This spring, Eastern Washington University is improving the way you access important university info and learn about campus happenings! Eastern 24/7 and a number of other internal websites will be begin to be phased out with the introduction of InsideEWU, which will provide users with a comprehensive overview of all things Eastern.
The following is an InsideEWU FAQ to help you find answers to your questions:
What is InsideEWU?
InsideEWU is a new website meant to serve as the starting point for students, faculty and staff when accessing EWU resources online. The site will bring many of the diverse EWU web properties, including myEWU portal, access.ewu.edu, sites.ewu.edu, the mobile app, and EWU 24/7, together into a single location.
Why do we need a ‘one-stop shopping’ type web page for students/faculty/staff?
InsideEWU will serve as a primary communication channel for students, faculty and staff by providing a home for emergency alerts, news and campus announcements.
Another goal is to provide an improved user experience. While remembering the link to canvas.ewu.edu isn’t hard if you use it every day, the applications you use once a quarter or even once a year will now be available in a single place.
Is this the same as an “intranet”?
InsideEWU provides a searchable, public website that utilizes EWU Single Sign-on (SSO) to protect specific content. Traditionally, an intranet provides content only to internal audiences, locking out the public and search engines. While InsideEWU does serve the same audience as an intranet would, it doesn’t lock out the public or search engines.
Will each department be able to easily submit announcements, events, and news stories to Inside EWU?
Any current student, faculty or staff member can submit stories and announcements to InsideEWU directly by using the ‘SUBMIT A STORY’ button on the main page. Based on early feedback, we expect that students, faculty, and staff will find InsideEWU an easy and effective way to share news, events, and information with the campus community.
Please note, event listings should still be submitted to 25 Live and will automatically show up on the InsideEWU campus-event calendar after approval.
What about the homepage, why can’t that be the main webpage we are all directed to? And what if we feel like our item of interest should be on the homepage?
The EWU homepage has become the main tool for the university to engage with and recruit prospective students to EWU. Content is carefully assessed and targeted to cater to this audience. The primary mission of InsideEWU is to serve current students, faculty, and staff.
So I understand the launch of InsideEWU means EWU 24/7 will be phased out? Why? How will InsideEWU be able to deliver our weekly updates on campus happenings/achievements?
One of the goals of InsideEWU is to consolidate the university’s many web sites and provide a single place for current students, faculty, and staff to get the latest news and information. The stories and announcements formerly featured on EWU 24/7 will instead be featured on InsideEWU, which we expect will significantly increase the visibility of this information on daily, rather than weekly, basis.
Who manages this new InsideEWU site and who is the content manager for the various stories and announcements, and how do we contact them?
InsideEWU management is a partnership between Marketing and Communications and IT overseen by the EWU Web Governance Committee. Submitted stories and announcements are reviewed by Marcom before they are published. IT ensures that InsideEWU stays up and responsive. Use the ‘SUBMIT A STORY’ button and ‘Provide Feedback’ form on InsideEWU to contact us.
Can you outline the timeline for this project?
You will be able to start using InsideEWU very soon! A lot prep work was done to understand user needs in late 2018. InsideEWU design and branding was completed early this year and final tweaks are currently being made in response to user previews. You can also expect InsideEWU to become more prevalent for the next academic school year, as we replace legacy tools like the mobile app and myEWU portal.
