Pledge Of Allegiance Students, Faculty Members Vow Their Support For Ewu’s Spokane Programs

With hands over their hearts, 200 Eastern Washington University students and faculty members pledged Tuesday to do all they can “to preserve the school I adore, the school I love.”

Rallying at the Riverpoint Higher Education Park east of downtown Spokane, EWU supporters stood symbolically against a legislative proposal to give Washington State University control over the 48-acre campus and upper-division and graduate-level programs in Spokane.

At least one physics teacher dismissed class in Cheney to allow students to attend the rally.

“This sends a message to the state of Washington about our concerns in higher education,” said Perry Higman, an EWU Spanish teacher and director of university honors. “I’d like to see hard evidence that WSU is any more economical. I’d like to see hard evidence that the quality of education would be any better.”

The rally was organized by the Associated Students of EWU and a faculty union to draw attention to Senate Bill 6717 and this week’s meeting of the state Higher Education Coordinating Board. The nine-member citizens board will convene Thursday and Friday in Spokane to decide the university’s fate.

The board’s staff has recommended appointing an outside expert to manage EWU, awarding control of Spokane programs and Riverpoint to WSU and spending $350,000 to $500,000 to assess Spokane’s economy and education needs.

EWU has drawn criticism from lawmakers and faculty members for failing to meet enrollment targets for three consecutive years. WSU enrollment also is down in Pullman, but the university has made up the difference with growth at its branch campuses in Vancouver and the Tri-Cities.

SB6717 was introduced by Sens. Jim West, R-Spokane, and Eugene Prince, R-Thornton, as a compromise after West’s earlier proposal to merge WSU and EWU.

The bill would give WSU control of Riverpoint but would spin off the Spokane Intercollegiate Research and Technology Institute as a separate entity. EWU would need approval from the HEC Board for programs it wants to offer in Spokane, the bill says.

EWU has 1,300 full-time students in Spokane; WSU has 280.

Although WSU-Spokane students pay higher tuition than EWU students, Bill Gray, dean of WSU-Spokane, said the school would ensure that its programs are available to all EWU students.

Linda Shrope, an accounting major attending the rally, said she enrolled in EWU’s business school at Riverpoint because it was closer to her home in the Valley and less expensive than WSU.

“The school is a great opportunity for downtown Spokane and the business community,” Shrope said.

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