EWU Institute for Public Policy and Economic Analysis

05/29/2026

We recently launched Yakama Nation Vitals, a collaboration between tribal members, EWU IPPEA and the EWU Dept of Design. The website presents demographic, economic, education, health, housing and natural resources data. EWU did a nice feature on our two student interns, Matthew Sandell and Amy George. Amy is a member of the Colville Federation of Bands & Tribes, so this was a neat project for her, especially.

Check out both the article and the website.

Article:
https://www.ewu.edu/news/ewu-students-public-policy-institute-create-yakama-nation-vitals/

Website:
https://yakamanationvitals.org/

An important project developed by Eastern Washington University students and launched earlier this year serves as a tool for the Yakama Nation to monitor key indicators of community health and well-being.

01/29/2025

The Skagit County Trends Blog was sent out earlier this month to over two-thousand subscribers! Join our mailing list and be one of the first to know about new updates and insights.
https://skagitcountytrends.org/blog/manage-account/

06/19/2024

If you subscribe to the S-R, make sure to check out the front page article featuring content from the IPPEA. We love when our data and insights are used by the communities we serve.

05/30/2024

Last week, the EWU IPPEA team traveled to Colfax, WA for the launch of our most recent county trends site -- Whitman County Trends: https://whitmancountytrends.org/

04/09/2024

According to Dr. Patrick Jones, Director of the IPPEA, "It’s pretty clear that housing costs have risen, whether it’s single family or rental costs, much faster than income has." Read more about his interview with Spokane Public Radio.

Regional News EWU reports housing prices are a significant expense for renters Spokane Public Radio | By Doug Nadvornick Published April 5, 2024 at 4:30 PM PDT Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Photo by Doug Nadvornick Apartment buildings are going up in Spokane County, but housing costs, especially ...

04/04/2024

EWU's IPPEA & College of Business are excited to host alum Katy Bruya, SR VP and Chief HR Officer of Washington Trust to talk about the Future of Work & Entrepreneurship in Spokane on Wednesday, April 10th at 5:15 pm in the Catalyst Building. Come join us!

More Info: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/future-of-work-entrepreneurship-in-spokane-tickets-863089061617?aff=oddtdtcreator

03/27/2024

The EWU IPPEA was honored to participate in Priority Spokane's comprehensive process to select CHILDCARE as the next priority for Spokane County. And here are some reasons WHY this is an important topic to focus on for the next 3-5 years.

Why Childcare? Last week our board voted and selected childcare as our next priority for Spokane County. We've appreciated some of the questions that have followed. Here are some of the reasons why focusing on childcare is a great idea and needed in our region:

1. Families experience less stress knowing their children are properly cared for.
2. Children who are properly cared for are likely to be healthier and more successful later in life.
3. Lack of Childcare is a major barrier to the economy of Spokane County.
4. Lack of Childcare is a barrier to staffing various essential services from medical care to first response.
5. Appropriate childcare can help prevent child abuse and neglect.

03/26/2024

The IPPEA is very proud to have worked with Priority Spokane in the process of choosing the next priority -- childcare! We look forward to seeing the impact in the next 3-5 years. Thank you, Priority Spokane for helping make a difference in our community.

Our board reviewed the data, discussed & debated the top 4 priorities, and then voted. As a result our next priority for Spokane County is addressing childcare needs! Thank you to our members, partners, and over 1,700 individuals who participated in this process.

03/25/2024

DAILY DOSE OF DATA: Washington leads the nation in arts & cultural production as a share of GDP -- accounting for nearly 9.5% of Washington's GDP (almost $1 out of every $10 of total output). According to the latest figures from the BEA, Washington's arts & culture sector of the economy is nearly twice as big as the national average (4.8%). The biggest gains recently have been in performing arts and fine arts education.

Source:https://www.bea.gov/sites/default/files/2024-03/acpsa0324.pdf

03/22/2024

Hello Spokane! Check out these key sector highlights from the Q4 Spokane Quarterly Economic indicators!