals to get them started: host an annual “reconnecting event,” create an alumni newsletter and organize charitable events. This spring, SWAN held its second “reconnecting event” for students, alumni and current and retired faculty at Hargreaves Hall on campus. It combined social activities, speaker events and a little fundraising to help pay for the event. The Networker newsletter debuted last fall. It’s available online on SWAN’s website (ewu.edu/swan). Lippold, secretary of the group, writes, edits and recruits others to contribute content. The
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newsletter includes biographies of alumni, accolades graduates have received, articles revolving around social work and more. Martha Raske, chair and director of the School of Social Work, contributes to the newsletter as well as to the group in general. “Martha really is a key person,” Lippold said. She keeps the group connected with the school. In March, the group visited Hope House, a women’s shelter in downtown Spokane – not to lend their knowledge in social work, but to help in other areas. The volunteers packed personal care bags, painted rooms, organized storage rooms, mopped, vacuumed and labeled shelves. For Lippold, who worked as an administrator of services in the field of social work, the event was a nice change of pace. He said when he was finished, he was tired and sore, but could see that the group of volunteers really made a difference that day. “It was a good experience from that point of view,” he said. Now that its first three goals have been established and met, Valdez and Lippold would like the group to work on new goals. One is to find new members for the group by starting a Facebook page to connect with graduates and retired faculty. They want to expand their membership and their leadership team to have more members who are active. There are members from just about every decade the School
Left to right: Members of the SWAN committee – Dan Marshall, Sarah Featherly, Ann Shea, Deb Charron, Dan Lambert and Diana Valdez.
of Social Work has been in existence, from the 1970s through the 2010s. This brings different ideas to the table, and they hope to grow that. Lippold said after he received his master’s degree in social work (MSW), he went back and taught in the School of Social Work for 12 years. Since his retirement, one of the things he has enjoyed is guest speaking in the classroom. It creates a social system for him in retirement and he feels he gets as much from the experience as the students. He hopes to work with the school to create a list of speakers who are in social work to come back to Eastern to speak as well. Valdez said social work has been a fulfilling career and it’s allowed her to work in several different areas. Over the years, she has worked with rape victims, the aging, child welfare and the developmentally disabled. Her MSW offered her the flexibility to work in these different areas. After retiring, she knew she “wanted to always have a connection to Eastern.” Social workers, by nature, are kind, generous and empathetic individuals. Eastern’s social work graduates reflect these values as they continue to give back to the university, their community and each other. E For more information about SWAN, email sowkalumni@ewu.edu.
Kevin Hills ’11, 02, MSW, BA social studies education, received the outstanding social work alumni award presented by the Social Work Alumni Network, SWAN, for his leadership in creating the EWU Veterans Resource Center on the Eastern campus. Pictured above, left to right: Alan Basham (senior lecturer, psychology), Kevin Hills (director Disability Support Services), Amanda Reedy (assistant professor, School of Social Work) and Dave Millet (director Veterans Resource Center)
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the
Impact of giving By BY Kandi KANDI Carper CARPER ’05 ’05
In April, Terry Neal ’85 and David Van Belle ’12, ’86, of US Bank in Spokane, had the opportunity to meet the three recipients of the bank’s Accounting and Finance Scholarship. They They were able to see firsthand how the scholarship awards affect the the lives lives of of the the recipients. recipients. Yvonne Yvonne Clark, who will graduate in June with a degree in accounting, accounting, shared shared her her story story with with them. them. After After many many years years away away from school, working and raising children, she decided to return from to return to to complete complete her bachelor’s degree in accounting. After graduating, she’ll she’ll sit sit for for the the CPA CPA exam. exam. 34 34
EEASTERN: ASTERN: SPRING SPRING 2015 2015
Left Left to to right: right: David David Van Van Belle, Belle, US US Bank Bank Senior Senior Portfolio Portfolio Manager; Manager; scholarship scholarship recipients recipients Danielle Danielle Good, Good, Nicholas Nicholas Alexander Alexander and and Yvonne Yvonne Clark; Clark; Terry Terry Neal, Neal, US US Bank Bank Vice Vice President President –– Commercial Commercial Real Real Estate. Estate.
“The scholarship scholarship helped helped me me get get my my son son in in preschool preschool and and II didn’t didn’t have to take out another loan,” said Clark. “They always want to give you loans. I already have bills so I didn’t didn’t want want to to add add to to that.” that.” Danielle Good Goodsaid saidthat thatthe thescholarship scholarshipallowed allowedher herto tocut cutback backon on her work hours at a commercial real estate company and focus on her at a commercial real estate company and focus on her academic performance. She’s on track to graduate graduate in in June June –– magna magna cum laude – with a double major in finance and andmarketing. marketing.She Sheplans plans
to pursue a career in commercial real estate in the Seattle area. “Going back to school after working for so many years …to be able to graduate with honors is really important to me,” said Good. “The scholarship helped reduce my tuition each quarter so I was able to then cut back on my hours a little bit and spend that time on school.” Nicholas Alexander originally studied engineering at Washington State University before realizing that wasn’t the direction he wanted to go. He transferred to Eastern and is now studying accounting, finance and economics. He’s found his niche, with a grade-point average of 3.93 in his business courses. One day, he hopes to open his own accounting firm where he can help people with their finances and financial reports. Both Neal and Van Belle see the benefit of investing in Eastern students’ success. “The culture of US Bank is built around community,” said Neal. “The bank hires the employees who in turn participate and actively seek out personal, professional and business relationships. We want the students and the university to see this relationship when they accept the scholarship award each year. These monies have been a consistent way to show the bank’s support for its relationship to this community.” Van Belle agrees, “It is important for US Bank to offer scholarships to EWU accounting and finance students to remain a good corporate
citizen in eastern Washington. There is no degree that specifically pertains to banking and the majority of bankers come from these two majors. Students graduating with accounting or finance degrees are what keeps the banking industry alive and allows it to thrive.” Being Eastern graduates themselves, Neal and Van Belle have a loyalty to their alma mater and they find being involved in the scholarship process rewarding. “As an alumnus and a senior lender for the bank, I get the best of being involved for the bank, and hopefully the students see the value of their education and where you can take that degree,” said Neal. “It always gives me a boost to know one of my co-workers is an EAG.” And, their impression of the scholarship recipients? “The students who earned this scholarship this year are now a part of an impressive group,” said Van Belle. “They are very likely to be successful no matter what path they ultimately chose. Each of them would make good bankers, but further, they will make good citizens that we will all be proud to watch grow and to share in their accomplishments.“ For more information on how your company can help Eastern students by providing scholarships, please contact Carolyn Wika, College Advancement Director, 509.359.6132, cwika@ewu.edu.
Save the
Date Join us Oct. 9-10 on the Cheney campus as we celebrate 50 years of CBPA at Eastern. Register today: alumni.ewu.edu/CBPA
Spokane’s premier
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class notes
8 EMAIL YOUR NOTES TO easternmagazine@ewu.edu. Alumni Return to Campus Jadd Davis ’05, BA music, the artistic director for Coeur d’Alene Jadd Davis Carmen Dowling Summer Theatre, returned to his alma mater this spring to serve as guest director of EWU’s Theatre Department’s production of A Man of No Importance. Davis was so impressed with the students working the production that he hired six of them to work professionally for Coeur d’Alene Summer Theatre’s upcoming productions. This has been a homecoming for Davis, who is originally from Post Falls. Last summer, he and his wife, Kasey, and their toddler, Edwin, moved back to the area from Seattle. Thanks to the Office of Global Initiatives, a pair of EWU graduates from the state of Washington returned to campus to share with current students how far one can go with an Eastern degree. Carmen Dowling ’03, BA English, has traveled the world as a U.S. Foreign Service Officer. Her most recent assignment was in Recife, Brazil, where her consular office ensured the safety of Americans visiting Nathanael Rudolph the country – including during soccer’s 2014 FIFA World Cup. She has since returned to Washington, D.C. to prepare for her next overseas assignment. Nathanael Rudolph ’02, MA History, ’99, BA International Affairs, is an assistant English professor at Mukogawa Women’s University, Nishinomiya, Japan. He is the 2015 Fosseen-Kusaka Distinguished Professor, part of an exchange program between EWU and Mukogawa where a professor from each university spends a week teaching at the other university each year.
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’14 Amanda Barriger, BA government, has joined Keller Williams Realty Spokane. ’14 Rachael Carlisle, BA accounting, has been hired by Nicholas Knapton, P.S., as a staff accountant. ’14 Dakota Felland, BA accounting, has been promoted to staff B accountant at Nicholas Knapton, P.S., in Spokane.
’14 Stephanie Hoilman, BA communication disorders, and Tyson Cole plan to marry in September in Dayton, Washington. She is an audiology assistant at Walla Walla Clinic. ’14 Elise Jepsen, BA education, and ’14 Andrew B. Fleming, BA education, married Oct. 11, 2014, in Pasco. They are teachers with the Kennewick School District and live in Richland.
’14 Allison C. Vorderbrueggen, BA interdisciplinary studies, and Joe Johnson married July 12, 2014, in Pullman. She is attending EWU’s graduate program in occupational therapy. The couple live in Colfax.
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’13, ’11 Amanda L. Chapman, MS applied psychology, BA psychology, and ’13, ‘09 Kevin R. Kirkpatrick, MS and BA applied developmental psychology, plan to be married May 9, 2015, in Spokane, where Amanda is a mental health counselor and Kevin is an elementary school counselor. ’13 Joe Jackson, BA communication studies, is the new executive director for the West Plains Chamber of Commerce, located in Cheney. He is currently a legislative assistant to state Sen. Michael Baumgartner.
’13 Carsen Quinnett, BA recreation management, has been hired by Greater Spokane Incorporated, as events manager.
12
’12 Clint Moquist, BA accounting, has been promoted to senior accountant by Dingus, Zarecor & Associates PLLC in Spokane. ’12 Amanda Stilwell, BA communication studies, has been hired as a support staff member by Nicholas Knapton, P.S., accountants in Spokane. ’11 Nick Crooks, BA accounting, has been promoted to senior accountant at Nicholas Knapton, P.S., in Spokane. ’11 Jessica K. Law, BA psychology, and Blaine Scott Ludy, both of Seattle, plan to marry Aug. 29, in Bellevue. Jessica is a graduate student at the University of Washington.
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class notes Budke Inducted in Spokane Citizen Hall of Fame In April Gordon Budke ’63, BA accounting, was selected to the inaugural class of the Spokane Citizen Hall of Fame, sponsored by the Spokane Library Foundation. Budke was chosen in the Economic Development and Business category. Bestselling author Jess Walter ’87, BA journalism, was a 2015 Honorable Mention for the Arts and Letters category. The Hall of Fame was the inspiration of Spokane City Councilman Mike Allen ’01, ’00, MBA, BA finance.
Stephanie Vigil and Gordon Budke
Venneri Honored as Entrepreneur of the Year
Gordon Venneri ’76, BA accounting, and business partner Myles Anderson, co-founder of Walla Walla Vintners, were honored as “Entrepreneurs of the Year,” presented by the Center for Entrepreneurial Activities at EWU in April. The two founded Walla Walla Vintners in 1995, and were at the forefront of the wine industry in the Walla Walla region. That region has experienced phenomenal growth the past two decades. From what began as a hobby, Venneri and Anderson’s Walla Walla Vintners now produces more than 5,000 cases of premium red wines each year. They have mentored many other winery startups, and they prefer to be part of a culture of “competing creatively.” Myles Anderson and Gordon Venneri
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’11 Brittany Pugsley, BA applied developmental psychology, has joined Keller Williams Realty in Spokane. ’11 Jeremy B. Rouse, BA Spanish, and his wife, ’12 Caitlin Garpestad, BA Spanish, were married Aug. 16, 2014. The couple met in Spanish class at EWU. They have formed a roots-punk duo, Feral Anthem. The band’s latest release, Ballast & Bone, is a collection of tunes that offer a gritty look at daily life. Some of the songs were inspired by trips to the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Nicaragua. ’11, ’09 Charles Zeller, Jr., MA public administration, BA history, is the assistant director of student activities and the fraternity and sorority life adviser for the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University campus in Prescott, Arizona. Previously, he taught high school history before changing direction to student development in higher education.
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’10 Viktoriya Malko, BA finance, has been promoted to senior accountant by Nicholas Knapton, P.S. ’10 Chris C. Newberry, BA journalism, and Amy Johnson, were married Aug. 22, 2014. Newberry is a custodian for Spokane Public Schools. The couple live in Spokane Valley.
09
admissions advisor representative for EWU. ’09, ’06 Rachi Wortham, MS physical education, BA interdisciplinary studies, has joined the Oregon State men’s basketball program as director of player personnel. Wortham was an assistant coach at EWU from 2007-11 after playing for the Eagles from 2003-05 when the team made its first trip to the NCAA Tournament.
’09 Luke Clemmens, BA English education, married Natalie Abersfeller, Oct. 25, 2014, at Terra Blanco Winery in Benton City, Washington. Luke is a teacher and the couple live in Kennewick.
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’09 Jarod Grant, BA communication studies, is the co-recipient of the President’s Award, presented at the NAACP Freedom Fund Gala in March, in Everett. Jarod is the director of the Diversity and Equity Center at Everett Community College. Previously, he served as the western Washington
’08 Brant J. Lindquist, Jr., BA geography, has announced his engagement to Shayla Anchors. The couple met while attending EWU. They are planning an August wedding in Portland.
’08 Joel R. Enevold, BS electrical engineering, has been promoted to principal for MW Consulting Engineers. Previously, he served as a senior electrical engineer and project manager for the company.
class notes Jacobsen-Kaufman Wedding It was a Valentine’s Day wedding for EWU alumni couple, Lauren Jacobsen ’13, BA criminal justice, and Brandon Kaufman. If the wedding officiant looks familiar, you’re right – head football coach Beau Baldwin did the honors. The couple tied the knot Feb. 14, 2015, at the Highlands Ranch Mansion in Colorado. They met at EWU, where she played soccer (anchor of the midfield, 2009) and he was an All-American wide receiver (2009-2011). Per their wedding website: “Brandon and Lauren met in college at Eastern Washington University (Go Eags!). They had no idea they would become the greatest love story of all time when they initially met. It took their fat friend Cody having a big fat BBQ sophomore year for them to realize that they had no choice but to become best friends, fall in love and make the world a more beautiful place by doing so. Brandon works at Just Results Fitness in Broomfield, Colorado, and Lauren is the legal administrator for Kidneigh & Kaufman P.C., in Denver.
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’07 Sam Buzby, BA visual communication design, and ’07 Heather (Gwynn) Buzby, BA children’s studies, welcomed twin girls, Nora and Natalie, in November. Sam is the Web communications consultant in the Marketing & Communications Department at EWU. ’07 Jerad L. Farley, BA education, has been named the new Rocky Heights Elementary School principal in the Hermiston School District, effective July 1. Jerad previously served as a district instructional coach at Wahitis Elementary School in the Othello School District. ’07 Sydney Pehl, BA economics, has joined Choice Realty in Spokane. She was formerly an assistant branch manager at Chase Bank in downtown Spokane.
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’06 Jaime Peterson, BA interdisciplinary studies, has been hired as the clinical director of Lakeside Recovery Center’s chemical dependency rehabilitation facility in Spokane. She has been a chemical dependency professional for more than nine years. ’06 Randy Robbins, BA communication studies, released his new album, The Grass is Always Yellower, available on iTunes, or you can stream it live at randyrobbins.bandcamp.com.
’06 Lars Slind, BA international studies, an actor and model based in Los Angeles, appeared in the April 10 episode of NBC’s TV show, Grimm. Slind is starring in the upcoming movie, Last Call at Murray’s, with Michael Gross (Family Ties) and John Savage (Deer Hunter). The movie is in postproduction.
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’05 Paul M. Terrell, BA graphic communications and multimedia programming, has joined Rainmaker Creative, a creative design and marketing firm in Spokane, as a visual communications designer.
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’04 Thomas G. Holmes, MFA creative writing, has released his latest book of poems, The Cave (The Bitter Oleander Press). Holmes is the editor of Redactions: Poetry & Poetics. He is also the author of Poems for an Empty Church; The Oldest Stone in the World; Henri, Sophie & the Hieratic Head of Ezra Pound: Poems Blasted from the Vortex; Pre-Dew Poems; Negative Time; After Malagueña, and Poetry Assignments: The Book (Sage Hill Press, forthcoming). His prose writing about wine, poetry book reviews and poetry may be found at his blog, The Line Break @ thelinebreak. wordpress.com.
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class notes Roos Announces Retirement
Michael Roos ’05, BA finance, former Eastern Eagle and Tennessee Titans offensive tackle announced his retirement from the National Football League in February, after his 10th season as a pro was ended by a knee injury last fall. Roos earned All-Pro accolades in 2008, 2010 and 2011, and started in the Pro Bowl in February 2009. In his last 13 seasons as a football player, Roos started every game he played – 226 games. His last 35 starts at EWU were from 2002-04, when he originally became an offensive lineman. Roos has been a regular visitor to Eastern games in the past 10 years when his NFL schedule allowed. Eastern honored Roos by retiring his jersey at EWU’s Homecoming game Oct. 24, 2009, versus Montana State. Roos and his wife, Katherine ’04, BA urban and regional planning, pledged $500,000 to help EWU install a red turf in 2010 at Eastern’s football stadium, and EWU has won 31 of 36 games at “The Inferno” since then. As a tribute to his giving legacy, Eastern renamed Woodward Field to “Roos Field” in fall 2010 upon completion of the project.
03
’03 Travis G. Smith, MEd teaching K-8, the principal of Crestwood Elementary School in the Kent School District, has accepted the position of director of learning support for the North Kitsap School District, effective July 1.
02
’02 Jeramie Keeble, BS technology, of Leone & Keeble Inc., has been elected to the board of the Inland Northwest Chapter of the Associated General Contractors of America. ’02 Nicole M. Montgomery, BA business, has been promoted to executive vice president and chief financial officer for Community 1st Bank in Post Falls. She has been with the bank since 2011. ’02 Jaime D. Sanchez, BA electronic media and filmic arts, has written and published a children’s book, Koonland, by Jaime DS.
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’02 Jeff Schmedding, BA education – health and fitness, will be in his 12th year on EWU’s football coaching staff for the 2015 season, where he will serve as the new defensive coordinator. Schmedding, who grew up in Spokane, will coach safeties for the fifth year after coaching linebackers the previous two seasons. He also served as coordinator of EWU special teams from 2008-2014. ’02 Maigan Snider, BA human resource management, has been promoted to small business loan officer at Numerica Credit Union in Spokane. She has 11 years of experience in the financial industry.
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’00 Tricia Webster, BA journalism, has been hired by Greater Spokane Incorporated as marketing and communications manager.
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’99 Maria Vandervert, BA anthropology, has been promoted to vice president of marketing communications of Greater Spokane Incorporated.
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’98 Vicki M. Smith, BA government, a trial attorney and partner with the law firm Bodyfelt Mount LLP, in Portland, has become a member of the Federation of Defense & Corporate Counsel (FDCC). Founded in 1936, the FDCC is an invitation-only organization for U.S. and international civil defense litigators, senior corporate counsel and insurance claims executives. The group counts among its membership lawyers who are national coordinating counsel and trial counsel for nearly all national insurance carriers and Fortune 500 companies.
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’97 Mike A. Combs, BA finance, has been named assistant vice president and branch
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manager for Banner Bank’s BoiseFairview branch in Boise. He has more than 15 years’ experience in financial services and the mortgage industry. Combs is president of the Ada County Association of Realtors Foundation and a board member of the association’s outreach committee. ’97 Jason E. Johnson, BA marketing, a private wealth adviser with Ameriprise Financial, has achieved membership in the Million Dollar Round Table – the Premiere Association of Financial Professionals. Membership is based on client service, adherence to a code of ethics, professionalism and involvement in at least one other industry association.
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’96, ‘85 Mary L. Croston, MEd, BA journalism, a teacher at Michael Anderson Elementary School in Cheney, was
recognized as one of four female members of Team Fairchild, honored during Women’s History Month in March. Croston was selected based on her passion for volunteering in her community. She was an Adjutant General Officer for eight years in the U.S. Army Reserves from 1984 to 1992.
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’95 Michelle E. Hege, MS communications, was recognized by Inland Business Catalyst magazine, as one of its 2015 Women in Business Leadership Awards for her work as CEO of Desautel Hege Communications.
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’94 Jennifer Hicks, BA music, has been hired by Providence Health Care Foundation Eastern Washington, as a development director. Previously, she was director of development for the Spokane Symphony Society.
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’92 Tod Marshall, MFA creative writing, will be honored with the Humanities Washington Award at the Spokane Bedtime Stories fundraiser in October. The award is granted to two individuals who exemplify “outstanding achievement in the public humanities.” Marshall will be given the Humanities Scholarship and Service award. Marshall, the author of three collections of poetry and a literature professor at Gonzaga University, is devoted to a program called, “Prime Time Family Reading.” As a scholar for the program, he helped to integrate reading and storytelling into the lives of at-risk families, teaching how exposure to books is important for all children. ’92 Barbara K. Richardson, MFA creative writing, won the 2013 Utah Book Award for her debut novel, Tributary (Torrey House Press). Richardson spent
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class notes Wyborney named 2015 Washington Principal of the Year
The Association of Washington School Principals has chosen Lori Wyborney ’95, ’86, MEd, BEd, as the 2015 High School Principal of the Year. She is the principal of John Rogers High School in Spokane. Under Wyborney’s leadership, Rogers High School’s graduation rate has increased from 60.4 percent to 81.6 percent in 2014. In addition to improving graduation rates and increasing the number of college-ready graduates, she has implemented a schoolwide literacy program for all content areas to increase literacy for all students. In 2013, she was awarded the Eastern Alumni Association’s Alumna of Service Award. In 2012, she was named the Spokane Public Schools Principal of the Year. Wyborney started at Rogers as the assistant principal in 2008, before becoming principal in 2010. She began her administrative career as a vice principal at Wahluke High School in Mattawa, Washington, in 2005. Each year, the Association of Washington School Principals recognizes three principals with Principal of the Year awards at the elementary, middle and high school level. Wyborney will travel to Washington, D.C. later this year to be recognized for her accomplishment.
20 years researching and writing the novel, which she started one week after graduating from EWU. She has two books, both anthologies, coming out this year: I Am with You: Love Letters to Cancer Patients and Dirt: A Love Story: 36 Writers Get Down to Earth.
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’91, ’81 Craig M. Foster, MEd, BA physical education, was inducted into the Washington State Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame in December 2014. Foster has coached wrestlers in California, New York and Oklahoma, but he settled in Blaine, Washington, 23 years ago. Foster was named Coach of the Year at the state tournament in 2014, his fourth time earning that honor. Under his tutelage, 71 Blaine wrestlers have placed at state and 11 have been crowned champions.
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’90 Gina (Mauro) Campbell, BA communication studies, has been hired as the executive director of First Night Spokane, a celebration of the New Year through the arts, and the only winter festival in Spokane. She previously served as director of Industry Relations and Training for Visit Spokane. ’90 Amy J. Goertz, BA general studies, has joined Lynn St. Louis Law Office PLLC as a senior associate. Goertz, who graduated from Gonzaga Law School, was admitted to the Washington State Bar Association in 1995. Her practice focuses on the areas of elder law and estate planning. ’90 Carl W. Humphreys, BA business, has been hired by Mountain West Bank as a mortgage loan originator at the Spokane Valley residential lending center. He has 18 years’ experience in the mortgage business.
’90 Courtney S. Susemiehl, BA general studies, has been hired by the Greater Spokane Valley Chamber of Commerce as a marketing and events coordinator.
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’84 Suzette R. Nordstrom, BA management, was recognized by Inland Business Catalyst magazine, as one of its 2015 Women in Business Leadership Awards for her work as president/owner of Weldon Barber, founded in Spokane with locations now on both sides of the state.
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’79 Carol Bonino, BA journalism, has been hired by Providence Health Care Foundation Eastern Washington, as a grant development and research specialist. Previously, she was with Gonzaga University for more than 25 years.
class notes Hasson Named Publisher of The Providence Journal
In March, Janet Hasson ’81, BA finance, became the second woman to occupy the position of publisher in the 185-year history of Rhode Island’s largest newspaper. The first was Mary Knowles, in the mid-1870s. After graduation, Hasson worked as a research assistant for her hometown newspaper, The Spokesman-Review (Spokane). She would later become the company’s consumer sales and marketing director. From there, she became the associate publisher of Spokane’s Journal of Business. In 1999, Hasson moved to Gannett, the owner of USA Today and hundreds of other daily and weekly newspapers. From 2005 to 2011, she was senior vice president of audience development and strategy at the Detroit Media Partnership, the publisher of the Detroit News and Detroit Free Press. Since 2011, Hasson, 55, served as the president/publisher of the Journal News Media Group in White Plains, New York.
’79 Randy Cameron, BA history, chief operating officer of Baker Construction & Development, received the key to the city from Spokane Mayor David Condon. Cameron has been a member of the Spokane Park Board since 2008 and recently completed his third consecutive term as president. ’79 Curt S. Didier, BS industrial technology, was inducted into the Columbia Basin College Athletic Hall of Fame. Didier earned All-Conference and All-American honors as a sophomore playing football for the CBC Hawks in the mid-1970s, before transferring to Eastern, where he also played football. He later signed with the Oakland Raiders in 1980. He works for the city of Kennewick and lives in Eltopia, Washington.
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’70, ’66 Lawson Van Kuren, MEd, BA education, and his wife, Ruth, were honored in January, when the Cheney Middle School track and field complex was dedicated in their name. The Cheney couple is legendary in the sport, beginning the Cheney Track Club in 1972 with 50 participants. Over the years, they’ve touched the lives of more than 2,000 athletes involved with the Cheney Track Club.
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’68 Len Anderson, BA secondary English education, is a language arts teacher at the Secondary Learning Center. He has taught in Mississippi as well as in the Spokane area, which includes teaching at the Spokane Juvenile Detention Center. Anderson taught in the Renton School District for one year.
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’60, ’51 Ellen J. Savidge, MA reading specialist, BA home economics, received the 2014 National Education Associate (NEA)Retired Distinguished Service Award at the organization’s annual meeting held in Denver in July 2014. Savidge began her teaching career in 1950 in Richland. During her career, she also taught in Bellevue, Cheney and in the Hoquiam School District, from where she retired in 1983. After retiring, she taught developmental reading at Grays Harbor Community College for six years, served nine years on the NEA-Retired Council and four years as president of the Washington Education Association -Retired.
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class notes Lucas Recognized by International Association of Venue Managers Jack G. Lucas ’77, BA music, president of TicketsWest and WestCoast Entertainment, is the recipient of the 2015 Joseph J. Anzivino Award, granted to a distinguished, Allied International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM) member for extraordinary contributions to the association and the industry it serves. The award will be presented during IAVM’s annual conference in August in Baltimore. Lucas has been in the entertainment industry for more than 38 years, and has been with TicketsWest since 1987. Prior to TicketsWest, he spent 13 years as an event supervisor for the City of Spokane Entertainment Facilities, which included a 2,700seat performing arts center, a 30,000-seat stadium, an 8,500-seat multi-purpose arena and a convention center. He has served on numerous boards, including the Eastern Washington University Foundation Board, Eastern magazine editorial board, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Lilac Services for the Blind, Goodwill Industries and others.
“ This
scholarship is one more step toward reaching my dreams and so much more.” – Courtney
“I appreciate what people in the community are willing to do for students.” – Tyler
“You have given me the opportunity to work toward my biggest goal in life.” – Dillon
“I will admit to a rather undignified dance of glee at receiving this scholarship.” – Laura
“Thank you for joining me in this venture and for believing in the future of students like me.” – Aimee
“You have inspired me to try harder to meet my goals and to give back to the community.” – Ana
When you contribute to EWU scholarships, you inspire and motivate students to succeed. 44
“I promise you that your investment in my education will be used wisely and forever appreciated.” – Rebecca
ewu.edu/InspireAwesome E ASTERN: SPRING 2015
“I will continue to do my best in the classroom and uphold the standards of excellence and the legacy of previous recipients.” – Fetlewoyni
“Thanks to your generous support, I will be the first in my family to graduate from college.” – Jonathan
in memoriam
14 02
’14 Nancy M. Maryott, age 67, died Jan. 26, 2015, Spokane, Washington
’72 Lois M. Johnston, age 82, died Jan. 1, 2015, Spokane, Washington
’52 Shirley E. Morrow, age 82, died Nov. 8, 2014, Spokane Valley, Washington
’14 Chad Rattray, age 37, died Jan. 20, 2015, Spokane, Washington
’72 Bob Vaughn, age 89, died Feb. 5, 2015, Spokane, Washington
’51 Betty Graybill, age 87, died Jan. 21, 2015, Spokane, Washington
’02 Stephanie Marie Melhus, age 34, died Nov. 22, 2014, Wakefield, England
’71 Richard N. Gilbreth, age 65, died Jan. 3, 2015, Boise, Idaho
’51 Roy E. Thomas Jr., age 85, died Dec. 7, 2014, Spokane, Washington
’71 Colin K. Guthmueller, age 71, died Dec. 16, 2014, Bothell, Washington
’50 Elmer R. Shulkin, age 89, died Dec. 17, 2014, Spokane Valley, Washington
’00 Janet E. Hooper, age 57, died Jan. 17, 2015, Weiser, Idaho
96 87
’96 Don F. Jubon, age 67, died July 8, 2014
’94 Donald Crawford, age 71, died Dec. 27, 2014, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho ’87 Gloria P. Sands, age 75, died March 10, 2015, Mesa, Arizona
’87 Cindy K. Windsor, age 54, died April 4, 2015, Richland, Washington ’86 Anna M. Storm, age 80, died March 16, 2015, Spokane Valley, Washington ’85 Melvin S. Williams, age 52, died March 12, 2015, Othello, Washington ’80 Jerry W. Smith, age 67, died Nov. 25, 2014, Spokane, Washington
79
’79 Kathryn L. Hoon, age 57, died Dec. 30, 2014, Spokane, Washington
’78 Herbert J. Bankey, age 61, died Jan. 7, 2015, Spokane, Washington ’76 Francis X. DeAbreu, age 80, died Nov. 29, 2014, Post Falls, Idaho ’75 Jill Pendarvis, age 83, died Oct. 1, 2014, Spokane, Washington ’75 Walter C. Schilling, age 65, died Feb. 4, 2014, Post Falls, Idaho ’75 Peter M. Smith, age 64, died Dec. 3, 2014, Omak, Washington ’74 Patricia A. Scheele, age 71, died Nov. 29, 2014, Spokane, Washington
’71 Danny J. Merritt, age 67, died Jan. 20, 2015, Maui, Hawaii ’71 Roy D. Rambo, age 67, died Aug. 10, 2014, Athol, Idaho ’70 Janet E. Kirsch, age 69, died March 6, 2015, Spokane Valley, Washington
69
’69 Rodney P. Linton, age 84, died Nov. 12, 2014
’68 Fred L. Dayharsh, age 85, died Dec. 18, 2014, Spokane, Washington ’67 Calvin K. Cooney, age 71, died March 10, 2015, Spokane, Washington ’66 James W. Juul, age 72, died March 18, 2015, Spokane, Washington ’66 John A. “Jack” Lilienthal, age 70, died Dec. 24, 2014, Spokane, Washington ’66 Marian K. Sheldon, age 76, died Jan. 19, 2015, Spokane, Washington ’66 Peggy J. Sims, age 70, died Dec. 8, 2014, Spokane, Washington ’65 Dean E. Daniels, age 75, died Dec. 7, 2014, Reardan, Washington ’62 Cloyde R. Hardman, age 81, died Nov. 21, 2014, Richland, Washington ’60 Conward Ferris, age 90, died Nov. 17, 2014, Kennewick, Washington ’60 Lee W. Schorzman, age 81, died Dec. 23, 2014, Spokane, Washington
’73 John P. Crouch, age 69, died Feb. 20, 2014, Spokane, Washington
58
’73 Robert L. Henry, age 71, died March 15, 2015, Spokane, Washington
’58 Rodger E. Schmidt, age 85, died Jan. 26, 2015, Kenai, Alaska
’73 Eileen A. Newman, age 92, died Jan. 6, 2015, Salt Lake City, Utah
’56 Mark C. Davis, age 84, died Dec. 18, 2014, Spokane Valley, Washington
’73 Robert D. Yake, age 71, died March 22, 2015, Spokane, Washington
’53 Walter Ray “Bud” Wright, age 83, died Feb. 19, 2015, Tekoa, Washington
’58 James E. Montzheimer, age 82, died Nov. 20, 2014, Spokane, Washington
43 39
’43 Florence L. Elsner, age 93, died Jan. 29, 2015, Brier, Washington
’43 Katherine L. Proctor, age 94, died Dec. 19, 2014, Olympia, Washington ’39 Saralee C. Bayne, age 99, died Jan. 12, 2015, Beaverton, Oregon
’34 Gladys H. Gilman, age 102, died Dec. 29, 2014, Spokane, Washington
Faculty & Staff
Donald F. Goodwin Sr., PhD, died Jan. 1, 2012, in Spokane. He was 80. Goodwin began his teaching career at Eastern in 1961 and was Teacher of the Year in 1969. He helped start the student newspaper at Eastern and served as Faculty Legislative Liaison for five years. He retired as Professor Emeritus in 1996, after 35 years of service. Jack Leighton, PhD, died April 4, 2015, in Spokane. He was 96. He retired from Eastern in September 1981. During his 28-year tenure, he served as professor, athletic director and head of the Physical Education Department. He developed and patented the Leighton Flexometer as a therapeutic assessment, measuring the improvement in flexibility of a person's limbs. Bernard Loposer died Jan. 30, 2015, at the age of 83. He began his career at Eastern in 1994, as director of development, executive director of the EWU Foundation and left as associate vice president of development and executive director of the EWU Foundation in December 1996. In retirement, he changed careers and wrote mystery novels. Lt. Col. (Ret.) Maynard L. Nelson, 84, died March 14, 2015, in Spearfish, South Dakota. He was the Army-appointed ROTC instructor at Eastern in the 1960s.
E ASTERN: SPRING 2015
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final thoughts From Lisa Poplawski, director of Alumni Advancement I love the onset of summer at Eastern. Everyone seems happier and full of energy. Maybe it’s the celebration of making it through a long winter. Or, the joy from all the flowers blooming on campus. For me it is the excitement of college journeys ending. Sounds sad? Yes. Especially when they are incredible student workers, those in this photo! Photographed with me are Zairy, Michael and Morgan, three of our student workers in the Office of Alumni Advancement and soon to be new alumni. I asked them to join me because our students are why I feel so blessed to work at a university. We often engage alumni and friends in the conversation about the impact they can have in the lives of students at Eastern. Anyone who has the honor of working with current students knows that students can have a greater impact on us. In November, I will have worked at Eastern for 20 years. Michael, Zairy and Morgan represent hundreds of students who have made an impact on me over the years. Their resilience, laughter, tears, adventures and dreams motivate and inspire me. Our students come to Eastern with a vision of an incredible future. Although it may be a bit blurry at times, they forge ahead to take on obstacles with bravery. They fail and get back up. They lose hope and then find it. They succeed and celebrate. And yes, they are human! Like us, they complain about tests on Friday, snow on the pass and lack of sleep. They miss home, mom’s cooking and someone else doing their laundry! (Don’t we all?) Michael is thankful to have landed a full-time job with time to enjoy the outdoors and woodworking. “I have learned that your future is never set in stone,” said Michael. “Life throws you curve balls. I have been through so much, I could not possibly decide what at EWU has impacted me most.” Zairy is excited to start a photography business and focus on writing and traveling. “Eastern allowed me to become who I truly am,” said Zairy. “I came to Eastern to become a special agent. I realized I was chasing a childhood dream that I was too scared to outgrow. I am now an interdisciplinary major. I’ve had amazing, influential teachers who enhanced my talents.” Morgan is already working for St. John Vianney Catholic School. The day after graduation, she will marry her best friend who she met at Eastern’s Catholic Newman Center. “One of the most impactful experiences at EWU was my time working with the student Telefund,” said Morgan. “I learned a lot of skills that will help me throughout my career.” So, I dedicate this issue of Eastern magazine to all of our new alumni out there! Thank you for choosing Eastern and influencing so many lives while you were here! I wish you the best on your next adventure. Congratulations, class of 2015! Please represent us well and for goodness sakes, STAY IN TOUCH! We already miss you! (Insert selfish tears here).
Pictured back: Zairy and Michael; front: Morgan and Lisa Poplawski
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E ASTERN: SPRING 2015
events calendar
Join your fellow alumni and friends at these exciting events. For ongoing events and information; visit alumni.ewu.edu, follow Alumni on Facebook, Twitter, or send your email to ewualum@ewu.edu.
13
18
CBPA Drive for Excellence Golf Classic
EWU Commencement
EWU @ Bellevue Commencement
NOVEMBER
OCTOBER
SEPTEMBER
18
25
26
5
14
Small Towns Community Service Day (Walla Walla, Colville and Colfax)
EWU Day at the Seattle Zoo
EWU Day at the Seattle Mariners
Ron Raver Memorial Golf Classic
EWU Day at Silverwood
AUGUST
JULY
JUNE
5
5
19
21
EWU Alumni and Fan Pregame EWU at Oregon
EWU Alumni Red Zone EWU vs. Montana State
Pass through the Pillars
8
9-10
10
17
31
Young Professionals Networking Event
CPBA 50-Year Celebration
Hall of Fame EWU Alumni Red Zone EWU vs. Cal Poly
Library Oktoberfest
 EWU Alumni Red Zone EWU vs. Weber State
HOMECOMING WEEK 2-7
5
Bonfire, Pep Rally and Bed Races
7 EWU Alumni Red Zone EWU vs. Northern Arizona
12
14
21
Young Professionals Networking Event
EWU Football at Montana
EWU Alumni Red Zone EWU vs. Portland State
E ASTERN: SPRING 2015
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EASTERN Magazine
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SWOOP AVAILABLE NOW! Visit ewu.edu/plates $28 from each specialized-plate fee is directed to EWU
scholarships. In 2014, 34 students received $1,000 scholarships from the specialized plates. Personalized and motorcycle plates are available. The $28 plate fee is tax deductible.