Eastern Washington University is a public comprehensive state university. The main campus is located in Cheney and has a branch campus in Spokane, Washington. As of fall quarter 2008, it had an enrollment of 13,895. Eastern offers more than 100 fields of study, 10 master’s degrees, four graduate certificates, 55 graduate programs of study and an applied doctoral program of physical therapy. Eastern is the fastest growing public university in the state of Washington.citation needed Enrollment continues to increase, with 19 consecutive quarters of growth since 1997.citation needed Eastern offers degree programs in Bellevue, Everett, Kent, Seattle, Shoreline, Tacoma, Vancouver and Yakima. A master's in social work is offered in Everett, Vancouver, and Yakima and a master's in education is available in Kent. A creative writing Master of Fine Arts, Interdisciplinary Studies, Child & Family Outreach Program, Communication Studies, Social Work Program (part-time Master's), Journalism, Alcohol & Drug Studies, and Counseling Education & Developmental Psychology programs are offered in Spokane
HistoryEWU was established in 1882 by a $10,000 grant from expressman Benjamin Pierce Cheney, and originally known as Benjamin P. Cheney Academy to honor its founder. In 1889 the school was renamed to State Normal School and once again in 1937 to Eastern Washington College of Education. The campus grew quickly in size following World War II and in 1961, the school became Eastern Washington State College. Around that time period, Eastern added various graduate and undergraduate degree programs. In 1977, the school's name was changed for the final time to Eastern Washington University by the state legislature. AcademicsRankings
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AthleticsEastern's sports mascot is the Eagle, named "Swoop," and its colors are red and white. The former mascot of the school was the "Savages", which was dropped in 1973 when the student body voted to change to the Eagles. (See Native American mascot controversy.) EWU athletic teams participate in the Big Sky Conference at the NCAA Division I (I - FCS for football) level. The club hockey team participates in the American Collegiate Hockey Association, Division II, Western Region. The club baseball team is in its 14th year of participation in the National Collegiate Baseball Association, Western Mountain Conference West. The Division I baseball program was dropped in 1992. The EWU football team plays at Woodward Field, recently expanded and renovated in 2005 to seat 12,000 with a grass turf. The field was named after one of the university's first head coaches. Quarterback Erik Meyer, who played from 2001-2005, won the Walter Payton Award in 2005 for the best player in Division I-AA football and set the I-AA career passing efficiency record at 166.5. The Eagles basketball and volleyball teams also compete on nearby Reese Court in the Special Events Pavilion, with a capacity of 6,000. The university's most prominent sports have traditionally been its football and men's basketball teams with the women's volleyball team having some good years, finishing the season in the Division 1 top 25 in 2003 (oddly, because they lost the Big Sky Championship game, they were the only top 25 team excluded from the tournament). Originally an NAIA school until joining the Big Sky Conference, the Eagles gained major prominence in the NAIA and Division II winning National and Regional championships, including a National championship in Wrestling (the sport was dropped in the 80's). In 2007, point guard Rodney Stuckey was drafted 15th overall by the Detroit Pistons. The Kentwood High School standout ended up at EWU when he failed to meet NCAA requirements. The Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League held the majority of their summer training camps at EWU, 1976-1985 and from 1997-2006, from late July to mid August. Four women's basketball games were rickrolled in March 2008 by school staff as a joke. Rivalry GamesThe EWU-UM Governors Cup is the annual college football game between the University of Montana Grizzlies and the Eastern Washington University Eagles. Traditionally, it is in the middle of the regular season, played on the Saturday alternating between Woodward Field and Washington-Grizzly Stadium each year. National championships
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