Irie Browning, 27, is passionate about life’s deeper meaning and how it is articulated in different cultures. With the help of the EWURA, she will continue pursuing that thirst for knowledge.
Browning, a junior, plans to earn a doctorate degree and become a philosophy professor. The retirees’ association recently awarded her a $3,105 Golden Eagle Scholarship to help cover costs for the 2023-24 academic year.
The Spokane resident started at Eastern with a plan to become an English as a second language teacher. However, her plans quickly changed when a general education class sparked another interest: philosophy.
“I took a philosophy class in my first quarter – and it was all over,” Browning recalls. “I realized that philosophy was what I wanted to do all along.”
In a vast world filled with many ideas and traditions, Browning recognizes that knowledge of existence and purpose is limitless. “The world is an incredibly huge and diverse place,” says Browning.
Browning was thrilled to hear she was awarded the scholarship because “finances were one of the reasons I didn’t go to college right away.”
Browning, a full-time student who works part-time as an academic coach and office aid for PLUS tutoring center, was thrilled to get a call from EWURA’s Ron Dalla, telling her she would receive the scholarship.
“That was really exciting and just the idea that they chose me and that all the work I put into my education is paying off,” she says.
Browning loved going to the annual president’s breakfast and meeting the retirees, including some who’d worked as professors themselves.
“It was really great to see them all and get to chat with them and just be a part of that breakfast,” says Browning.
Browning is grateful to the EWURA members for this award. “It was so unexpected and exciting and so valuable, in moving forward in my academic career, to be recognized like this.”
