Message sent from President Shari McMahan via email to campus community on July 11, 2024.
Dear campus community,
I hope you are all enjoying these summer months, especially staying hydrated and safe during this recent heat wave.
As previously stated in my May 30 email, I am committed to maintaining transparency as we move forward with building a polytechnic model at EWU, focusing on applied learning in high-demand fields while still providing a liberal arts education. This is a big step for our university, and one which will capitalize on the work already being done to support student success and reinforce our core value of serving the region’s workforce. What began as a proposition to improve enrollment and reestablish Eastern’s identity became, due to the dedicated work of the Identity and Marketing Workgroup and feedback from the campus community, a plan to position Eastern as the region’s polytechnic university.
Our marketing consultants, idfive, along with our MarCom team, have completed the necessary testing with current and prospective students and parents/guardians on elements associated with a polytechnic model to better understand their perception and related terms. The results confirmed that an emphasis on applied learning opportunities and career-readiness is the right direction for EWU. Across all demographics, these were identified as the most important aspect of a university experience. We now have a foundation of understanding to begin building the necessary infrastructure and messaging to best meet the desired direction for EWU.
As we know, applied learning is already taking place within numerous academic departments; an applied learning workgroup has been formed to assess, integrate, and develop a legislative request moving forward. We are expanding on those opportunities to elevate our identity. Additionally, this work will begin to meet the goals and outcomes of the approved strategic plan in the areas of regional impact and academic excellence.
For further information on our efforts and FAQs, please visit the Identity & Marketing Workgroup webpage. I will go more in-depth into our plan during the Convocation Address on September 24. Be sure to attend!
Sincerely,
Shari
Dr. Shari McMahan
President
Eastern Washington University
214 Showalter Hall, Cheney, WA 99004
president@ewu.edu | 509.359.6362
ewu.edu
