Editing Eastern Washington University (section)

==History==
The city of Cheney, then known as Depot Springs, was surveyed in 1880 along the tracks of the [[Northern Pacific Railroad]];<ref name=Oliphant>{{cite book |url=https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/001068157 |title=History of the State Normal School at Cheney, Washington |author=Oliphant, J. Orin |date=1924 |publisher=Inland-American Printing Company |access-date=30 December 2019 |archive-date=January 8, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180108175041/https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/001068157 |url-status=live }} [http://www.usgennet.org/usa/wa/state1/cheney/title.htm Alternative link, transcribed to HTML] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191230174529/http://www.usgennet.org/usa/wa/state1/cheney/title.htm |date=December 30, 2019 }}</ref>{{rp|3}} expressman [[Benjamin Pierce Cheney]] was a member of that railroad's board of directors. Officials renamed the city for Cheney by October 1880,<ref name=Oliphant/>{{rp|6}} prompting him to donate $10,000 to establish the '''Benjamin P. Cheney Academy''' in 1882 on an {{convert|8|acre|adj=on}} site at present-day Showalter Hall.<ref name=Oliphant/>{{rp|8}} At the time, the school was a private institution losing pupils to the competing [[Cheney School District|public school district]]; after Washington was admitted to the union in 1889, the Enabling Act allowed the establishment of [[normal school]]s in the new state and in 1890 the school was renamed the '''State Normal School at Cheney''' to train future elementary school teachers.<ref name=Oliphant/>{{rp|22–24}} The first class of teachers began their studies on October 13, 1890, under the administration of W.&nbsp;W. Gillette (principal) and [[William J. Sutton]] (vice principal).<ref name=NRIS>{{NRISref |2013a |dateform=mdy |access-date=30 December 2019 |refnum=92001287 |name=Washington State Normal School at Cheney Historic District}}</ref>

[[File:Pomeroy Building - Cheney Washington.jpg|thumb|left|Pomeroy Building, which served as the temporary home of Cheney Normal School for 1893–96 (photographed in 2015)]]
The campus was almost totally destroyed twice by fire in [[1891 State Normal School at Cheney fire|1891]] and [[1912 State Normal School at Cheney fire|1912]], but was rebuilt each time. On August 27, 1891, while the original 1882 Cheney Academy building was being expanded, the first fire destroyed the building and unfinished addition,<ref name=Oliphant/>{{rp|9}} and classes were moved to the Pomeroy building in downtown Cheney temporarily. Sutton took over as principal in 1892 and spearheaded an appropriation of $60,000 in 1895 from the state for a new building, completed in 1896 at the site of the former Academy building.<ref name=Oliphant/>{{rp|30}} Sutton resigned in 1897, and shortly afterward, Governor [[John R. Rogers]] vetoed funding for the fledgling school, forcing it to cancel classes for the 1897–98 school year. Locals provided enough funding to operate the school in 1898, and state funding resumed in 1899.<ref name=NRIS />

[[Noah D. Showalter]] was elected president of the Normal School in 1911, just before the second fire destroyed the 1896 building on April 24, 1912. Like Sutton before him, Showalter urged the state to pass an appropriation of $300,000 to pay for a new building; after Governor [[Ernest Lister]] vetoed the appropriation, the veto was overridden by the legislature under the leadership of Sutton, then serving as a State Senator.<ref name=NRIS />

[[Julius Zittel]] was selected to design the new administration building, which was dedicated on May 22, 1915, and later renamed to Showalter Hall in 1940. The Herculean Pillars, at the intersection of 5th and College, were also completed in 1915, using materials salvaged from the 1896 Normal School building, and served as the entrance to the school for those arriving from the downtown train station.<ref name=NRIS />

Cheney Normal School continued to grow, opening its first dormitories in 1916 (Monroe Hall), 1920 (Senior Hall), and 1923 (Sutton Hall); in 1929, it completed the President's House (now University House), to serve as the residence for the school's president. All were designed by Zittel.<ref name=NRIS/> A new building to house the Training School for future teachers was opened in 1937 and named Martin Hall to honor Governor and local resident [[Clarence Martin]].<ref name=NRIS/> That same year, Cheney Normal School was renamed to '''Eastern Washington College of Education'''. On June 4, 1940, the new campus library was opened as Hargreaves Hall (designed by Rasque), and the former administration building was formally dedicated to Noah Showalter.<ref name=NRIS />

[[File:Hargreaves Hall - Eastern Washington University.jpg|thumb|left|Hargreaves Hall (photographed in 2015)]]
The school grew quickly following World War II and became '''Eastern Washington State College''' in 1961. During this era, Eastern added various graduate and undergraduate degree programs. In 1977, the school's name was changed to '''Eastern Washington University''' by the [[Washington State Legislature]].<ref name=echefw >{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8lVOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=-fgDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6702%2C3562882 |newspaper=Spokane Daily Chronicle |last=Davis |first=Hugh |title=Eastern changes few |date=June 14, 1977 |page=19 |archive-date=March 2, 2016 |access-date=June 18, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160302131613/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8lVOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=-fgDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6702%2C3562882 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1992, the core of the campus was listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].<ref name="NRHPNom">{{Citation | last1 = Emerson | first1 = Stephen | date = April 1992 | title = National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Washington State Normal School at Cheney Historic District | url = {{NRHP url|id=92001287}} | format = PDF | access-date = February 5, 2015 }}.</ref><ref name="WkList">{{citation | last = National Park Service | author-link = National Park Service | title = Weekly List of Actions Taken on Properties: 9/28/92 through 10/08/92 | date = October 9, 1992 | url = http://www.nps.gov/nr/listings/Weekly_Register_List_1992.pdf | access-date = February 5, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090514075420/http://www.nps.gov/nr/listings/Weekly_Register_List_1992.pdf |archive-date=May 14, 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

In July 2024, amid a continuing drop in enrollment and inability to differentiate itself with the other regional universities in Washington ([[Western Washington University]] and [[Central Washington University]]), university president Shari McMahan announced that EWU would rebrand to a [[Institute of technology (United States)|polytechnic]] university, emphasizing applied and experiential learning over theoretical discussions. The change drew criticism from students and faculty in the humanities, fearing that arts-related programs would be reduced or overlooked in the change.<ref>{{Cite web |title=EWU rebrands itself polytechnic, while shifting its definition {{!}} The Spokesman-Review |url=https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2024/jul/14/ewu-rebrands-itself-polytechnic-while-shifting-its/ |access-date=2024-12-12 |website=www.spokesman.com |archive-date=January 5, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250105053535/https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2024/jul/14/ewu-rebrands-itself-polytechnic-while-shifting-its/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The university plans to expand internship opportunities and work with employers to offer more degrees for in-demand fields.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Coenjaerts |first=Nick |date=2024-09-24 |title=Eastern Washington transitions to polytechnic model for workforce readiness |url=https://www.kxly.com/news/eastern-washington-transitions-to-polytechnic-model-for-workforce-readiness/article_24bbeb6a-7aae-11ef-8880-8f516fe42717.html |access-date=2024-12-12 |website=KXLY kxly.com |language=en |archive-date=September 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240925003938/https://www.kxly.com/news/eastern-washington-transitions-to-polytechnic-model-for-workforce-readiness/article_24bbeb6a-7aae-11ef-8880-8f516fe42717.html |url-status=live }}</ref>