Eastern Washington University announced Jan. 7 that it will cut its adaptive athletics program — home to the only collegiate wheelchair basketball team in the Pacific Northwest — at the end of this season.
When EWU disbands the team, only 11 collegiate wheelchair basketball teams will remain in the United States.
The EWU College of Science and Public Health, rather than the athletic department, funds the team, making it the only athletic team at EWU funded by an academic college.
EWU wheelchair basketball has two tournaments left this season. The team will compete March 14—15 at The University of Texas at Arlington, then close its season at Northern Arizona University from April 2—5.
EWU will use the remaining funds in the team’s budget to provide scholarships for wheelchair basketball student-athletes who continue their studies at the university after this school year.
In EWU’s news release, Dawn Lewis-Kinnunen, the dean of the College of Health Science and Public Health, said, “This decision reflects long-term sustainability challenges in a budget-tightening environment.”
This cut is one of several recent reductions tied to the university’s financial challenges. Last spring, EWU released an action plan in response to its budget-cutting recommendation process that eliminated multiple degree programs.
In October 2025, the EWU Board of Trustees approved a tuition increase for the 2026-27 school year as enrollment declined. The board also approved a tuition increase in October 2024.
Other EWU sports, which the athletic department funds, have not faced the same budget constraints as wheelchair basketball. The department increased its total operating expenses each year from 2021 through 2024, according to the school’s most recent NCAA Intercollegiate Agreed Upon Procedures Report. During that time, operating costs rose by more than $5 million.
