We actually used a college admissions counselor to help us through the process. She is in California and we are in Texas (long story, relative of a friend). My son had no help from his hs counselor and very, very few students from his school go out of state for college–only about half attend college at all. So we needed someone who was familiar with getting into competitive schools to help us.
Her take was only apply ED if going to that school has been your lifelong goal and you will attend there no matter the cost. She said ED students get less merit aid because it isn’t necessary to lock them in. She liked the idea of applying to CWRU EA and said that he had an opportunity to receive nice amounts of merit aid if he did. We chose to have DS apply EA. He got in and had a decent amount of merit aid to sweeten the pot. Honestly, I did not expect it despite what she said and it was a pleasant surprise when it came through. We would not qualify for financial aid based on income (although we probably will when the next DS goes to college next year).
CWRU USED to have need blind admissions, but that is no longer the case. That changed a year or two ago, according to what we were told when we toured in the summer of 2015.