CERM

Recent CERM News


Sean Smith ('96) CERM Alumnus Appointed Mayor of Covington, WA.

Sean Smith was appointed in January 2026 as the seventh mayor of Covington, Washington, following eleven years on the Covington City Council, including nearly a decade as Mayor Pro Tem. Smith earned his undergraduate degree in Political Science from the University of Washington before coming to CWU, where his love for the natural world was deepened and—just as importantly—he learned how to learn.

After graduate school, Smith worked as a park ranger, spent fifteen years as a lobbyist for two environmental nonprofit organizations, served twelve years as an environmental planner with the Washington State Department of Ecology, and built a long career in local government. He credits CWU’s Resource Management Program with turning his mind into a well-tuned, curiosity-driven, knowledge-seeking instrument—one that has equipped him exceptionally well throughout a public-service career spanning more than thirty years.

CERM economics alumnus chases career to Stanford, UC Berkeley, and beyond.

Read about Doug McFarland, a senior scientist with the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), serving as a faculty fellow under joint appointment with CWU and PNNL.

CWU News

Naches Valley students compete at the Feb. 12 Amazing Shake event at CWU

Middle school students develop professional skills at Amazing Shake event

February 25, 2026 by

A window banner at Grandview School District

$4 million federal grant aimed at helping with school psychologist shortage

February 25, 2026 by

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