Fall 2025
News articles
Choosing to Lead, Choosing to Serve
At EOU, student leadership is more than a résumé line—it is a voice that helps shape EOU’s future. Conner Fecht, a sophomore pre-nursing major who serves as EOU’s student representative on the Board of Trustees, understands that responsibility. His recent appointment by the Governor to the EOU Board of Trustees helps ensure that the experiences...
No Place for Hunger
Across Oregon, nearly 600,000 people face hunger. On college campuses, that need often hides in plain sight: behind backpacks, in late-night study sessions, in students quietly stretching groceries to make it through the week. At EOU, where many students are first-generation, rural, working part-time, or raising families, meeting basic needs isn’t occasional. It is a...
From ‘55 to Forever – The Will to Shape Tomorrow
August is nationally recognized as Make a Will Month, a reminder that estate planning is one of the most meaningful ways we can care for the people and causes we love. For EOU, few examples embody that spirit more beautifully than the life and legacy of Robert R. “Bob” Peshall. When Peshall graduated in 1955,...
Building Leaders for the Nation
EOU has a long tradition of shaping leaders of all kinds, including the military. Since the 1940s, students have arrived with ambition and leave with purpose, strengthened by the discipline of military service and the support of dedicated staff and faculty. Few represent that legacy more than Jack Johnson, ’72. Now 86, Johnson spent nearly...
Where Are They Now?
Retired EOU Emeritus Faculty say time on campus shaped both their lives and the futures of the students they served. Their reflections: EOU’s strength comes from the people who create a supportive community of success. Professor Doyle Slater arrived at EOU in 1969 and remembers a tightly-woven campus network of colleagues and students and a...
Hope Has A Hometown
Every year in May—Mental Health Awareness Month—we are reminded that seeking help is an act of bravery, and supporting others is a calling. At a time when rural Oregon faces a profound shortage of mental health professionals, Eastern Oregon University is rising to meet the need with innovative programs that deliver compassion, resolve, and a...
Celebrating Possibilities – $1.3 Million in Foundation Scholarships
The Eastern Oregon University Foundation’s annual Celebration of Scholarships was a highlight of Blue and Gold Weekend, bringing students and donors together in a show of gratitude, community, and academic achievement. The event also featured a major announcement: the Foundation would be offering more than $1.3 million in scholarships to EOU students in the 2025-26...
Stepping Up to the Plate
March arrives with the rhythm of spring training—a season of sharpening skills, finding your footing, and stepping back onto the field. For former Mountaineer Steve Carter ’08, that spirit mirrors the way Eastern Oregon University shaped his life, defined his friendships, and inspired his desire to give back. Carter first arrived in La Grande on...
The Heart of Music
For more than thirty years, Professor Peter Wordelman has brought heart to EOU’s Music Department. His gentle presence, expressive conducting, and unwavering belief in every student has shaped far more than musicians. In his rehearsal room, students have discovered courage they didn’t know they had, built friendships, and found a place where their voices—literal and...
