Michigan State University
Encyclopedia
Michigan State University (MSU) is a public
research university in East Lansing, Michigan
, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act
.
MSU pioneered the studies of packaging, hospitality business
, telecommunication
and music therapy
. Today its study-abroad
program is the largest of any single-campus university in the country, offering more than 200 programs in more than 60 countries on all continents including Antarctica.
It is considered to be one of America's Public Ivy
universities, which recognizes top public research universities in the United States. Following the introduction of the Morrill Act, the college became coeducation
al and expanded its curriculum beyond agriculture
. Today, MSU is the ninth-largest university in the United States, with 47,800 students and 2,954 faculty members. The school's nuclear physics
, engineering
, political science
, business
, journalism
, education
, law
and osteopathic medicine
programs are among the nation's best.
MSU's Division I sports teams are called the Spartans
. They compete in the Big Ten Conference
in all sports except ice hockey, in which the team is part of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association
. MSU's football
team
won the Rose Bowl
in 1954, 1956 and 1988 and boasts six national championships. Its men's basketball team won the NCAA National Championship
in 1979 and 2000 and is currently enjoying a streak of six Final Four
appearances over the last 13 seasons. MSU men's ice hockey
won national titles
in 1966, 1986 and 2007. Cross country has historically been Michigan State's most successful sport, especially during a four-decade period spanning roughly 1930–1970 during which the Spartans won eight NCAA championships and numerous other conference and national titles.
The Michigan Constitution
of 1850 called for the creation of an "agricultural school", though it was not until February 12, 1855, that Michigan Governor Kinsley S. Bingham
signed a bill establishing the United States' first agriculture college, the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan. Classes began on May 13, 1857, with three buildings, five faculty members, and 63 male students. The first president, Joseph R. Williams
, designed a curriculum that required more scientific study than practically any undergraduate institution of the era. It balanced science
, liberal arts
, and practical training. The curriculum excluded Latin and Greek
studies, since most applicants did not study any classical languages in their rural high schools. However, it did require three hours of daily manual labor
, which kept costs down for both the students and the College. Despite Williams' innovations and his defense of education for the masses, the State Board of Education saw Williams' curriculum as elitist
. They forced him to resign in 1859 and reduced the curriculum to a two-year vocational program.
became acting lieutenant governor
and helped pass the Reorganization Act of 1861. This gave the College a four-year curriculum and the power to grant master's degree
s. Under the act, a newly created body, known as the State Board of Agriculture, took over from the State Board of Education in running the institution. The College changed its name to State Agricultural College, and its first class graduated in the same year. As the Civil War
had just begun, there was no time for an elaborate graduation ceremony. The first alumni enlisted to the Union Army
. The following year, Abraham Lincoln
signed the First Morrill Act of 1862 to support similar colleges, making the Michigan school a national model. Williams had died the previous year.
The college first admitted women in 1870, although at that time there were no female residence halls. The few women who enrolled either boarded with faculty families or made the arduous stagecoach
trek from Lansing. From the early days, female students took the same rigorous scientific agriculture courses as male students. In 1896, the faculty created a "Women Course" that melded a home economics
curriculum with liberal arts
and sciences. That same year, the College turned the old Abbot Hall male dorm into a women's dormitory. It was not until 1899 that the State Agricultural College admitted its first African American
student, William O. Thompson. After graduation, he taught at what is now Tuskegee University
. President Jonathan L. Snyder invited its president Booker T. Washington
to be the Class of 1900 commencement speaker. A few years later, Myrtle Craig became the first woman African-American student to enroll at the College. Along with the Class of 1907, she received her degree from U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt
, commencement speaker for the Semi-Centennial celebration. The City of East Lansing was incorporated in that same year, and two years later the college officially changed its name to Michigan Agricultural College (M.A.C.).
, became president of the College. He began the largest expansion in the institution's history, with the help of the 1945 G.I. Bill, which helped World War II veterans to receive an education. One of Hannah's strategies was to build a new dormitory building, enroll enough students to fill it, and use the income to start construction on a new dormitory. Under his plan, enrollment increased from 15,000 in 1950 to 38,000 in 1965. In 1957 Hannah continued MSU's expansion by co-founding Michigan State University–Oakland, now Oakland University
, with Matilda Dodge Wilson
. Hannah also got the chance to improve the athletic reputation of M.S.C. when the University of Chicago
resigned from the Big Ten Conference
in 1946. Hannah lobbied hard to take its place, gaining admission in 1949. Six years later, in its Centennial year of 1955, the State of Michigan renamed the College as Michigan State University of Agriculture and Applied Science. Nine years after that, the University governing body changed its name from the State Board of Agriculture to the MSU Board of Trustees. The State of Michigan allowed the University to drop the words "Agriculture and Applied Science" from its name. Since 1964 the institution has gone by the name of Michigan State University.
Since the end of the Hannah era, Michigan State has shifted its focus from increasing the size of its student body to advancing its national and global reputation. In September 2005, current president Lou Anna Simon
called for MSU, one of the public ivy institutions
, to become the global model leader for Land Grant institutions by the year 2012. Her plans include creating a new residential college
and increasing grants awarded from the National Institutes of Health
past the $
100 million mark. While there are over 100 Land-grant universities in the United States, she has stated that she would like Michigan State University to be the leader.
Michigan State, the University of Michigan
and Wayne State University
created the University Research Corridor
in 2006. This alliance was formed to transform and strength Michigan's economy by reaching out to businesses, policymakers, innovators, investors and the public to speed up technology transfer, make resources more accessible and help attract new jobs to the state.
MSU's sprawling campus is located in East Lansing, Michigan. The campus is perched on the banks of the Red Cedar River
. Development of the campus started in 1856 with three buildings: a multipurpose building called College Hall
, a dormitory later called "Saints' Rest
", and a barn. Today, MSU's contiguous campus consists of 5200 acres (21 km²), 2000 acres (8.1 km²) of which are developed. There are 556 buildings: 100 for academics, 131 for agriculture
, 166 for housing and food service, and 42 for athletics. Overall, the university has 22763025 ft2 of total indoor space. Connecting it all is 26 miles (41.8 km) of roads and 100 miles (160.9 km) of sidewalks. MSU also owns 44 non-campus properties, totaling 22000 acres (89 km²) in 28 different counties.
It includes Collegiate Gothic architecture, plentiful trees, and curving roads with few straight lines. It was in this area that the College built its first three buildings, of which none survive. Other historic buildings north of the river include Cowles House, the president's official residence, and Beaumont Tower
, a carillon
clock tower marking the site of College Hall
, the original classroom building. To the east lies Eustace–Cole Hall, America's first freestanding laboratory for horticulture
. Other landmarks include the bronze statue of former president John A. Hannah
, the W. J. Beal Botanical Garden
, and the painted boulder known as "The Rock
", which is a popular spot for theatre, tailgating
, and candlelight vigils. On the northwest corner of campus lies the University's hotel, the Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center. The university also has a museum, initiated in 1857. MSU Museum is one of the oldest museums in the Midwest and is accredited by the American Association of Museums.
The campus south of the river consists mostly of post-World War II International Style
buildings with sparse foliage, relatively straight roadways, and numerous parking lots. The "2020 Vision" Master Plan proposes replacing these parking lots with parking ramps
and green space, but these plans will take many years to reach fruition. As part of the master plan, the University erected a new bronze statue of The Spartan
in 2005. This replica replaced the original modernist terra cotta
statue, which can still be seen inside Spartan Stadium. Notable academic and research buildings on the South Campus include the Cyclotron
and the College of Law
.
This part of campus is home to the MSU Horticulture Gardens
and the adjoining 4-H
Children's Garden. South of the gardens lie the Canadian National and CSX
railroads, which divide the main campus from thousands of acres of university-owned farmland. The university's agricultural facilities include the Horse, Dairy Cattle, Beef Cattle, Sheep, and Poultry Teaching and Research Farms, as well as the Air Quality Control Lab and the Diagnostics Center for Population and Animal Health.
, United Arab Emirates
. MSU Dubai was the first American university with a presence in Dubai International Academic City
, with classes beginning in August 2008. The University offered six undergraduate programs: Business Administration; Child and Youth Development; Construction Project Management; Early Childhood Education; Media Management and Research; Computer Engineering, which later was changed to Electrical and Computer Engineering; and a Master's Degree in Human Resources & Labor Relations. The University attracted over 100 students from all over the Middle East and beyond. During the 2009-2010 academic year MSU Dubai intended to seek licensure through the Commission for Academic Accreditation of the U.A.E. with the goal of full program accreditation prior to the graduation of its first class in 2012. After two years of activity, MSU shut down all undergraduate programs in Dubai due to financial reasons. The Dubai campus remains as a research site, a Study Abroad center, and for its dozen graduate students.
MSU has the ninth largest student body in the U.S. For the fiscal year of 2009–10, the Office of the Registrar conferred 11,140 degrees. The student body is 55% female and 45% male. While 89% of students come from all 83 counties in the State of Michigan, also represented are all 50 states in the U.S. and about 130 other countries. In 2010-2011 5,351 international students enrolled at MSU. The top five countries represented: China, Korea, India, Taiwan and Canada. http://oiss.isp.msu.edu/about_stats.php MSU has about 4,500 faculty and 6,000 staff members, and a student/faculty ratio of 19:1. Listed as a Public Ivy
, Michigan State is a member of the Association of American Universities
. Michigan State University Ombudsman
is the longest continually operating ombudsman office at a college or university in the country. Albert Fert
, an Adjunct professor at MSU, was awarded the 2007 Nobel Prize in Physics
together with Peter Grünberg
. MSU's study abroad
program is the largest of any single-campus university in the United States with 2,461 students studying abroad in 2004–2005 in over 60 countries on all continents, including Antarctica. MSU has six faculty members elected to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS); Martin Bukovac (1983), James Dye (1989), Pamela Fraker (2007), Richard Lenski (2006), Michael Thomashow (2003), and James Tiedje (2003).
Its admissions are moderately difficult; for 2009's entering class, the 25th/75th percentiles for the SAT were 1030 and 1240/1600, and its 25th/75th percentiles on the ACT were 23 and 27/36.
study, which measures scientific research leading towards a Nobel Prize
. U.S. News & World Report
ranks MSU 71st in the U.S. The 2011 QS World University Rankings
placed Michigan State University at 164th internationally.
The university has over 200 academic programs. U.S. News has ranked MSU's graduate-level elementary education", secondary education
, and Industrial and Organizational Psychology
programs No.1 for the last 14 years.
The National Communication Association (NCA) ranks MSU’s Ph.D. programs as No. 1 in educating researchers in the rapidly growing fields of health communication and communication technology.
MSU is also ranked number four in several other fields, including international/intercultural communication, mass communication, and interpersonal communication based on the November 2004 NCA report.
The Eli Broad College of Business was ranked No. 9 among public institutions and No. 20 nationally in 2010 by Business Week. The 2008 U.S. News ranked Michigan State's Supply Chain Management
program in the Eli Broad College of Business No.1 in the nation for the second year in a row. In addition, the Eli Broad College of Business undergraduate accounting program is ranked 11th overall and 8th among public schools, the graduate accounting program is ranked 9th overall and 6th among public schools, and the doctoral program is ranked 8th overall and 5th among public schools according to the 2010 Public Accounting Report
s Annual Survey of Accounting Professors.
The College of Communication Arts and Sciences was established in 1955 and was the first of its kind in the United States. The college's Media and Information Studies doctoral program was ranked No. 2 in 2007 by The Chronicle of Higher Education
in the category of mass communication. The communication doctoral program was ranked No. 4 in a separate category of communication in The Chronicle of Higher Educations 2005 Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index, published in 2007. The college's faculty and alumni include eight Pulitzer Prize
winners and a two-time Emmy Award
winning recording mixer.
MSU’s graduate program in nuclear physics
is ranked No. 1 in the nation by U.S. News. In primary medical care
, U.S. News ranks MSU's College of Osteopathic Medicine at No.5, College of Veterinary Medicine
at No.9, and the College of Human Medicine at No.18.
Other programs of note include criminal justice
, music therapy
, hospitality business
, packaging, political science
, dietetics and communication
s. The Sustainable Endowments Institute awarded Michigan State with an overall grade of "B" on the 2009 Campus Sustainability Survey, including "A"s in the categories of Administration, Transportation, Endowment Transparency, and Investment Policies.
The university spent nearly $
405 million in 2008–09 on research, capping a long history of academic research. In 1877, botany professor William J. Beal
performed the first documented genetic crosses to produce hybrid corn
, which led to increased yields. MSU dairy professor G. Malcolm Trout
invented the process for the homogenization
of milk in the 1930s. In the 1960s, MSU scientists developed cisplatin
, a leading cancer fighting drug.
Today Michigan State continues its research with facilities such as the U.S. Department of Energy
-sponsored MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory and a particle accelerator
called the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory
. The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science named Michigan State University as the site for the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams
(FRIB). The $550 million facility will attract top researchers from around the world to conduct experiments in basic nuclear science, astrophysics, and applications of isotopes to other fields.
In 2004, scientists at the Cyclotron produced and observed a new isotope of the element germanium
, called Ge-60 In that same year, Michigan State, in consortium with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
and the government of Brazil
, broke ground on the 4.1-meter Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope
(SOAR) in the Andes Mountains of Chile
. The consortium telescope will allow the Physics & Astronomy department to study galaxy formation and origins. Since 1999, MSU has been part of another consortium called the Michigan Life Sciences Corridor
, which aims to develop biotechnology
research in the State of Michigan. Finally, the College of Communication Arts and Sciences' Quello Center
researches current issues of information and communication management.
started in 1916 when the Engineering Building burned down. Automobile magnate R.E. Olds helped the program stay afloat with a gift of $100,000. There was a time when MSU lagged behind peer institutions in terms of endowments. As recently as the early 1990s, MSU was last among the eleven Big Ten schools, with barely over $100 million in endowment funds. That changed dramatically in the first decade of the 21st century, when the University started a campaign to increase the size of the endowment. At the close of fiscal year 2004–2005, the endowment had risen to $1.325 billion, raising the University to sixth of the 11 Big Ten schools in terms of endowment; within $2 million of the fifth-rated school. The rapid increase in the size of the endowment will help to improve outdated facilities, such as the Music Building, which the College of Music hopes to soon replace with money from its alumni fundraising program.
MSU has over 200 academic programs offered by 17 degree granting colleges.
"living-learning" model. By putting classes in student dormitories, these colleges improve student access to faculty and facilities. MSU's first residential college, Justin Morrill College started in 1965 with an interdisciplinary curriculum. MSU closed Morrill College in 1979, but today the university has three residential colleges, including the recent opening of the Residential College in Arts & Humanities
(RCAH) located in Snyder and Phillips halls.
Established in 1967, James Madison College
is a smaller component residential college in political science
housed in Case Hall. Classes in the college are small, with an average of 25 students, and most instructors are tenure
track faculty. James Madison College has about 1150 students total, with each freshman
class containing about 320 students. Each of Madison's four majors
—Social Relations and Policy, International Relations, Political Theory and Constitutional Democracy, and Comparative Cultures and Politics—requires two years of foreign language and one semester of "field experience” in an intern
ship or study abroad program. Although Madison students make up about 4% of MSU graduates, they represent around 35% of the MSU’s Phi Beta Kappa
members.
Also established in 1967, Lyman Briggs College teaches math and science within social, historical and philosophical contexts. Many Lyman Briggs students intend to pursue careers in medicine, but the school supports over 30 coordinate majors, from human biology to computer sciences. Lyman Briggs is one of the few colleges that lets undergraduates teach as "Learning Assistants."
MSU's newest residential college is the Residential College in Arts & Humanities
. Founded October 21, 2005, the college provides around 600 undergraduates with an individualized curriculum
in the liberal
, visual
and performing arts
. Though all the students will graduate with the same degree
, MSU encourages students in the college to get a second degree
or specialization. The university houses the new college in a newly renovated Snyder-Phillips Hall, the location of MSU's first residential college, Justin Morrill College.
is an independent, non-profit corporation affiliated with the public
institution. Founded in Detroit in 1891 as the Detroit College of Law, the law school moved to East Lansing in 1995 becoming an integral part of the university. Students attending MSU College of Law come from 42 states and 13 countries. The law school publishes the Michigan State Law Review, the Michigan State Journal of International Law and the Journal of Medicine and Law. The College of Law is the home of the Geoffrey Fieger
Trial Practice Institute, the first trial practice institute in the United States. The Intellectual Property
and Communications Law program was ranked seventeenth nationally, in 2006.
The Eli Broad College of Business
has programs in accounting, information systems
, finance
, management
, marketing
and supply chain management
, and hospitality business. The school has 4,775 undergraduate students and 776 graduate students. The Eli Broad Graduate School of Management, which Business Week magazine ranks 11th among public institutions, offers three MBA programs, as well as joint degrees with the College of Law
. The opening of the Eugene C. Eppley Center for Graduate Studies in Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management brought the first program in the United States to offer a Master of Business Administration degree in Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management to MSU.
The Michigan State University College of Nursing
grants B.S.N.
, M.S.N.
, and Ph.D.
degrees.
, a move board members and college officials say will not only improve medical education in the state, but also address a projected physician shortage.
According to U.S. News & World Report, the College of Osteopathic Medicine (DO degree) ranked No.8 medical schools in the country for primary care and the College of Human Medicine (MD degree) has regularly ranked among the top thirty medical schools in the country for primary care.
The College of Human Medicine
graduates students with medical doctor MD
degrees and is split into seven distinct campuses located in Lansing, Kalamazoo
, Flint
, Saginaw, Marquette
, Traverse City
and Grand Rapids. Each campus is affiliated with local hospitals and other medical facilities professionals in the area. For example, the Lansing campus includes Sparrow Hospital
and Ingham Regional Medical Center
. The College of Human Medicine has recently gained attention for its expansion into the Grand Rapids area, with the new Secchia Center completed in the Fall of 2010, that is expected to fuel the growing medical industry in that region.
Though Michigan State has offered courses in veterinary science since its founding, the College of Veterinary Medicine
was not formally established as a four-year, degree-granting program until 1910. Ranked ninth in the nation, the college has over 170000 ft2 of office, teaching, and research space, as well as a veterinary teaching hospital
.
MSU's College of Education at Michigan State University offers graduate and undergraduate degrees in several fields, including counseling, educational psychology
, special education
, teacher education
and kinesiology
. The college has had high-ranked programs in elementary, educational technology, educational policy, and secondary education. In addition, Michigan State ties the University of Wisconsin–Madison
for the top spot in rehabilitation counseling
. The College of Education is currently housed in Erickson Hall.
Founded in 1956, the MSU Honors College
provides individualized curricula to MSU's top undergraduate students. Though the college has no majors of its own, it has its own dean
and academic advisers to help Honors students with their educational pursuits.
High school
students starting at MSU may join the Honors College if they are in the top 5% of their high school graduating class and have either an ACT
score of at least 30 or an SAT
total score of at least 1360. Once admitted, students must maintain a 3.20 GPA and complete eight approved honors courses in order to graduate with Honors College designation on their degree.
After three years of planning, The College of Engineering
successfully launched the first stages of its Residential Experience for Spartan Engineering, formally known as the Residential Option for Scientists and Engineers (ROSES), the new program is located in Wilson Hall after being housed in Bailey Hall for a number of years. The Residential program essentially combines with a brand new academic component, Cornerstone Engineering, where freshman engineering students not only get an overview of the engineering field(s) but get a hands-on experience along with it. Global Engineering
is a new subject that is of certain interest for not only the Cornerstone Engineering and Residential Experience programs but for the entire College of Engineering
at MSU. Engineering
in today's society has shown to have a monumental impact on the global economy due to advancements in education, interdependence on economics with infrastructure, computers, transportation, technology and other manufactured goods as well as Michigan State University's study-abroad
program being ranked #1 in the nation, allowing for students to experience education and learn cultures in hundreds of countries. Also of note is the innovative Visiting International Professional Program, which connects professional education to the expertise of Michigan State University, a world leader in global research and leadership training. VIPP creates practical links between the world-class faculty at MSU and global industries, businesses, governments and societies. The newly established Cornerstone Engineering and Residential Experience programs for College of Engineering
have started programs abroad for more courses in engineering including Study abroad
seminars.
MSU currently offers a 30 credit graduate program for Masters in Educational Technology in 3 different formats; completely online, hybrid in East Lansing, Michigan, or overseas. MSU.edu The overseas program is offered at universities around the world. Past locations have included England, France, Switzerland and Thailand. The program lasts one month a summer for three summers, with each summer covering 9 credit hours. One online class is required between the second and third summer. The classes are focused on preparing teachers in integrating technology into their classrooms and helping them understand the affordances and constraints of using different programs. The courses are taught by MSU professors and are open to students around the world.
Division I-A program offers 12 varsity
sports for men and 13 for women. Since their teams are called the Spartans, MSU's mascot is a Spartan warrior named Sparty
. The university participates in the Big Ten Conference in all varsity sports except ice hockey, which competes in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association
. The current athletic director is Mark Hollis, who was promoted to the position on January 1, 2008. Hollis replaced Ron Mason
, who served as head hockey coach from 1979 to 2002, retiring with a record total of 924 wins, and a 635–270–69 record at MSU.
Michigan State is among only sixteen Division 1A programs to win multiple national titles in football, and the only school to win multiple national titles in football, basketball, and hockey (MSU was the first athletic program to win multiple national titles in both football and basketball). MSU has won all of its football championships playing only division 1A opponents. The Spartans have participated in two events, in basketball and ice hockey, which have set world records for spectator attendances for both sports.
In 1888 Michigan State University (then as known as Michigan Agricultural College) along with Olivet, Albion and Hillsdale Colleges was a founding member of the nation's oldest athletic conference, the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association
(MIAA). MAC left the conference in 1907.
Football
has a long tradition at Michigan State. Starting as a club sport in 1884, football gained varsity status in 1896. MSU football teams won the Rose Bowl
in 1954, 1956 and 1988. The Spartans accounted for four of the top eight selections in the 1967 NFL Draft
, the only time a college football program has accomplished such a feat.
Today, the football team competes in Spartan Stadium, a renovated 75,005 seat football stadium near the center of campus. The current coach is Mark Dantonio
, who was hired on November 27, 2006. Dantonio had an 18–17 record in his three year tenure at the University of Cincinnati
, including a 1–0 Bowl Game record. He led the team in its first season to a 7–6 record. The Spartans played in the Champs Sports Bowl against Boston College on December 28, 2007 and the Capital One Bowl against Georgia on January 1, 2009. MSU's traditional archrival is the University of Michigan
, against whom they compete annually for the Paul Bunyan Trophy
. Their record against the Wolverines currently stands at 30-67-5. Michigan State is one of three Big Ten teams to have an annual non-conference football game against Notre Dame
. MSU's record against the Fighting Irish is 25–44–1 but the Spartans have had much success against the Irish recently, becoming the first team ever to win six straight games at Notre Dame Stadium. In 2010, the Spartans finished 7-1 in conference play were Co-Big Ten Champions along with the University of Wisconsin and Ohio State
.
twice: in 1979 and again in 2000. In 1979, Earvin "Magic" Johnson
, along with Greg Kelser
, Jay Vincent
and Mike Brkovich, led the MSU team to a 75–64 win against the Larry Bird
-led Indiana State
Sycamores. In 2000, three players from Flint
, Morris Peterson
, Charlie Bell
and Mateen Cleaves
, led the team to its second national title. Dubbed the "Flintstones", they were the key to the Spartans' win against the University of Florida
. On December 13, 2003, Michigan State and Kentucky
played in the Basketbowl
, in which a record crowd of 78,129 watched the game in Detroit’s Ford Field
. Kentucky won 79–74. The basketball team currently plays at the Jack Breslin Student Events Center under head coach Tom Izzo
, who has a 336–137 record. The student spirit section at Breslin is called the Izzone
. Izzo's coaching has helped the team make six Final Four
s since 1999, winning the title in 2000, and thirteen consecutive NCAA tournament appearances (beginning in 1998). In 2009 the Spartans made it to the National Championship game and lost 89–72 to North Carolina. In 2010, the Spartans made it to the Final Four and lost 50-52 to Butler. The Spartans lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament in 2011 to UCLA 76-78.
The Michigan State University men's ice hockey
team started in 1924, though it has only been a varsity sport since 1950. The team has since won national titles in 1966, 1986 and 2007. The Spartans came close to repeating the national title in 1987, but lost the championship game to the University of North Dakota
. They play at MSU's Munn Ice Arena
. Former head coach Ron Mason is college hockey's winningest coach with 924 wins total and 635 at MSU. The current head coach
is Rick Comley
, who has a 181-133-39 record at MSU and will be retiring at the end of the 2010–11 season. Since the Big Ten Conference does not include Division I men's ice hockey
, Michigan State competes in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association
. Michigan State leads the CCHA in all-time wins, is second in CCHA Conference championships with 7, and is first in CCHA Tournament Championships with 11. Along with the University of Michigan
(U-M) and the Ohio State University
, it is one of three Big Ten schools in the CCHA. As with other sports, the hockey rivalry between MSU and U-M is a fierce one, and on October 6, 2001, MSU faced U-M in the Cold War
, during which a world record crowd of 74,554 packed Spartan Stadium to watch the game end in a 3–3 tie.
In the 2006–2007 season, the Men's Ice Hockey team defeated Boston College
for its third NCAA hockey championship.
, at New York’s Van Cortlandt Park
, winning 15 team titles (1933–1937, 1949, 1953, 1956–1960, 1962, 1963 and 1968). Since entering the Big Ten in 1950, Michigan State has won 14 men’s team titles (1951–1953, 1955–1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1970 and 1971). Michigan State hosted the inaugural NCAA cross country championships in 1938 and every year thereafter through 1964 (there was no championship in 1943). The Spartans won NCAA championships in 1939, 1948, 1949, 1952, 1955, 1956, 1958 and 1959.
East Lansing is very much a college town
, with 60.2% of the population between the ages of 15 and 24. President John A. Hannah's push to expand in the 1950s and 1960s resulted in the largest residence hall system in the United States. Around 16,000 students live in MSU's 23 undergraduate halls
, one graduate hall, and three apartment villages. Each residence hall has its own hall government, with representatives in the Residence Halls Association. Yet despite the size and extent of on-campus housing, the residence halls are complemented by a variety of housing options. 58% of students live off-campus, mostly in the areas closest to campus, in either apartment buildings, former single-family homes, fraternity and sorority houses, or in a co-op
.
is one of the largest in the nation. Started in 1872 and re-established in 1922 by Lambda Chi Alpha
Fraternity, Alpha Gamma Rho
Fraternity, and Alpha Phi
Sorority; the MSU Greek system now consists of 55 Greek lettered student societies. These chapters are in turn under the jurisdiction of one of MSU's four Greek governing councils: National Panhellenic Conference, North American Interfraternity Council, National Pan-Hellenic Council, and Independent Greek Council. National Pan-Hellenic Council is made up of 9 organizations, 5 Fraternities and 4 Sororities, that were founded on Historically Black College and Universities (HBCU's). The Interfraternity Council
and the Women's Panhellenic Council
are each entirely responsible for their own budgets, giving them the freedom to hold large fundraising and recruitment events. MSU's fraternities and sororities hold many philanthropy
events and community fundraisers. For example, in April 2011 the Greek Community held Greek Week to raise over $260,000 for the American Cancer Society
, and $5,000 for each of these charities: Big Brothers Big Sisters
, The Listening Ear
and previous charities include: the Make-a-Wish
Foundation (MSU Chapter), Share Laura's Hope, The Mary Beth Knox Scholarship, and the Special Olympics
.
The Associated Students of Michigan State University (ASMSU) is the undergraduate student government
of Michigan State University. It is unusual amongst university
student governments
for its decentralized bicameral structure, and the relatively non-existent influence of the Greek system. ASMSU representatives are nonpartisan
and many are elected in noncompetitive races. Their mission is to enhance the individual and collective student experience through education, empowerment, and advocacy by education to the needs and interest of students. Some services they offer include: free blue books, low cost copies and faxes, free yearbooks, interest free loans, funding for student organizations, free legal consultation, health insurance, and iClicker rentals. There are many ways of getting involved such as: Freshman Class Council, Senior Class Council, appointments to General Assembly, and employment.
Students pay $16.75 per semester to fund the functions of the ASMSU, including stipends for the organization's officers and activities throughout the year. Some students have criticized ASMSU for not having enough electoral participation to gain a student mandate. Turnout
since 2001 has hovered between 3 and 17 percent, with the 2006 election bringing out 8% of the undergraduate student body.
Student-run organizations beyond student government also have a large impact on the East Lansing/Michigan State University community. Student Organizations are registered through the Department of Student Life, which currently has a registry of over 550 student organizations. One example is the Tower Guard honor society. Tower Guard is the oldest and one of the most respected student organizations on campus, and works closely with the Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities (RCPD) in assisting students with disabilities.
The Eli Broad College of Business includes 27 student organizations. The three largest organizations are the Finance Association (FA), the Accounting Student Association (ASA), and the Supply Chain Management Association (SCMA). The SCMA is the host of the university's largest major specific career fair. The fair attracts over 100 companies and over 400 students each year.
have played a significant role in MSU history. During the height of the Vietnam War
, student protests helped create co-ed residence halls, and blocked the routing of Interstate 496
through campus. In the 1980s, Michigan State students convinced the University to divest
the stocks of companies doing business in apartheid South Africa
from its endowment portfolio, such as Coca-Cola
. MSU has many student groups focused on political change. Graduate campus groups include the Graduate Employees Union and the Council of Graduate Students. Michigan State also has a variety of partisan groups ranging from liberal
to conservative
, including the College Republicans
, the College Democrats
and several third party
organizations. Other partisan activist groups include Young Americans for Freedom
and Young Americans for Liberty
on the right; Young Democratic Socialists
, Students for Economic Justice, Young Communist League
and MEChA on the left. Given MSU's proximity to the Michigan state capital of Lansing
, many politically inclined Spartans intern for state representatives.
The university has also pledged to meet LEED
-certification standards for all new construction. In July 2009, the University completed construction of a $13.3 million recycling center, and hopes to double their 2008 recycling rate of 14% by 2010.
The construction of Brody Hall, a residence hall of Michigan State University Housing, was completed in August 2011 and qualified for LEED Silver certification because the facility includes a rain water collection tank used for restroom fixtures, a white PVC roof, meters that will monitor utilities to make sure they are used efficiently, and the use of recycled matter and local sources for building materials.
The Environmental Steward’s program support’s President Simon’s "Boldness by Design" strategic vision to transform environmental stewardship on campus within the seven year time frame. Environmental stewards promote environmental changes among co-workers and peers, be points of contact for their department for environment-related concerns, and be liaisons between the Be Spartan Green Team and buildings.
ECO is the leading student-run sustainability organization on campus. They are also affiliated with regional and national groups such as Campus Climate Challenge and the Michigan Student Sustainability Coalition.
The Student Organic Farm is a student-run, four-season farm, which teaches the principals of organic farming and through a certificate program and community supported agriculture (CSA) on ten acres on the MSU campus.
The certificate program consists of year round crop production, course work in organic farming, practical training and management, and an off-site internship requirement.
MSU has a variety of campus media outlets. The student-run newspaper is called The State News
and free copies of the paper are available online or at East Lansing newsstands. The paper prints 28,500 copies of the paper Monday through Friday during the fall and spring semesters, and 15,000 copies Monday through Friday during the summer. The paper is not published on weekends, holidays, or semester breaks, but is continually updated online at statenews.com. The campus yearbook
is called the Red Cedar Log. Red Cedar Review, Michigan State University's premier literary digest for over forty years, is the longest running undergraduate-run literary journal in the United States. It is published annually by the Michigan State University Press
.
MSU also publishes a student-run magazine during the academic year called Ing Magazine. Created in 2007 by MSU alumnus Adam Grant, the publication is released at the beginning of each month and currently publishes 7 issues each school year.
Electronic media include three radio stations and one public television station, as well as student-produced
television shows. MSU's Public Broadcasting Service
affiliate, WKAR-TV
, the station is the second-oldest educational television station in the United States, and the oldest east of the Mississippi River
. Besides broadcasting PBS shows, WKAR-TV produces its own local programming, such as a high school quiz bowl show called "QuizBusters". In addition, MSU has three radio stations; WKAR-AM plays National Public Radio's talk radio programming, whereas WKAR-FM focuses mostly on classical music programming. Michigan State's student-run radio station, WDBM
, broadcasts mostly alternative music during weekdays, and electric music programming nights and weekends.
who took over on January 1, 2005, after being appointed by MSU's governing board, the Board of Trustees. The Board receives its mandate from the Michigan Constitution since MSU is a state-owned school. The constitution allows for eight trustee
s who are elected by statewide referendum every two years. Trustees have eight-year terms, with two of the eight elected every other year. As of 2007, the Board is made up of three Republicans
and five Democrats
.
Important College leaders in the 19th century include John C. Holmes
, who kept the Agriculture School from being a part of the University of Michigan
and is widely credited with being the prime mover for the school's founding; Joseph R. Williams
, the first president; and Theophilus C. Abbot
, the third president who stabilized the College after the Civil War. Also of importance was botany professor William J. Beal
, an early plant (hybrid corn) geneticist who championed the laboratory teaching method. Another distinguished faculty member of the era was the alumnus/professor Liberty Hyde Bailey
. Bailey was the first to raise the study of horticulture to a science, paralleling botany, which earned him the title of "Father of American Horticulture". William L. Carpenter
, a jurist who was elected to the Third Judicial Circuit of Michigan in 1894, and member of the Michigan Supreme Court
from 1902 until 1904. Other famous 19th century graduates include Ray Stannard Baker
, a famed "muckraker
" journalist and Pulitzer Prize
winning biographer; Minakata Kumagusu
, a renowned environmental scientist; and William Chandler Bagley, a pioneering education reformer.
and John Engler
, U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow
and Tim Johnson, U.S. ambassador to Brazil Donna Hrinak
, former Jordan Prime Minister Adnan Badran
, billionaire philanthropists Tom Gores
and Eli Broad
, Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court Wallace B. Jefferson
, trial lawyer Geoffrey Feiger, former Food and Drug Administration
official Peter Rheinstein
, former Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick
, Pulitzer Prize
-winning novelist Richard Ford
, Teamsters
president James P. Hoffa
, Quicken Loans
founder and Cleveland Cavaliers
owner and billionaire Dan Gilbert, Sergeant at Arms of the U.S. House of Representatives
Wilson Livingood
, former Michigan U.S. Senator and Secretary of Energy
Spencer Abraham
, former Vice President of the Republic of Liberia
Harry Moniba
, and former U.S. Ambassador to Italy
Peter Secchia. Alumni in Hollywood include actors James Caan, Anthony Heald
, Robert Urich
and William Fawcett
; comedian Dick Martin
, film director Sam Raimi
, and Academy Award winning film editor of The Hurt Locker
and the Spider-Man
films, Bob Murawski
, as well as screenwriter David Magee
. Puerto Rican comedian Sunshine Logroño
(who has played the occasional Hollywood movie) was a graduate student at MSU. Journalists include NBC reporter Chris Hansen
, AP White House Correspondent Nedra Pickler
, and NPR Washington Correspondent Don Gonyea
. Novelist Michael Kimball
graduated in 1990. Author Erik Qualman
graduated with honors in 1994 and was also Academic Big-Ten in basketball. Susan K. Avery, the first woman president and director of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
, received an MSU bachelor's degree in physics
. In addition, two of the Little Rock Nine
attended Michigan State, including Ernest Green
, the first black student to graduate from Little Rock Central High School, and Carlotta Walls LaNier
. The University awarded an honorary degree to Robert Mugabe
in 1990, but revoked it in 2008.
Spartans formerly or currently in the NBA
include Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Greg Kelser
, Jay Vincent
, Steve Smith
, Scott Skiles
, Jason Richardson
, Mateen Cleaves
, Alan Anderson, Zach Randolph
, Morris Peterson
, Charlie Bell
and Shannon Brown
. On the American Football League
's All-Time Team
are tight-end Fred Arbanas
and safety George Saimes
. In the National Football League
, MSU alumni include Carl Banks, who was a member of the Giants teams that won Super Bowls XXI
and XXV
. Banks was a standout in their Super Bowl XXI victory in which he recorded 14 total tackles, including ten solo tackles, as well as being part of the NFL's 1980's All-Decade Team
Morten Andersen
, Plaxico Burress
, Andre Rison
, Derrick Mason
, Muhsin Muhammad
, T. J. Duckett, Flozell Adams
, Julian Peterson
, Charles Rogers, Jim Miller
, Earl Morrall
, Wayne Fontes
, Bubba Smith
and Drew Stanton
. Former MSU quarterback Jeff Smoker
now plays in the Arena Football League. Former Michigan State players in the National Hockey League
include All Star Defensemen Duncan Keith
, Rod Brind'Amour
, Anson Carter
, Donald McSween
, Adam Hall
, John-Michael Liles
, Justin Abdelkader
, brothers Kelly Miller and Kip Miller
, as well as their cousins, brothers Ryan Miller
and Drew Miller
. Former Michigan State players in Major League Baseball
include Hall of Fame
inductee Robin Roberts
, Kirk Gibson
, Steve Garvey
and Mark Mulder
. Olympic gold medal
ists include Savatheda Fynes and Fred Alderman. The Spartans are also contributing athletes to Major League Soccer
, as Kevin Reiman, Doug Demartin
, Dave Hertel
, Greg Janicki
, Kenzo Webster, Rauwshan McKenzie
, John Minagawa-Webster and Ryan McMahen
have all played in Major League Soccer
. In addition, Alex Skotarek
, Steve Twellman
and Buzz Demling
played in the North American Soccer League
, with Demling playing in the 1972 Summer Olympics
and the United States Men's National Soccer Team
in the 1970s.
Public university
A public university is a university that is predominantly funded by public means through a national or subnational government, as opposed to private universities. A national university may or may not be considered a public university, depending on regions...
research university in East Lansing, Michigan
East Lansing, Michigan
East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located directly east of Lansing, Michigan, the state's capital. Most of the city is within Ingham County, though a small portion lies in Clinton County. The population was 48,579 at the time of the 2010 census, an increase from...
, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act
Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act
The Morrill Land-Grant Acts are United States statutes that allowed for the creation of land-grant colleges, including the Morrill Act of 1862 and the Morrill Act of 1890 -Passage of original bill:...
.
MSU pioneered the studies of packaging, hospitality business
Hospitality management studies
Hospitality management is the academic study of the hospitality industry. A degree in Hospitality management is often conferred from either a university college dedicated to the studies of hospitality management or a business school with a department in hospitality management studies...
, telecommunication
Telecommunication
Telecommunication is the transmission of information over significant distances to communicate. In earlier times, telecommunications involved the use of visual signals, such as beacons, smoke signals, semaphore telegraphs, signal flags, and optical heliographs, or audio messages via coded...
and music therapy
Music therapy
Music therapy is an allied health profession and one of the expressive therapies, consisting of an interpersonal process in which a trained music therapist uses music and all of its facets—physical, emotional, mental, social, aesthetic, and spiritual—to help clients to improve or maintain their...
. Today its study-abroad
Study abroad
Studying abroad is the act of a student pursuing educational opportunities in a country other than one's own. This can include primary, secondary and post-secondary students...
program is the largest of any single-campus university in the country, offering more than 200 programs in more than 60 countries on all continents including Antarctica.
It is considered to be one of America's Public Ivy
Public Ivy
Public Ivy is a term coined by Richard Moll in his 1985 book Public Ivies: A Guide to America's best public undergraduate colleges and universities to refer to universities which "provide an Ivy League collegiate experience at a public school price." Public Ivies are considered, according to the...
universities, which recognizes top public research universities in the United States. Following the introduction of the Morrill Act, the college became coeducation
Coeducation
Mixed-sex education, also known as coeducation or co-education, is the integrated education of male and female persons in the same institution. It is the opposite of single-sex education...
al and expanded its curriculum beyond agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
. Today, MSU is the ninth-largest university in the United States, with 47,800 students and 2,954 faculty members. The school's nuclear physics
Nuclear physics
Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies the building blocks and interactions of atomic nuclei. The most commonly known applications of nuclear physics are nuclear power generation and nuclear weapons technology, but the research has provided application in many fields, including those...
, engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
, political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
, business
Business
A business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
, journalism
Journalism
Journalism is the practice of investigation and reporting of events, issues and trends to a broad audience in a timely fashion. Though there are many variations of journalism, the ideal is to inform the intended audience. Along with covering organizations and institutions such as government and...
, education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
, law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
and osteopathic medicine
Osteopathic medicine
Osteopathic medicine is a branch of the medical profession in the United States. Osteopathic physicians, known as DOs, are licensed to practice medicine and surgery in all 50 states and are recognized in forty-seven other countries, including most Canadian provinces.Frontier physician Andrew Taylor...
programs are among the nation's best.
MSU's Division I sports teams are called the Spartans
Michigan State Spartans
The Michigan State Spartans are the athletic team that represent Michigan State University. The school's athletic program includes 25 varsity sports teams. Their mascot is a Spartan warrior named Sparty, and the school colors are green and white...
. They compete in the Big Ten Conference
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
in all sports except ice hockey, in which the team is part of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association
Central Collegiate Hockey Association
The Central Collegiate Hockey Association is a NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey college athletic conference that operates mostly in Michigan and Ohio, although it also has members in Alaska and Indiana. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. It holds its championship...
. MSU's football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
team
Michigan State Spartans football
The Michigan State Spartans football program represents Michigan State University in college football as members of the Big Ten Conference at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level...
won the Rose Bowl
Rose Bowl Game
The Rose Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game, usually played on January 1 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. When New Year's Day falls on a Sunday, the game is played on Monday, January 2...
in 1954, 1956 and 1988 and boasts six national championships. Its men's basketball team won the NCAA National Championship
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
in 1979 and 2000 and is currently enjoying a streak of six Final Four
Final four
Final Four isa sports term that is commonly applied to the last four teams remaining in a playoff tournament, most notably NCAA Division I college basketball tournaments. The term usually refers to the four teams who compete in the two games of a single-elimination tournament's semi-final round...
appearances over the last 13 seasons. MSU men's ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
won national titles
NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship
The annual NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship tournament determines the top men's ice hockey team in NCAA Division I and Division III. The semi-finals and finals of the Division I Championship are branded as the Frozen Four, a passing nod to the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship - known...
in 1966, 1986 and 2007. Cross country has historically been Michigan State's most successful sport, especially during a four-decade period spanning roughly 1930–1970 during which the Spartans won eight NCAA championships and numerous other conference and national titles.
Agriculture school
Michigan Constitution
The Constitution of the State of Michigan is the governing document of the U.S. state of Michigan. It describes the structure and function of the state's government....
of 1850 called for the creation of an "agricultural school", though it was not until February 12, 1855, that Michigan Governor Kinsley S. Bingham
Kinsley S. Bingham
Kinsley Scott Bingham was a U.S. Representative, a U.S. Senator, and the 11th Governor of the state of Michigan.-Early life in New York:...
signed a bill establishing the United States' first agriculture college, the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan. Classes began on May 13, 1857, with three buildings, five faculty members, and 63 male students. The first president, Joseph R. Williams
Joseph R. Williams
Joseph Rickelson Williams was an American politician and the first president for the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first Land-Grant Institution to be established in the United States and now one of the largest universities in the United States, Michigan State University.-Early...
, designed a curriculum that required more scientific study than practically any undergraduate institution of the era. It balanced science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
, liberal arts
Liberal arts
The term liberal arts refers to those subjects which in classical antiquity were considered essential for a free citizen to study. Grammar, Rhetoric and Logic were the core liberal arts. In medieval times these subjects were extended to include mathematics, geometry, music and astronomy...
, and practical training. The curriculum excluded Latin and Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
studies, since most applicants did not study any classical languages in their rural high schools. However, it did require three hours of daily manual labor
Manual labour
Manual labour , manual or manual work is physical work done by people, most especially in contrast to that done by machines, and also to that done by working animals...
, which kept costs down for both the students and the College. Despite Williams' innovations and his defense of education for the masses, the State Board of Education saw Williams' curriculum as elitist
Elitism
Elitism is the belief or attitude that some individuals, who form an elite — a select group of people with intellect, wealth, specialized training or experience, or other distinctive attributes — are those whose views on a matter are to be taken the most seriously or carry the most...
. They forced him to resign in 1859 and reduced the curriculum to a two-year vocational program.
Land Grant pioneer
In 1860, Joseph R. WilliamsJoseph R. Williams
Joseph Rickelson Williams was an American politician and the first president for the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first Land-Grant Institution to be established in the United States and now one of the largest universities in the United States, Michigan State University.-Early...
became acting lieutenant governor
Lieutenant governor
A lieutenant governor or lieutenant-governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction, but is often the deputy or lieutenant to or ranking under a governor — a "second-in-command"...
and helped pass the Reorganization Act of 1861. This gave the College a four-year curriculum and the power to grant master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
s. Under the act, a newly created body, known as the State Board of Agriculture, took over from the State Board of Education in running the institution. The College changed its name to State Agricultural College, and its first class graduated in the same year. As the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
had just begun, there was no time for an elaborate graduation ceremony. The first alumni enlisted to the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
. The following year, Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
signed the First Morrill Act of 1862 to support similar colleges, making the Michigan school a national model. Williams had died the previous year.
Co-ed college
Stagecoach
A stagecoach is a type of covered wagon for passengers and goods, strongly sprung and drawn by four horses, usually four-in-hand. Widely used before the introduction of railway transport, it made regular trips between stages or stations, which were places of rest provided for stagecoach travelers...
trek from Lansing. From the early days, female students took the same rigorous scientific agriculture courses as male students. In 1896, the faculty created a "Women Course" that melded a home economics
Family and consumer science
Family and consumer sciences is an academic discipline that combines aspects of social and natural science. Family and consumer sciences deals with the relationship between individuals, families, and communities, and the environment in which they live...
curriculum with liberal arts
Liberal arts
The term liberal arts refers to those subjects which in classical antiquity were considered essential for a free citizen to study. Grammar, Rhetoric and Logic were the core liberal arts. In medieval times these subjects were extended to include mathematics, geometry, music and astronomy...
and sciences. That same year, the College turned the old Abbot Hall male dorm into a women's dormitory. It was not until 1899 that the State Agricultural College admitted its first African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
student, William O. Thompson. After graduation, he taught at what is now Tuskegee University
Tuskegee University
Tuskegee University is a private, historically black university located in Tuskegee, Alabama, United States. It is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund...
. President Jonathan L. Snyder invited its president Booker T. Washington
Booker T. Washington
Booker Taliaferro Washington was an American educator, author, orator, and political leader. He was the dominant figure in the African-American community in the United States from 1890 to 1915...
to be the Class of 1900 commencement speaker. A few years later, Myrtle Craig became the first woman African-American student to enroll at the College. Along with the Class of 1907, she received her degree from U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
, commencement speaker for the Semi-Centennial celebration. The City of East Lansing was incorporated in that same year, and two years later the college officially changed its name to Michigan Agricultural College (M.A.C.).
Big Ten university
During the early 20th century, M.A.C. expanded its curriculum well beyond agriculture. By 1925 it had expanded enough that it changed its name to Michigan State College of Agriculture and Applied Science (M.S.C.). In 1941 the Secretary of the State Board of Agriculture, John A. HannahJohn A. Hannah
John Alfred Hannah was president of Michigan State College for 28 years, making him the longest serving of MSU's presidents. He is credited with transforming the school from a little-known, regional agricultural college into a large national research institution...
, became president of the College. He began the largest expansion in the institution's history, with the help of the 1945 G.I. Bill, which helped World War II veterans to receive an education. One of Hannah's strategies was to build a new dormitory building, enroll enough students to fill it, and use the income to start construction on a new dormitory. Under his plan, enrollment increased from 15,000 in 1950 to 38,000 in 1965. In 1957 Hannah continued MSU's expansion by co-founding Michigan State University–Oakland, now Oakland University
Oakland University
Oakland University is a public university co-founded by Matilda Dodge Wilson and John A. Hannah whose campus is located in central Oakland County, Michigan, United States in the cities of Auburn Hills and Rochester Hills. It is the only major research university in Oakland County, from which OU...
, with Matilda Dodge Wilson
Matilda Dodge Wilson
Matilda Dodge Wilson , was born Matilda Rausch in Walkerton, Ontario, Canada. She was the widow of John Francis Dodge who co-founded the Dodge motor car company in Detroit with his brother Horace Elgin Dodge. Wilson co-founded the Oakland campus of Michigan State University, now Oakland...
. Hannah also got the chance to improve the athletic reputation of M.S.C. when the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
resigned from the Big Ten Conference
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
in 1946. Hannah lobbied hard to take its place, gaining admission in 1949. Six years later, in its Centennial year of 1955, the State of Michigan renamed the College as Michigan State University of Agriculture and Applied Science. Nine years after that, the University governing body changed its name from the State Board of Agriculture to the MSU Board of Trustees. The State of Michigan allowed the University to drop the words "Agriculture and Applied Science" from its name. Since 1964 the institution has gone by the name of Michigan State University.
Global leader by 2012
Lou Anna Simon
Lou Anna Kimsey Simon is the 20th and current president of Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. Simon is chair of the Big Ten's Council of Presidents/Chancellors.-Education:...
called for MSU, one of the public ivy institutions
Public Ivy
Public Ivy is a term coined by Richard Moll in his 1985 book Public Ivies: A Guide to America's best public undergraduate colleges and universities to refer to universities which "provide an Ivy League collegiate experience at a public school price." Public Ivies are considered, according to the...
, to become the global model leader for Land Grant institutions by the year 2012. Her plans include creating a new residential college
Residential college
A residential college is an organisational pattern for a division of a university that places academic activity in a community setting of students and faculty, usually at a residence and with shared meals, the college having a degree of autonomy and a federated relationship with the overall...
and increasing grants awarded from the National Institutes of Health
National Institutes of Health
The National Institutes of Health are an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and are the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and health-related research. Its science and engineering counterpart is the National Science Foundation...
past the $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
100 million mark. While there are over 100 Land-grant universities in the United States, she has stated that she would like Michigan State University to be the leader.
Michigan State, the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
and Wayne State University
Wayne State University
Wayne State University is a public research university located in Detroit, Michigan, United States, in the city's Midtown Cultural Center Historic District. Founded in 1868, WSU consists of 13 schools and colleges offering more than 400 major subject areas to over 32,000 graduate and...
created the University Research Corridor
University Research Corridor
The University Research Corridor is a research consortium founded by the three leading universities in the state of Michigan. In November 2006, Michigan State University, Wayne State University, and the University of Michigan enhanced their existing partnerships by establishing the URC...
in 2006. This alliance was formed to transform and strength Michigan's economy by reaching out to businesses, policymakers, innovators, investors and the public to speed up technology transfer, make resources more accessible and help attract new jobs to the state.
Campus
Red Cedar River (Michigan)
The Red Cedar River is a westward-flowing tributary of the Grand River in Michigan. Its source is Cedar Lake which is located in Marion Township in the southeastern corner of Livingston County, and it runs about through Okemos, East Lansing, including the campus of Michigan State University, and...
. Development of the campus started in 1856 with three buildings: a multipurpose building called College Hall
College Hall (Michigan State University)
College Hall was the first building erected on the campus of the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan , and the first in the United States to be erected "for the teaching of scientific agriculture." Reputedly designed by John C...
, a dormitory later called "Saints' Rest
Saints' Rest
Saints' Rest was the second building erected on the campus of the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan . It was built in 1856 and served as the school's only dormitory until 1870, when Williams Hall was completed...
", and a barn. Today, MSU's contiguous campus consists of 5200 acres (21 km²), 2000 acres (8.1 km²) of which are developed. There are 556 buildings: 100 for academics, 131 for agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
, 166 for housing and food service, and 42 for athletics. Overall, the university has 22763025 ft2 of total indoor space. Connecting it all is 26 miles (41.8 km) of roads and 100 miles (160.9 km) of sidewalks. MSU also owns 44 non-campus properties, totaling 22000 acres (89 km²) in 28 different counties.
North campus
The oldest part of campus lies on the north bank of the Red Cedar.It includes Collegiate Gothic architecture, plentiful trees, and curving roads with few straight lines. It was in this area that the College built its first three buildings, of which none survive. Other historic buildings north of the river include Cowles House, the president's official residence, and Beaumont Tower
Beaumont Tower
Beaumont Tower , designed by the architectural firm of Donaldson and Meier, is a structure on the campus of Michigan State University. The tower marks the site of College Hall, the first building in America erected for instruction in scientific agriculture.During its dedication ceremony the...
, a carillon
Carillon
A carillon is a musical instrument that is typically housed in a free-standing bell tower, or the belfry of a church or other municipal building. The instrument consists of at least 23 cast bronze, cup-shaped bells, which are played serially to play a melody, or sounded together to play a chord...
clock tower marking the site of College Hall
College Hall (Michigan State University)
College Hall was the first building erected on the campus of the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan , and the first in the United States to be erected "for the teaching of scientific agriculture." Reputedly designed by John C...
, the original classroom building. To the east lies Eustace–Cole Hall, America's first freestanding laboratory for horticulture
Horticulture
Horticulture is the industry and science of plant cultivation including the process of preparing soil for the planting of seeds, tubers, or cuttings. Horticulturists work and conduct research in the disciplines of plant propagation and cultivation, crop production, plant breeding and genetic...
. Other landmarks include the bronze statue of former president John A. Hannah
John A. Hannah
John Alfred Hannah was president of Michigan State College for 28 years, making him the longest serving of MSU's presidents. He is credited with transforming the school from a little-known, regional agricultural college into a large national research institution...
, the W. J. Beal Botanical Garden
W. J. Beal Botanical Garden
The W. J. Beal Botanical Garden is a botanical garden located on the campus of Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. It is claimed to be the oldest continually-maintained university botanical garden in the United States, and is open to the public without charge year round during...
, and the painted boulder known as "The Rock
The Rock (Michigan State University)
The Rock is a boulder on the campus of Michigan State University. Once popular as a trysting site, today it serves as a billboard for campus groups and events. -History:...
", which is a popular spot for theatre, tailgating
Tailgate party
In the United States, a tailgate party is a social event held on and around the open tailgate of a vehicle. Tailgating often involves consuming alcoholic beverages and grilling food. Tailgate parties usually occur in the parking lots at stadiums and arenas, before and occasionally after games and...
, and candlelight vigils. On the northwest corner of campus lies the University's hotel, the Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center. The university also has a museum, initiated in 1857. MSU Museum is one of the oldest museums in the Midwest and is accredited by the American Association of Museums.
South campus
The campus south of the river consists mostly of post-World War II International Style
International style (architecture)
The International style is a major architectural style that emerged in the 1920s and 1930s, the formative decades of Modern architecture. The term originated from the name of a book by Henry-Russell Hitchcock and Philip Johnson, The International Style...
buildings with sparse foliage, relatively straight roadways, and numerous parking lots. The "2020 Vision" Master Plan proposes replacing these parking lots with parking ramps
Multi-storey car park
A multi-storey car-park is a building designed specifically to be for car parking and where there are a number of floors or levels on which parking takes place...
and green space, but these plans will take many years to reach fruition. As part of the master plan, the University erected a new bronze statue of The Spartan
Sparty
Sparty is the mascot of Michigan State University. Sparty is usually depicted as a muscular male Spartan warrior/athlete dressed in stylized Greek costume. After changing the team name from "Aggies" to "Spartans" in 1925, various incarnations of a Spartan warrior with a prominent chin appeared at...
in 2005. This replica replaced the original modernist terra cotta
Terra cotta
Terracotta, Terra cotta or Terra-cotta is a clay-based unglazed ceramic, although the term can also be applied to glazed ceramics where the fired body is porous and red in color...
statue, which can still be seen inside Spartan Stadium. Notable academic and research buildings on the South Campus include the Cyclotron
National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory
National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory is located on the campus of Michigan State University and is the leading rare isotope research facility in the United States...
and the College of Law
Michigan State University College of Law
The Michigan State University College of Law is a private law school located in East Lansing, Michigan which is affiliated with Michigan State University...
.
This part of campus is home to the MSU Horticulture Gardens
Michigan State University Horticulture Gardens
The Michigan State University Horticulture Gardens are horticultural gardens, with a landscape arboretum, located on Bogue Street on the Michigan State University campus in East Lansing, Michigan. The gardens are open to the public daily without charge....
and the adjoining 4-H
4-H
4-H in the United States is a youth organization administered by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture of the United States Department of Agriculture , with the mission of "engaging youth to reach their fullest potential while advancing the field of youth development." The name represents...
Children's Garden. South of the gardens lie the Canadian National and CSX
CSX Transportation
CSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...
railroads, which divide the main campus from thousands of acres of university-owned farmland. The university's agricultural facilities include the Horse, Dairy Cattle, Beef Cattle, Sheep, and Poultry Teaching and Research Farms, as well as the Air Quality Control Lab and the Diagnostics Center for Population and Animal Health.
Dubai Education Center
In 2007, Michigan State University established an education center in DubaiDubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
, United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
. MSU Dubai was the first American university with a presence in Dubai International Academic City
Dubai International Academic City
Dubai International Academic City , was built near Al Ruwayyah along the Dubai-Al Ain Road in the city of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. DIAC is located within Dubai Academic City, which spreads over an area of , and the development is scheduled to be completed by 2012...
, with classes beginning in August 2008. The University offered six undergraduate programs: Business Administration; Child and Youth Development; Construction Project Management; Early Childhood Education; Media Management and Research; Computer Engineering, which later was changed to Electrical and Computer Engineering; and a Master's Degree in Human Resources & Labor Relations. The University attracted over 100 students from all over the Middle East and beyond. During the 2009-2010 academic year MSU Dubai intended to seek licensure through the Commission for Academic Accreditation of the U.A.E. with the goal of full program accreditation prior to the graduation of its first class in 2012. After two years of activity, MSU shut down all undergraduate programs in Dubai due to financial reasons. The Dubai campus remains as a research site, a Study Abroad center, and for its dozen graduate students.
Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center
The Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center doubles as a 4-star hotel and a business friendly conference center. It is located on the northwest corner of Michigan State University’s campus, across from the Brody Complex, on Harrison Road just south of Michigan Avenue. The hotel has 160 rooms and suites which can accommodate anyone staying in East Lansing for a business conference, sporting event or an on-campus visit, but it originally served as a dormitory for MSU students. Besides a lodging facility, the Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center serves as a “learning laboratory for the 300-400 students each year that are enrolled in The School of Hospitality Business and other majors.” The Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center strives to facilitate education by hosting conferences and seminars.Academics
Public Ivy
Public Ivy is a term coined by Richard Moll in his 1985 book Public Ivies: A Guide to America's best public undergraduate colleges and universities to refer to universities which "provide an Ivy League collegiate experience at a public school price." Public Ivies are considered, according to the...
, Michigan State is a member of the Association of American Universities
Association of American Universities
The Association of American Universities is an organization of leading research universities devoted to maintaining a strong system of academic research and education...
. Michigan State University Ombudsman
Ombudsman
An ombudsman is a person who acts as a trusted intermediary between an organization and some internal or external constituency while representing not only but mostly the broad scope of constituent interests...
is the longest continually operating ombudsman office at a college or university in the country. Albert Fert
Albert Fert
Albert Fert is a French physicist and one of the discoverers of giant magnetoresistance which brought about a breakthrough in gigabyte hard disks...
, an Adjunct professor at MSU, was awarded the 2007 Nobel Prize in Physics
Nobel Prize in Physics
The Nobel Prize in Physics is awarded once a year by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895 and awarded since 1901; the others are the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Peace Prize, and...
together with Peter Grünberg
Peter Grünberg
Peter Andreas Grünberg is a German physicist, and Nobel Prize in Physics laureate for his discovery with Albert Fert of giant magnetoresistance which brought about a breakthrough in gigabyte hard disk drives.-Biography:...
. MSU's study abroad
Study abroad
Studying abroad is the act of a student pursuing educational opportunities in a country other than one's own. This can include primary, secondary and post-secondary students...
program is the largest of any single-campus university in the United States with 2,461 students studying abroad in 2004–2005 in over 60 countries on all continents, including Antarctica. MSU has six faculty members elected to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS); Martin Bukovac (1983), James Dye (1989), Pamela Fraker (2007), Richard Lenski (2006), Michael Thomashow (2003), and James Tiedje (2003).
Its admissions are moderately difficult; for 2009's entering class, the 25th/75th percentiles for the SAT were 1030 and 1240/1600, and its 25th/75th percentiles on the ACT were 23 and 27/36.
Rankings
Michigan State ranks in the world, according to a Shanghai Jiao Tong UniversityShanghai Jiao Tong University
Shanghai Jiao Tong University or SJTU), sometimes referred to as Shanghai Jiaotong University , is a top public research university located in Shanghai, China. Shanghai Jiao Tong University is known as one of the oldest and most prestigious universities in China...
study, which measures scientific research leading towards a Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
. U.S. News & World Report
U.S. News & World Report
U.S. News & World Report is an American news magazine published from Washington, D.C. Along with Time and Newsweek it was for many years a leading news weekly, focusing more than its counterparts on political, economic, health and education stories...
ranks MSU 71st in the U.S. The 2011 QS World University Rankings
QS World University Rankings
The QS World University Rankings is a ranking of the world’s top 500 universities by Quacquarelli Symonds using a method that has published annually since 2004....
placed Michigan State University at 164th internationally.
The university has over 200 academic programs. U.S. News has ranked MSU's graduate-level elementary education", secondary education
Secondary education
Secondary education is the stage of education following primary education. Secondary education includes the final stage of compulsory education and in many countries it is entirely compulsory. The next stage of education is usually college or university...
, and Industrial and Organizational Psychology
Industrial and organizational psychology
Industrial and organizational psychology is the scientific study of employees, workplaces, and organizations. Industrial and organizational psychologists contribute to an organization's success by improving the performance and well-being of its people...
programs No.1 for the last 14 years.
The National Communication Association (NCA) ranks MSU’s Ph.D. programs as No. 1 in educating researchers in the rapidly growing fields of health communication and communication technology.
MSU is also ranked number four in several other fields, including international/intercultural communication, mass communication, and interpersonal communication based on the November 2004 NCA report.
The Eli Broad College of Business was ranked No. 9 among public institutions and No. 20 nationally in 2010 by Business Week. The 2008 U.S. News ranked Michigan State's Supply Chain Management
Supply chain management
Supply chain management is the management of a network of interconnected businesses involved in the ultimate provision of product and service packages required by end customers...
program in the Eli Broad College of Business No.1 in the nation for the second year in a row. In addition, the Eli Broad College of Business undergraduate accounting program is ranked 11th overall and 8th among public schools, the graduate accounting program is ranked 9th overall and 6th among public schools, and the doctoral program is ranked 8th overall and 5th among public schools according to the 2010 Public Accounting Report
Public Accounting Report
' is a semi-monthly eight-page newsletter that covers competitive intelligence and the business side of the public accounting profession. Among its proprietary features are the PAR Top 100, an annual ranking of the 100 largest accounting firms in the United States; and the PAR Professors Survey,...
s Annual Survey of Accounting Professors.
The College of Communication Arts and Sciences was established in 1955 and was the first of its kind in the United States. The college's Media and Information Studies doctoral program was ranked No. 2 in 2007 by The Chronicle of Higher Education
The Chronicle of Higher Education
The Chronicle of Higher Education is a newspaper and website that presents news, information, and jobs for college and university faculty, staff members and administrators....
in the category of mass communication. The communication doctoral program was ranked No. 4 in a separate category of communication in The Chronicle of Higher Educations 2005 Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index, published in 2007. The college's faculty and alumni include eight Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
winners and a two-time Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
winning recording mixer.
MSU’s graduate program in nuclear physics
Nuclear physics
Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies the building blocks and interactions of atomic nuclei. The most commonly known applications of nuclear physics are nuclear power generation and nuclear weapons technology, but the research has provided application in many fields, including those...
is ranked No. 1 in the nation by U.S. News. In primary medical care
Primary care
Primary care is the term for the health services by providers who act as the principal point of consultation for patients within a health care system...
, U.S. News ranks MSU's College of Osteopathic Medicine at No.5, College of Veterinary Medicine
Veterinary medicine
Veterinary Medicine is the branch of science that deals with the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease, disorder and injury in non-human animals...
at No.9, and the College of Human Medicine at No.18.
Other programs of note include criminal justice
Criminal justice
Criminal Justice is the system of practices and institutions of governments directed at upholding social control, deterring and mitigating crime, or sanctioning those who violate laws with criminal penalties and rehabilitation efforts...
, music therapy
Music therapy
Music therapy is an allied health profession and one of the expressive therapies, consisting of an interpersonal process in which a trained music therapist uses music and all of its facets—physical, emotional, mental, social, aesthetic, and spiritual—to help clients to improve or maintain their...
, hospitality business
Hospitality management studies
Hospitality management is the academic study of the hospitality industry. A degree in Hospitality management is often conferred from either a university college dedicated to the studies of hospitality management or a business school with a department in hospitality management studies...
, packaging, political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
, dietetics and communication
Communication
Communication is the activity of conveying meaningful information. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast...
s. The Sustainable Endowments Institute awarded Michigan State with an overall grade of "B" on the 2009 Campus Sustainability Survey, including "A"s in the categories of Administration, Transportation, Endowment Transparency, and Investment Policies.
Research
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
405 million in 2008–09 on research, capping a long history of academic research. In 1877, botany professor William J. Beal
William J. Beal
William James Beal was an American botanist.-Biography:Beal was born in Adrian, Michigan, to William and Rachel Beal, and he married Hannah Proud in 1863. He attended the University of Michigan, which gave him an A.B. degree in 1859 and an A.M. degree in 1862; he also received an S.B. degree...
performed the first documented genetic crosses to produce hybrid corn
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
, which led to increased yields. MSU dairy professor G. Malcolm Trout
G. Malcolm Trout
George Malcolm Trout was a professor in food science at Michigan State University for almost 50 years.-Biography:...
invented the process for the homogenization
Homogenization (chemistry)
Homogenization or homogenisation is any of several processes used to make a chemical mixture the same throughout.-Definition:Homogenization is intensive blending of mutually related substances or groups of mutually related substances to form a constant of different insoluble phases to obtain a...
of milk in the 1930s. In the 1960s, MSU scientists developed cisplatin
Cisplatin
Cisplatin, cisplatinum, or cis-diamminedichloroplatinum is a chemotherapy drug. It is used to treat various types of cancers, including sarcomas, some carcinomas , lymphomas, and germ cell tumors...
, a leading cancer fighting drug.
Today Michigan State continues its research with facilities such as the U.S. Department of Energy
United States Department of Energy
The United States Department of Energy is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government concerned with the United States' policies regarding energy and safety in handling nuclear material...
-sponsored MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory and a particle accelerator
Particle accelerator
A particle accelerator is a device that uses electromagnetic fields to propel charged particles to high speeds and to contain them in well-defined beams. An ordinary CRT television set is a simple form of accelerator. There are two basic types: electrostatic and oscillating field accelerators.In...
called the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory
National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory
National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory is located on the campus of Michigan State University and is the leading rare isotope research facility in the United States...
. The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science named Michigan State University as the site for the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams
Facility for Rare Isotope Beams
The Facility for Rare Isotopes Beams is a planned national user facility for nuclear science research that will enable scientists to make discoveries about the properties of rare isotopes in order to better understand the physics of nuclei, nuclear astrophysics, fundamental interactions, and...
(FRIB). The $550 million facility will attract top researchers from around the world to conduct experiments in basic nuclear science, astrophysics, and applications of isotopes to other fields.
Germanium
Germanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ge and atomic number 32. It is a lustrous, hard, grayish-white metalloid in the carbon group, chemically similar to its group neighbors tin and silicon. The isolated element is a semiconductor, with an appearance most similar to elemental silicon....
, called Ge-60 In that same year, Michigan State, in consortium with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
and the government of Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, broke ground on the 4.1-meter Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope
SOAR telescope
The Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope is a modern 4.1-meter-aperture optical and near-infrared telescope located on Cerro Pachón, Chile at 2,738 meters elevation...
(SOAR) in the Andes Mountains of Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
. The consortium telescope will allow the Physics & Astronomy department to study galaxy formation and origins. Since 1999, MSU has been part of another consortium called the Michigan Life Sciences Corridor
Michigan Life Sciences Corridor
The Michigan Life Sciences Corridor is a $1 billion biotechnology initiative in the U.S. state of Michigan. It started in 1999 with money from the state's settlement with the tobacco industry...
, which aims to develop biotechnology
Biotechnology
Biotechnology is a field of applied biology that involves the use of living organisms and bioprocesses in engineering, technology, medicine and other fields requiring bioproducts. Biotechnology also utilizes these products for manufacturing purpose...
research in the State of Michigan. Finally, the College of Communication Arts and Sciences' Quello Center
Quello Center for Telecommunication Management and Law
The James H. and Mary B. Quello Center for Telecommunication Management & Law is a research center at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan...
researches current issues of information and communication management.
Endowment
MSU's (private, non-Morrill Act) endowmentFinancial endowment
A financial endowment is a transfer of money or property donated to an institution. The total value of an institution's investments is often referred to as the institution's endowment and is typically organized as a public charity, private foundation, or trust....
started in 1916 when the Engineering Building burned down. Automobile magnate R.E. Olds helped the program stay afloat with a gift of $100,000. There was a time when MSU lagged behind peer institutions in terms of endowments. As recently as the early 1990s, MSU was last among the eleven Big Ten schools, with barely over $100 million in endowment funds. That changed dramatically in the first decade of the 21st century, when the University started a campaign to increase the size of the endowment. At the close of fiscal year 2004–2005, the endowment had risen to $1.325 billion, raising the University to sixth of the 11 Big Ten schools in terms of endowment; within $2 million of the fifth-rated school. The rapid increase in the size of the endowment will help to improve outdated facilities, such as the Music Building, which the College of Music hopes to soon replace with money from its alumni fundraising program.
Colleges
Residential colleges
MSU has several residential colleges, based on the OxbridgeOxbridge
Oxbridge is a portmanteau of the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge in England, and the term is now used to refer to them collectively, often with implications of perceived superior social status...
"living-learning" model. By putting classes in student dormitories, these colleges improve student access to faculty and facilities. MSU's first residential college, Justin Morrill College started in 1965 with an interdisciplinary curriculum. MSU closed Morrill College in 1979, but today the university has three residential colleges, including the recent opening of the Residential College in Arts & Humanities
Residential College in Arts & Humanities
The Residential College in Arts & Humanities is a new residential college at Michigan State University in East Lansing Michigan. Founded October 21, 2005, the college provides around 600 undergraduates with an individualized curriculum in the liberal, visual and performing arts...
(RCAH) located in Snyder and Phillips halls.
Established in 1967, James Madison College
James Madison College
This article is about the public-policy college at Michigan State University. For the similarly named institution in Virginia, see James Madison University....
is a smaller component residential college in political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
housed in Case Hall. Classes in the college are small, with an average of 25 students, and most instructors are tenure
Tenure
Tenure commonly refers to life tenure in a job and specifically to a senior academic's contractual right not to have his or her position terminated without just cause.-19th century:...
track faculty. James Madison College has about 1150 students total, with each freshman
Freshman
A freshman or fresher is a first-year student in secondary school, high school, or college. The term first year can also be used as a noun, to describe the students themselves A freshman (US) or fresher (UK, India) (or sometimes fish, freshie, fresher; slang plural frosh or freshmeat) is a...
class containing about 320 students. Each of Madison's four majors
Academic major
In the United States and Canada, an academic major or major concentration is the academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits....
—Social Relations and Policy, International Relations, Political Theory and Constitutional Democracy, and Comparative Cultures and Politics—requires two years of foreign language and one semester of "field experience” in an intern
Intern
Internship is a system of onthejob training for white-collar jobs, similar to an apprenticeship. Interns are usually college or university students, but they can also be high school students or post graduate adults seeking skills for a new career. They may also be as young as middle school or in...
ship or study abroad program. Although Madison students make up about 4% of MSU graduates, they represent around 35% of the MSU’s Phi Beta Kappa
Phi Beta Kappa Society
The Phi Beta Kappa Society is an academic honor society. Its mission is to "celebrate and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences"; and induct "the most outstanding students of arts and sciences at America’s leading colleges and universities." Founded at The College of William and...
members.
MSU's newest residential college is the Residential College in Arts & Humanities
Residential College in Arts & Humanities
The Residential College in Arts & Humanities is a new residential college at Michigan State University in East Lansing Michigan. Founded October 21, 2005, the college provides around 600 undergraduates with an individualized curriculum in the liberal, visual and performing arts...
. Founded October 21, 2005, the college provides around 600 undergraduates with an individualized curriculum
Curriculum
See also Syllabus.In formal education, a curriculum is the set of courses, and their content, offered at a school or university. As an idea, curriculum stems from the Latin word for race course, referring to the course of deeds and experiences through which children grow to become mature adults...
in the liberal
Liberal arts
The term liberal arts refers to those subjects which in classical antiquity were considered essential for a free citizen to study. Grammar, Rhetoric and Logic were the core liberal arts. In medieval times these subjects were extended to include mathematics, geometry, music and astronomy...
, visual
Visual arts
The visual arts are art forms that create works which are primarily visual in nature, such as ceramics, drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, design, crafts, and often modern visual arts and architecture...
and performing arts
Performing arts
The performing arts are those forms art which differ from the plastic arts insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face, and presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some physical art object...
. Though all the students will graduate with the same degree
Academic degree
An academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
, MSU encourages students in the college to get a second degree
Double degree
A double-degree program, sometimes called a combined degree, conjoint degree, dual degree, or simultaneous degree program, involves a student's working for two different university degrees in parallel, either at the same institution or at different institutions , completing them in less time than...
or specialization. The university houses the new college in a newly renovated Snyder-Phillips Hall, the location of MSU's first residential college, Justin Morrill College.
Professional schools
The Michigan State University College of LawMichigan State University College of Law
The Michigan State University College of Law is a private law school located in East Lansing, Michigan which is affiliated with Michigan State University...
is an independent, non-profit corporation affiliated with the public
Public university
A public university is a university that is predominantly funded by public means through a national or subnational government, as opposed to private universities. A national university may or may not be considered a public university, depending on regions...
institution. Founded in Detroit in 1891 as the Detroit College of Law, the law school moved to East Lansing in 1995 becoming an integral part of the university. Students attending MSU College of Law come from 42 states and 13 countries. The law school publishes the Michigan State Law Review, the Michigan State Journal of International Law and the Journal of Medicine and Law. The College of Law is the home of the Geoffrey Fieger
Geoffrey Fieger
Geoffrey Fieger is an American attorney based in Southfield, Michigan. Fieger is the senior partner at the law firm of Fieger, Fieger, Kenney, Johnson & Giroux and is an occasional legal commentator for NBC and MSNBC...
Trial Practice Institute, the first trial practice institute in the United States. The Intellectual Property
Intellectual property
Intellectual property is a term referring to a number of distinct types of creations of the mind for which a set of exclusive rights are recognized—and the corresponding fields of law...
and Communications Law program was ranked seventeenth nationally, in 2006.
The Eli Broad College of Business
Eli Broad College of Business
The Eli Broad College of Business is the business college at Michigan State University. The college has programs in accounting, general business - pre-law, finance, general management, human resource management, marketing, supply chain management, and hospitality business, which is an...
has programs in accounting, information systems
Information systems
Information Systems is an academic/professional discipline bridging the business field and the well-defined computer science field that is evolving toward a new scientific area of study...
, finance
Finance
"Finance" is often defined simply as the management of money or “funds” management Modern finance, however, is a family of business activity that includes the origination, marketing, and management of cash and money surrogates through a variety of capital accounts, instruments, and markets created...
, management
Management
Management in all business and organizational activities is the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives using available resources efficiently and effectively...
, marketing
Marketing
Marketing is the process used to determine what products or services may be of interest to customers, and the strategy to use in sales, communications and business development. It generates the strategy that underlies sales techniques, business communication, and business developments...
and supply chain management
Supply chain management
Supply chain management is the management of a network of interconnected businesses involved in the ultimate provision of product and service packages required by end customers...
, and hospitality business. The school has 4,775 undergraduate students and 776 graduate students. The Eli Broad Graduate School of Management, which Business Week magazine ranks 11th among public institutions, offers three MBA programs, as well as joint degrees with the College of Law
Michigan State University College of Law
The Michigan State University College of Law is a private law school located in East Lansing, Michigan which is affiliated with Michigan State University...
. The opening of the Eugene C. Eppley Center for Graduate Studies in Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management brought the first program in the United States to offer a Master of Business Administration degree in Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management to MSU.
The Michigan State University College of Nursing
Michigan State University College of Nursing
The Michigan State University College of Nursing is a nursing college affiliated with Michigan State University, and is located on the MSU campus in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. The college is centered in the Life Sciences Building, adjacent to the College of Human Medicine. The dean of the...
grants B.S.N.
Bachelor of Science in Nursing
The Bachelor of Science in Nursing is an American four year academic degree in the science and principles of nursing, granted by a tertiary education university or similarly accredited school...
, M.S.N.
Master of Science in Nursing
A Master of Science in Nursing is an advanced-level postgraduate degree for registered nurses and is considered an entry-level degree for nurse educators and managers. The degree also may prepare a nurse to seek a career as a nurse administrator, health policy expert, or clinical nurse leader...
, and Ph.D.
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
degrees.
Medical schools
The MSU College of Osteopathic Medicine was the world's first publicly funded college of osteopathic medicine. It has a long-standing tradition of retaining its alumni in Michigan to practice – more than two-thirds of the college’s graduates remain to practice in Michigan. Recently, the Michigan State University Board of Trustees approved a resolution endorsing the expansion of the College of Osteopathic Medicine to two sites in southeast MichiganSoutheast Michigan
Southeast Michigan, also called Southeastern Michigan, is a region in the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan that is home to a majority of the state's businesses and industries as well as slightly over half of the state's population, most of whom are concentrated in Metro...
, a move board members and college officials say will not only improve medical education in the state, but also address a projected physician shortage.
According to U.S. News & World Report, the College of Osteopathic Medicine (DO degree) ranked No.8 medical schools in the country for primary care and the College of Human Medicine (MD degree) has regularly ranked among the top thirty medical schools in the country for primary care.
The College of Human Medicine
Michigan State University College of Human Medicine
The Michigan State University College of Human Medicine is an academic division of Michigan State University , and grants the Doctor of Medicine degree. CHM was founded in 1964 as the first community-integrated medical school, and has a program that emphasizes patient-centered care and a...
graduates students with medical doctor MD
Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...
degrees and is split into seven distinct campuses located in Lansing, Kalamazoo
Kalamazoo, Michigan
The area on which the modern city stands was once home to Native Americans of the Hopewell culture, who migrated into the area sometime before the first millennium. Evidence of their early residency remains in the form of a small mound in downtown's Bronson Park. The Hopewell civilization began to...
, Flint
Flint, Michigan
Flint is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and is located along the Flint River, northwest of Detroit. The U.S. Census Bureau reports the 2010 population to be placed at 102,434, making Flint the seventh largest city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Genesee County which lies in the...
, Saginaw, Marquette
Marquette, Michigan
Marquette is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Marquette County. The population was 21,355 at the 2010 census, making it the most populated city of the Upper Peninsula. Marquette is a major port on Lake Superior, primarily for shipping iron ore and is the home of Northern...
, Traverse City
Traverse City, Michigan
Traverse City is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Grand Traverse County, although a small portion extends into Leelanau County. It is the largest city in the 21-county Northern Michigan region. The population was 14,674 at the 2010 census, with 143,372 in the Traverse...
and Grand Rapids. Each campus is affiliated with local hospitals and other medical facilities professionals in the area. For example, the Lansing campus includes Sparrow Hospital
Sparrow Hospital
Sparrow Hospital, located in Lansing, Michigan, is a 733 bed hospital that provides care for the greater Mid-Michigan region. The hospital is a subsidiary of Sparrow Health System, and is affiliated with the Colleges of Human Medicine and Osteopathic Medicine at nearby Michigan State University...
and Ingham Regional Medical Center
Ingham Regional Medical Center
Ingham Regional Medical Center is a hospital in Lansing, Michigan. IRMC is a subsidiary of the McLaren Health Care Corporation, which is an integrated managed care health care organization operating in Michigan...
. The College of Human Medicine has recently gained attention for its expansion into the Grand Rapids area, with the new Secchia Center completed in the Fall of 2010, that is expected to fuel the growing medical industry in that region.
Though Michigan State has offered courses in veterinary science since its founding, the College of Veterinary Medicine
Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine
The Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine was founded in 1910 and awards about 100 DVM degrees each year. It is the only veterinary college in Michigan. It is composed of the departments of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, Small Animal Clinical Sciences, Microbiology,...
was not formally established as a four-year, degree-granting program until 1910. Ranked ninth in the nation, the college has over 170000 ft2 of office, teaching, and research space, as well as a veterinary teaching hospital
Teaching hospital
A teaching hospital is a hospital that provides clinical education and training to future and current doctors, nurses, and other health professionals, in addition to delivering medical care to patients...
.
Other academic units
In recent years, MSU's music program has grown substantially. Music major enrollment increased more than 97% between 1991 and 2004. In early 2007, this growth led the university board of trustees to spin the music program off into its own college unit: The MSU College of Music. The new college faces many new challenges, such as working with limited space and funding. Nevertheless, MSU's music college plans on continued success, placing an annual average of 25 graduate students in tenure stream university positions.MSU's College of Education at Michigan State University offers graduate and undergraduate degrees in several fields, including counseling, educational psychology
Educational psychology
Educational psychology is the study of how humans learn in educational settings, the effectiveness of educational interventions, the psychology of teaching, and the social psychology of schools as organizations. Educational psychology is concerned with how students learn and develop, often focusing...
, special education
Special education
Special education is the education of students with special needs in a way that addresses the students' individual differences and needs. Ideally, this process involves the individually planned and systematically monitored arrangement of teaching procedures, adapted equipment and materials,...
, teacher education
Teacher education
Teacher education refers to the policies and procedures designed to equip prospective teachers with the knowledge, attitudes, behaviors and skills they require to perform their tasks effectively in the classroom, school and wider community....
and kinesiology
Kinesiology
Kinesiology, also known as human kinetics is the scientific study of human movement. Kinesiology addresses physiological, mechanical, and psychological mechanisms. Applications of kinesiology to human health include: biomechanics and orthopedics, rehabilitation, such as physical and occupational...
. The college has had high-ranked programs in elementary, educational technology, educational policy, and secondary education. In addition, Michigan State ties the University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
for the top spot in rehabilitation counseling
Rehabilitation counseling
Rehabilitation Counseling is focused on helping people who have disabilities achieve their personal, career, and independent living goals through a counseling process...
. The College of Education is currently housed in Erickson Hall.
Founded in 1956, the MSU Honors College
Michigan State University Honors College
The Michigan State University Honors College was established in 1956 to provide more academic opportunities to students of Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan for distinguished students and to emphasize academic challenge and achievement...
provides individualized curricula to MSU's top undergraduate students. Though the college has no majors of its own, it has its own dean
Dean (education)
In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
and academic advisers to help Honors students with their educational pursuits.
High school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
students starting at MSU may join the Honors College if they are in the top 5% of their high school graduating class and have either an ACT
ACT (examination)
The ACT is a standardized test for high school achievement and college admissions in the United States produced by ACT, Inc. It was first administered in November 1959 by Everett Franklin Lindquist as a competitor to the College Board's Scholastic Aptitude Test, now the SAT Reasoning Test...
score of at least 30 or an SAT
SAT
The SAT Reasoning Test is a standardized test for college admissions in the United States. The SAT is owned, published, and developed by the College Board, a nonprofit organization in the United States. It was formerly developed, published, and scored by the Educational Testing Service which still...
total score of at least 1360. Once admitted, students must maintain a 3.20 GPA and complete eight approved honors courses in order to graduate with Honors College designation on their degree.
After three years of planning, The College of Engineering
Michigan State University College of Engineering
The College of Engineering at Michigan State University is made up of 6 departments with 168 faculty members, nearly 3,000 undergraduate students, 9 undergraduate B.S. degree programs and a wide spectrum of graduate programs in both M.S. and Ph.D. levels...
successfully launched the first stages of its Residential Experience for Spartan Engineering, formally known as the Residential Option for Scientists and Engineers (ROSES), the new program is located in Wilson Hall after being housed in Bailey Hall for a number of years. The Residential program essentially combines with a brand new academic component, Cornerstone Engineering, where freshman engineering students not only get an overview of the engineering field(s) but get a hands-on experience along with it. Global Engineering
Global Engineering Education
Global Engineering Education is a field of study that focuses on the impact of globalization on the engineering industry.- Impact :The number of engineers coming from outside the United States has risen significantly in recent years...
is a new subject that is of certain interest for not only the Cornerstone Engineering and Residential Experience programs but for the entire College of Engineering
Michigan State University College of Engineering
The College of Engineering at Michigan State University is made up of 6 departments with 168 faculty members, nearly 3,000 undergraduate students, 9 undergraduate B.S. degree programs and a wide spectrum of graduate programs in both M.S. and Ph.D. levels...
at MSU. Engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
in today's society has shown to have a monumental impact on the global economy due to advancements in education, interdependence on economics with infrastructure, computers, transportation, technology and other manufactured goods as well as Michigan State University's study-abroad
Study abroad
Studying abroad is the act of a student pursuing educational opportunities in a country other than one's own. This can include primary, secondary and post-secondary students...
program being ranked #1 in the nation, allowing for students to experience education and learn cultures in hundreds of countries. Also of note is the innovative Visiting International Professional Program, which connects professional education to the expertise of Michigan State University, a world leader in global research and leadership training. VIPP creates practical links between the world-class faculty at MSU and global industries, businesses, governments and societies. The newly established Cornerstone Engineering and Residential Experience programs for College of Engineering
Michigan State University College of Engineering
The College of Engineering at Michigan State University is made up of 6 departments with 168 faculty members, nearly 3,000 undergraduate students, 9 undergraduate B.S. degree programs and a wide spectrum of graduate programs in both M.S. and Ph.D. levels...
have started programs abroad for more courses in engineering including Study abroad
Study abroad
Studying abroad is the act of a student pursuing educational opportunities in a country other than one's own. This can include primary, secondary and post-secondary students...
seminars.
MSU currently offers a 30 credit graduate program for Masters in Educational Technology in 3 different formats; completely online, hybrid in East Lansing, Michigan, or overseas. MSU.edu The overseas program is offered at universities around the world. Past locations have included England, France, Switzerland and Thailand. The program lasts one month a summer for three summers, with each summer covering 9 credit hours. One online class is required between the second and third summer. The classes are focused on preparing teachers in integrating technology into their classrooms and helping them understand the affordances and constraints of using different programs. The courses are taught by MSU professors and are open to students around the world.
Athletics
Michigan State's NCAANational Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
Division I-A program offers 12 varsity
Varsity team
In the United States and Canada, varsity sports teams are the principal athletic teams representing a college, university, high school or other secondary school. Such teams compete against the principal athletic teams at other colleges/universities, or in the case of secondary schools, against...
sports for men and 13 for women. Since their teams are called the Spartans, MSU's mascot is a Spartan warrior named Sparty
Sparty
Sparty is the mascot of Michigan State University. Sparty is usually depicted as a muscular male Spartan warrior/athlete dressed in stylized Greek costume. After changing the team name from "Aggies" to "Spartans" in 1925, various incarnations of a Spartan warrior with a prominent chin appeared at...
. The university participates in the Big Ten Conference in all varsity sports except ice hockey, which competes in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association
Central Collegiate Hockey Association
The Central Collegiate Hockey Association is a NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey college athletic conference that operates mostly in Michigan and Ohio, although it also has members in Alaska and Indiana. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. It holds its championship...
. The current athletic director is Mark Hollis, who was promoted to the position on January 1, 2008. Hollis replaced Ron Mason
Ron Mason
Ron Mason is a Canadian former ice hockey player, head coach and university executive. As head coach of various universities, notably including Michigan State University , he became the winningest ice hockey coach in NCAA history with 924 career wins...
, who served as head hockey coach from 1979 to 2002, retiring with a record total of 924 wins, and a 635–270–69 record at MSU.
Michigan State is among only sixteen Division 1A programs to win multiple national titles in football, and the only school to win multiple national titles in football, basketball, and hockey (MSU was the first athletic program to win multiple national titles in both football and basketball). MSU has won all of its football championships playing only division 1A opponents. The Spartans have participated in two events, in basketball and ice hockey, which have set world records for spectator attendances for both sports.
In 1888 Michigan State University (then as known as Michigan Agricultural College) along with Olivet, Albion and Hillsdale Colleges was a founding member of the nation's oldest athletic conference, the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association
Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association
The Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association is an athletic conference that competes in the NCAA's Division III. The nine teams in the conference are all located in the states of Michigan and Indiana. The Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association was established on March 24, 1888, making...
(MIAA). MAC left the conference in 1907.
Football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
has a long tradition at Michigan State. Starting as a club sport in 1884, football gained varsity status in 1896. MSU football teams won the Rose Bowl
Rose Bowl Game
The Rose Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game, usually played on January 1 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. When New Year's Day falls on a Sunday, the game is played on Monday, January 2...
in 1954, 1956 and 1988. The Spartans accounted for four of the top eight selections in the 1967 NFL Draft
1967 NFL Draft
The 1967 National Football League Draft was part of the Common Draft in the first year in which the NFL and AFL held a joint draft of college players on March 14–15.-Player selections:-Round one:-Round two:-Round three:-Round four:...
, the only time a college football program has accomplished such a feat.
Today, the football team competes in Spartan Stadium, a renovated 75,005 seat football stadium near the center of campus. The current coach is Mark Dantonio
Mark Dantonio
Mark Dantonio is the current head football coach at Michigan State University. He was hired on November 27, 2006 and became the 24th head coach at Michigan State. He is credited for winning the 2010 Big Ten Championship and his 4 game win streak over arch-rival Michigan...
, who was hired on November 27, 2006. Dantonio had an 18–17 record in his three year tenure at the University of Cincinnati
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati is a comprehensive public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, and a part of the University System of Ohio....
, including a 1–0 Bowl Game record. He led the team in its first season to a 7–6 record. The Spartans played in the Champs Sports Bowl against Boston College on December 28, 2007 and the Capital One Bowl against Georgia on January 1, 2009. MSU's traditional archrival is the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
, against whom they compete annually for the Paul Bunyan Trophy
Paul Bunyan Trophy
The Paul Bunyan–Governor of Michigan Trophy is a college rivalry trophy awarded to the winner of the annual American football game between the Michigan State Spartans and the Michigan Wolverines. The winner retains possession of the trophy until the next year's game...
. Their record against the Wolverines currently stands at 30-67-5. Michigan State is one of three Big Ten teams to have an annual non-conference football game against Notre Dame
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...
. MSU's record against the Fighting Irish is 25–44–1 but the Spartans have had much success against the Irish recently, becoming the first team ever to win six straight games at Notre Dame Stadium. In 2010, the Spartans finished 7-1 in conference play were Co-Big Ten Champions along with the University of Wisconsin and Ohio State
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
.
Men's basketball
MSU's men's basketball team has won the National ChampionshipNCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
twice: in 1979 and again in 2000. In 1979, Earvin "Magic" Johnson
Magic Johnson
Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. is a retired American professional basketball player who played point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . After winning championships in high school and college, Johnson was selected first overall in the 1979 NBA Draft by the Lakers...
, along with Greg Kelser
Greg Kelser
Gregory Kelser is a retired American basketball player and current television color commentator. Kelser played in the NBA from 1979–1986 and is best known for his standout career at Michigan State....
, Jay Vincent
Jay Vincent
Jay Fletcher Vincent is a retired American professional basketball player.A 6'7" forward, Vincent played at Michigan State University under coach, Jud Heathcote, where he teamed with Magic Johnson and Greg Kelser to win the 1979 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament...
and Mike Brkovich, led the MSU team to a 75–64 win against the Larry Bird
Larry Bird
Larry Joe Bird is a former American NBA basketball player and coach. Drafted into the NBA sixth overall by the Boston Celtics in 1978, Bird started at small forward and power forward for thirteen seasons, spearheading one of the NBA's most formidable frontcourts that included center Robert Parish...
-led Indiana State
Indiana State University
Indiana State University is a public university located in Terre Haute, Indiana, United States.The Princeton Review has named Indiana State as one of the "Best in the Midwest" seven years running, and the College of Education's Graduate Program was recently named as a 'Top 100' by U.S...
Sycamores. In 2000, three players from Flint
Flint, Michigan
Flint is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and is located along the Flint River, northwest of Detroit. The U.S. Census Bureau reports the 2010 population to be placed at 102,434, making Flint the seventh largest city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Genesee County which lies in the...
, Morris Peterson
Morris Peterson
Morris Peterson, Jr. is an American professional basketball player who is currently a free agent.- College career :...
, Charlie Bell
Charlie Bell (basketball)
Charlie Will Bell III is an American professional basketball guard for the Golden State Warriors of the NBA.-Career:He began playing basketball at Flint Southwestern Academy High School, and had an excellent college career at Michigan State University, appearing in three NCAA Final Fours, and...
and Mateen Cleaves
Mateen Cleaves
Mateen Ahmad Cleaves is an American former professional basketball player who played in six NBA seasons. He is currently a music talent manager....
, led the team to its second national title. Dubbed the "Flintstones", they were the key to the Spartans' win against the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
. On December 13, 2003, Michigan State and Kentucky
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky, also known as UK, is a public co-educational university and is one of the state's two land-grant universities, located in Lexington, Kentucky...
played in the Basketbowl
Basketbowl
The Basketbowl was a college basketball game between Michigan State University and the University of Kentucky held on December 13, 2003 at Ford Field, a domed American football stadium in Detroit, Michigan. The announced crowd of 78,129 set a record for verified attendance at a basketball game in...
, in which a record crowd of 78,129 watched the game in Detroit’s Ford Field
Ford Field
Ford Field is an indoor American football stadium located in Detroit, Michigan, USA, that is the current home field of the NFL's Detroit Lions. It is owned by the Detroit/Wayne County Stadium Authority. It regularly seats 65,000, though it is expandable up to 70,000 for football and 80,000 for...
. Kentucky won 79–74. The basketball team currently plays at the Jack Breslin Student Events Center under head coach Tom Izzo
Tom Izzo
Tom Izzo is an American college basketball coach. Since 1995, he has been the head coach for the Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team, presiding over a prolonged period of success....
, who has a 336–137 record. The student spirit section at Breslin is called the Izzone
Izzone
The Izzone is the Michigan State University men's basketball team student section organized and run by the Student Alumni Foundation at Michigan State University. Named after head coach Tom Izzo, the Izzone consists of nearly 4,000 members, seated in both the lower and upper bowls of the Breslin...
. Izzo's coaching has helped the team make six Final Four
Final four
Final Four isa sports term that is commonly applied to the last four teams remaining in a playoff tournament, most notably NCAA Division I college basketball tournaments. The term usually refers to the four teams who compete in the two games of a single-elimination tournament's semi-final round...
s since 1999, winning the title in 2000, and thirteen consecutive NCAA tournament appearances (beginning in 1998). In 2009 the Spartans made it to the National Championship game and lost 89–72 to North Carolina. In 2010, the Spartans made it to the Final Four and lost 50-52 to Butler. The Spartans lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament in 2011 to UCLA 76-78.
Men's ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
team started in 1924, though it has only been a varsity sport since 1950. The team has since won national titles in 1966, 1986 and 2007. The Spartans came close to repeating the national title in 1987, but lost the championship game to the University of North Dakota
University of North Dakota
The University of North Dakota is a public university in Grand Forks, North Dakota, USA. Established by the Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishment of the state of North Dakota, UND is the oldest and largest university in the state and enrolls over 14,000 students. ...
. They play at MSU's Munn Ice Arena
Munn Ice Arena
Munn Ice Arena is a 6,470-seat hockey-only arena in East Lansing, Michigan on the campus of Michigan State University. It is home to the MSU's ice hockey team...
. Former head coach Ron Mason is college hockey's winningest coach with 924 wins total and 635 at MSU. The current head coach
Coach (ice hockey)
Coach in ice hockey is the person responsible for directing the team during games and practices, prepares strategy and decides which players will participate in games....
is Rick Comley
Rick Comley
Rick Comley is a former collegiate ice hockey player and former head coach at Michigan State University. Following the 2005-06 season, Comley has an overall coaching record of 768-596-106...
, who has a 181-133-39 record at MSU and will be retiring at the end of the 2010–11 season. Since the Big Ten Conference does not include Division I men's ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
, Michigan State competes in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association
Central Collegiate Hockey Association
The Central Collegiate Hockey Association is a NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey college athletic conference that operates mostly in Michigan and Ohio, although it also has members in Alaska and Indiana. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. It holds its championship...
. Michigan State leads the CCHA in all-time wins, is second in CCHA Conference championships with 7, and is first in CCHA Tournament Championships with 11. Along with the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
(U-M) and the Ohio State University
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
, it is one of three Big Ten schools in the CCHA. As with other sports, the hockey rivalry between MSU and U-M is a fierce one, and on October 6, 2001, MSU faced U-M in the Cold War
Cold War (ice hockey)
The Cold War was a college ice hockey game played between U.S. college rivals Michigan State University and the University of Michigan on Saturday, October 6, 2001...
, during which a world record crowd of 74,554 packed Spartan Stadium to watch the game end in a 3–3 tie.
In the 2006–2007 season, the Men's Ice Hockey team defeated Boston College
Boston College
Boston College is a private Jesuit research university located in the village of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA. The main campus is bisected by the border between the cities of Boston and Newton. It has 9,200 full-time undergraduates and 4,000 graduate students. Its name reflects its early...
for its third NCAA hockey championship.
Men's cross country
Between World War I and World War II, Michigan State College competed in the Central Collegiate Conference, winning titles in 1926–1929, 1932, 1933 and 1935. Michigan State also experienced success in the IC4AIC4A
IC4A or ICAAAA is an annual men's competition held at different colleges every year....
, at New York’s Van Cortlandt Park
Van Cortlandt Park
Van Cortlandt Park is a park located in the Bronx in New York City. It is the fourth largest park in New York City, behind Pelham Bay Park, Flushing Meadows Park and Staten Island Greenbelt....
, winning 15 team titles (1933–1937, 1949, 1953, 1956–1960, 1962, 1963 and 1968). Since entering the Big Ten in 1950, Michigan State has won 14 men’s team titles (1951–1953, 1955–1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1970 and 1971). Michigan State hosted the inaugural NCAA cross country championships in 1938 and every year thereafter through 1964 (there was no championship in 1943). The Spartans won NCAA championships in 1939, 1948, 1949, 1952, 1955, 1956, 1958 and 1959.
Student life
College town
A college town or university town is a community which is dominated by its university population...
, with 60.2% of the population between the ages of 15 and 24. President John A. Hannah's push to expand in the 1950s and 1960s resulted in the largest residence hall system in the United States. Around 16,000 students live in MSU's 23 undergraduate halls
Michigan State University Housing
Michigan State University Housing is a large and complex network of housing for students and faculty of Michigan State University, most of the housing is in the form of residence halls on the school's campus, but there are also the University apartments, fraternity and sorority housing, and...
, one graduate hall, and three apartment villages. Each residence hall has its own hall government, with representatives in the Residence Halls Association. Yet despite the size and extent of on-campus housing, the residence halls are complemented by a variety of housing options. 58% of students live off-campus, mostly in the areas closest to campus, in either apartment buildings, former single-family homes, fraternity and sorority houses, or in a co-op
Student Housing Cooperative at Michigan State University
MSU Student Housing Cooperative is a nonprofit student owned and operated housing cooperative serving students in the East Lansing, Michigan area. The MSU SHC was formed in 1969 as a federation of existing cooperatives in East Lansing...
.
Greek life
With over 3,000 members, Michigan State University's Greek CommunityFraternity and sorority houses
North American fraternity and sorority housing refers largely to the houses or housing areas that fraternity and sorority members live and work together in...
is one of the largest in the nation. Started in 1872 and re-established in 1922 by Lambda Chi Alpha
Lambda Chi Alpha
Lambda Chi Alpha is one of the largest men's secret general fraternities in North America, having initiated more than 280,000 members and held chapters at more than 300 universities. It is a member of the North-American Interfraternity Conference and was founded by Warren A. Cole, while he was a...
Fraternity, Alpha Gamma Rho
Alpha Gamma Rho
Alpha Gamma Rho is a social-professional fraternity in the United States, with 75 university chapters including chapter in Mindanao State University, Philippines...
Fraternity, and Alpha Phi
Alpha Phi
Alpha Phi International Women's Fraternity was founded at Syracuse University on September 18, 1872. Alpha Phi currently has 152 active chapters and over 200,000 initiated members. Its celebrated Founders' Day is October 10. It was the third Greek-letter organization founded for women. In Alpha...
Sorority; the MSU Greek system now consists of 55 Greek lettered student societies. These chapters are in turn under the jurisdiction of one of MSU's four Greek governing councils: National Panhellenic Conference, North American Interfraternity Council, National Pan-Hellenic Council, and Independent Greek Council. National Pan-Hellenic Council is made up of 9 organizations, 5 Fraternities and 4 Sororities, that were founded on Historically Black College and Universities (HBCU's). The Interfraternity Council
North-American Interfraternity Conference
The North-American Interfraternity Conference , is an association of collegiate men's fraternities that was formally organized in 1910, although it began on November 27, 1909. The power of the organization rests in a House of Delegates where each member fraternity is represented by a single delegate...
and the Women's Panhellenic Council
National Panhellenic Conference
The National Panhellenic Conference , founded in 1902, is an umbrella organization for 26 national women's sororities.Each member group is autonomous as a social, Greek-letter society of college women and alumnae...
are each entirely responsible for their own budgets, giving them the freedom to hold large fundraising and recruitment events. MSU's fraternities and sororities hold many philanthropy
Philanthropy
Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...
events and community fundraisers. For example, in April 2011 the Greek Community held Greek Week to raise over $260,000 for the American Cancer Society
American Cancer Society
The American Cancer Society is the "nationwide community-based voluntary health organization" dedicated, in their own words, "to eliminating cancer as a major health problem by preventing cancer, saving lives, and diminishing suffering from cancer, through research, education, advocacy, and...
, and $5,000 for each of these charities: Big Brothers Big Sisters
Big Brothers Big Sisters of America
Big Brothers Big Sisters of America is a 501 non-profit organization whose mission is to help children reach their potential through professionally supported, one-to-one relationships with mentors that try to have a measurable impact on youth....
, The Listening Ear
The Listening Ear
The Listening Ear Crisis Intervention Center of East Lansing, Michigan is the oldest all volunteer crisis center operating in the United States. The Listening Ear Crisis Intervention Center has been open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year since July 15, 1969 and has served more than 300,000 phone and...
and previous charities include: the Make-a-Wish
Make-A-Wish Foundation
The Make-A-Wish Foundation is a 501 non-profit organization founded in the United States that grants wishes to children who have life-threatening medical conditions. The charity now operates in forty-seven countries around the world through thirty-six affiliate offices.The president & CEO of this...
Foundation (MSU Chapter), Share Laura's Hope, The Mary Beth Knox Scholarship, and the Special Olympics
Special Olympics
Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, providing year-round training and competitions to more than 3.1 million athletes in 175 countries....
.
Student organizations
Students' union
A students' union, student government, student senate, students' association, guild of students or government of student body is a student organization present in many colleges and universities, and has started appearing in some high schools...
of Michigan State University. It is unusual amongst university
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
student governments
Students' union
A students' union, student government, student senate, students' association, guild of students or government of student body is a student organization present in many colleges and universities, and has started appearing in some high schools...
for its decentralized bicameral structure, and the relatively non-existent influence of the Greek system. ASMSU representatives are nonpartisan
Nonpartisan
In political science, nonpartisan denotes an election, event, organization or person in which there is no formally declared association with a political party affiliation....
and many are elected in noncompetitive races. Their mission is to enhance the individual and collective student experience through education, empowerment, and advocacy by education to the needs and interest of students. Some services they offer include: free blue books, low cost copies and faxes, free yearbooks, interest free loans, funding for student organizations, free legal consultation, health insurance, and iClicker rentals. There are many ways of getting involved such as: Freshman Class Council, Senior Class Council, appointments to General Assembly, and employment.
Students pay $16.75 per semester to fund the functions of the ASMSU, including stipends for the organization's officers and activities throughout the year. Some students have criticized ASMSU for not having enough electoral participation to gain a student mandate. Turnout
Voter turnout
Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s...
since 2001 has hovered between 3 and 17 percent, with the 2006 election bringing out 8% of the undergraduate student body.
Student-run organizations beyond student government also have a large impact on the East Lansing/Michigan State University community. Student Organizations are registered through the Department of Student Life, which currently has a registry of over 550 student organizations. One example is the Tower Guard honor society. Tower Guard is the oldest and one of the most respected student organizations on campus, and works closely with the Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities (RCPD) in assisting students with disabilities.
The Eli Broad College of Business includes 27 student organizations. The three largest organizations are the Finance Association (FA), the Accounting Student Association (ASA), and the Supply Chain Management Association (SCMA). The SCMA is the host of the university's largest major specific career fair. The fair attracts over 100 companies and over 400 students each year.
Activism
ActivistsActivism
Activism consists of intentional efforts to bring about social, political, economic, or environmental change. Activism can take a wide range of forms from writing letters to newspapers or politicians, political campaigning, economic activism such as boycotts or preferentially patronizing...
have played a significant role in MSU history. During the height of the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, student protests helped create co-ed residence halls, and blocked the routing of Interstate 496
Interstate 496
Interstate 496 is an Interstate Highway that passes through downtown Lansing, Michigan and is a "child" of Interstate 96. It is ceremonially designated the R.E. Olds Freeway along the portion that cuts through the city of Lansing...
through campus. In the 1980s, Michigan State students convinced the University to divest
Divestment
In finance and economics, divestment or divestiture is the reduction of some kind of asset for either financial or ethical objectives or sale of an existing business by a firm...
the stocks of companies doing business in apartheid South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
from its endowment portfolio, such as Coca-Cola
The Coca-Cola Company
The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational beverage corporation and manufacturer, retailer and marketer of non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups. The company is best known for its flagship product Coca-Cola, invented in 1886 by pharmacist John Stith Pemberton in Columbus, Georgia...
. MSU has many student groups focused on political change. Graduate campus groups include the Graduate Employees Union and the Council of Graduate Students. Michigan State also has a variety of partisan groups ranging from liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
to conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
, including the College Republicans
College Republicans
The College Republican National Committee is a national organization for college and university students who support the Republican Party of the United States...
, the College Democrats
College Democrats
The College Democrats of America is the official youth outreach arm of the Democratic Party. It consists of over 100,000 college and university students from across the United States. The organization has served as a way for college students to connect with the Democratic Party and Democratic...
and several third party
Third party (politics)
In a two-party system of politics, the term third party is sometimes applied to a party other than the two dominant ones. While technically the term is limited to the third largest party or third oldest party, it is common, though innumerate, shorthand for any smaller party.For instance, in the...
organizations. Other partisan activist groups include Young Americans for Freedom
Young Americans for Freedom
Young Americans for Freedom is a 501 non-profit organization and is now a project of Young America's Foundation. YAF is an ideologically conservative youth activism organization that was founded in 1960, as a coalition between traditional conservatives and libertarians...
and Young Americans for Liberty
Young Americans for Liberty
Young Americans for Liberty is a political organization that was formed in 2008 at the end of Congressman Ron Paul's Presidential campaign. They focus on educating their peers about various topics including libertarian values and emphasizing the role of the Constitution in the American government...
on the right; Young Democratic Socialists
Young Democratic Socialists
Young Democratic Socialists is a democratic socialist youth organization in the United States. It is the youth section of the Democratic Socialists of America, whose political outlook it shares, and the American affiliate of the International Union of Socialist Youth...
, Students for Economic Justice, Young Communist League
Young Communist League
The Young Communist League was or is the name used by the youth wing of various Communist parties around the world. The name YCL of XXX was generally taken by all sections of the Communist Youth International.Examples of YCLs:...
and MEChA on the left. Given MSU's proximity to the Michigan state capital of Lansing
Lansing, Michigan
Lansing is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located mostly in Ingham County, although small portions of the city extend into Eaton County. The 2010 Census places the city's population at 114,297, making it the fifth largest city in Michigan...
, many politically inclined Spartans intern for state representatives.
Sustainability
The MSU Office of Sustainability works with the University Committee for a Sustainable Campus to "foster a collaborative learning culture that leads the community to heightened awareness of its environmental impact." The University is a member of the Chicago Climate Exchange, the world’s first greenhouse gas emission registry, and boasts the lowest electrical consumption per square foot among Big Ten universities. The University has set a goal of reducing energy use by 15%, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 15%, reducing landfill waste by 30% by 2015.The university has also pledged to meet LEED
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design consists of a suite of rating systems for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings, homes and neighborhoods....
-certification standards for all new construction. In July 2009, the University completed construction of a $13.3 million recycling center, and hopes to double their 2008 recycling rate of 14% by 2010.
The construction of Brody Hall, a residence hall of Michigan State University Housing, was completed in August 2011 and qualified for LEED Silver certification because the facility includes a rain water collection tank used for restroom fixtures, a white PVC roof, meters that will monitor utilities to make sure they are used efficiently, and the use of recycled matter and local sources for building materials.
The Environmental Steward’s program support’s President Simon’s "Boldness by Design" strategic vision to transform environmental stewardship on campus within the seven year time frame. Environmental stewards promote environmental changes among co-workers and peers, be points of contact for their department for environment-related concerns, and be liaisons between the Be Spartan Green Team and buildings.
ECO is the leading student-run sustainability organization on campus. They are also affiliated with regional and national groups such as Campus Climate Challenge and the Michigan Student Sustainability Coalition.
The Student Organic Farm is a student-run, four-season farm, which teaches the principals of organic farming and through a certificate program and community supported agriculture (CSA) on ten acres on the MSU campus.
The certificate program consists of year round crop production, course work in organic farming, practical training and management, and an off-site internship requirement.
Media
The State News
The State News is the student newspaper of Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. It is supported by a combination of advertising revenue and a $5 refundable tax that students pay at each semester's matriculation. Though The State News is supported by a student tax, the faculty and...
and free copies of the paper are available online or at East Lansing newsstands. The paper prints 28,500 copies of the paper Monday through Friday during the fall and spring semesters, and 15,000 copies Monday through Friday during the summer. The paper is not published on weekends, holidays, or semester breaks, but is continually updated online at statenews.com. The campus yearbook
Yearbook
A yearbook, also known as an annual, is a book to record, highlight, and commemorate the past year of a school or a book published annually. Virtually all American, Australian and Canadian high schools, most colleges and many elementary and middle schools publish yearbooks...
is called the Red Cedar Log. Red Cedar Review, Michigan State University's premier literary digest for over forty years, is the longest running undergraduate-run literary journal in the United States. It is published annually by the Michigan State University Press
Michigan State University Press
Michigan State University Press, founded in 1947, is the scholarly publishing arm of Michigan State University. During the past six decades it has become a vital part of the institution's land-grant mission and is a catalyst for positive intellectual, social, and technological change through the...
.
MSU also publishes a student-run magazine during the academic year called Ing Magazine. Created in 2007 by MSU alumnus Adam Grant, the publication is released at the beginning of each month and currently publishes 7 issues each school year.
Electronic media include three radio stations and one public television station, as well as student-produced
MSU Telecasters
MSU Telecasters is a Student television station organization consisting of undergraduate students from Michigan State University. The group creates television shows which are written, produced, directed, and edited completely by the students...
television shows. MSU's Public Broadcasting Service
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
affiliate, WKAR-TV
WKAR-TV
WKAR-TV is a PBS-member station serving the Lansing, Michigan area. It is owned by Michigan State University. The station broadcasts on digital channel 40, which redirects to its former analog channel 23 via PSIP). Its studios are located on MSU's campus in East Lansing, its city of license...
, the station is the second-oldest educational television station in the United States, and the oldest east of the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
. Besides broadcasting PBS shows, WKAR-TV produces its own local programming, such as a high school quiz bowl show called "QuizBusters". In addition, MSU has three radio stations; WKAR-AM plays National Public Radio's talk radio programming, whereas WKAR-FM focuses mostly on classical music programming. Michigan State's student-run radio station, WDBM
WDBM
WDBM , East Lansing, Michigan, is a 2,000 watt, Class A, student-run college radio station at Michigan State University that broadcasts to listeners in the Lansing, Michigan, metropolitan area. The station is the successor to the Michigan State Network, which in the 1970s was the nation's largest...
, broadcasts mostly alternative music during weekdays, and electric music programming nights and weekends.
People
The current president of the University is Lou Anna SimonLou Anna Simon
Lou Anna Kimsey Simon is the 20th and current president of Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. Simon is chair of the Big Ten's Council of Presidents/Chancellors.-Education:...
who took over on January 1, 2005, after being appointed by MSU's governing board, the Board of Trustees. The Board receives its mandate from the Michigan Constitution since MSU is a state-owned school. The constitution allows for eight trustee
Trustee
Trustee is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, can refer to any person who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the benefit of another...
s who are elected by statewide referendum every two years. Trustees have eight-year terms, with two of the eight elected every other year. As of 2007, the Board is made up of three Republicans
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
and five Democrats
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
.
19th century
John Clough Holmes
John Clough Holmes was responsible for the establishment of Michigan State University. As the co-founder of the Michigan State Agricultural Society, John Clough Holmes spearheaded the movement to build an agriculture college in Michigan...
, who kept the Agriculture School from being a part of the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
and is widely credited with being the prime mover for the school's founding; Joseph R. Williams
Joseph R. Williams
Joseph Rickelson Williams was an American politician and the first president for the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first Land-Grant Institution to be established in the United States and now one of the largest universities in the United States, Michigan State University.-Early...
, the first president; and Theophilus C. Abbot
Theophilus C. Abbot
Theophilus Capen Abbot was president of State Agricultural College from 1862 to 1885...
, the third president who stabilized the College after the Civil War. Also of importance was botany professor William J. Beal
William J. Beal
William James Beal was an American botanist.-Biography:Beal was born in Adrian, Michigan, to William and Rachel Beal, and he married Hannah Proud in 1863. He attended the University of Michigan, which gave him an A.B. degree in 1859 and an A.M. degree in 1862; he also received an S.B. degree...
, an early plant (hybrid corn) geneticist who championed the laboratory teaching method. Another distinguished faculty member of the era was the alumnus/professor Liberty Hyde Bailey
Liberty Hyde Bailey
Liberty Hyde Bailey was an American horticulturist, botanist and cofounder of the American Society for Horticultural Science.-Biography:...
. Bailey was the first to raise the study of horticulture to a science, paralleling botany, which earned him the title of "Father of American Horticulture". William L. Carpenter
William L. Carpenter (Michigan jurist)
William L. Carpenter was a member of the Michigan Supreme Court from 1902 until 1904. Carpenter was born in Lake Orion, Michigan. He studied at what is now Michigan State University and then went to the University of Michigan Law School....
, a jurist who was elected to the Third Judicial Circuit of Michigan in 1894, and member of the Michigan Supreme Court
Michigan Supreme Court
The Michigan Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is known as Michigan's "court of last resort" and consists of seven justices who are elected to eight-year terms. Candidates are nominated by political parties and are elected on a nonpartisan ballot...
from 1902 until 1904. Other famous 19th century graduates include Ray Stannard Baker
Ray Stannard Baker
Ray Stannard Baker , also known by his pen name David Grayson, was an American journalist and author born in Lansing, Michigan...
, a famed "muckraker
Muckraker
The term muckraker is closely associated with reform-oriented journalists who wrote largely for popular magazines, continued a tradition of investigative journalism reporting, and emerged in the United States after 1900 and continued to be influential until World War I, when through a combination...
" journalist and Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
winning biographer; Minakata Kumagusu
Minakata Kumagusu
was a Japanese author and naturalist.-Biography:Minakata was born in Wakayama, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan. In 1883, he moved to Tokyo, where he entered the preparatory school Kyōryū Gakkō. The headmaster of Kyōritsu, Takahashi Korekiyo, encouraged Minakata in his botanical studies as well as got...
, a renowned environmental scientist; and William Chandler Bagley, a pioneering education reformer.
20th and 21st centuries
There are currently around 442,000 living MSU alumni worldwide giving the school one of the largest number of alumni of any institution of higher learning. Famous MSU alumni include former Michigan governors James BlanchardJames Blanchard
James Johnston "Jim" Blanchard is a politician from the US state of Michigan. A Democrat, Blanchard has served in the United States House of Representatives, as the 45th Governor of Michigan, and as United States Ambassador to Canada....
and John Engler
John Engler
John Mathias Engler is an American politician and a member of the Republican Party. He served as the 46th Governor of Michigan from 1991 to 2003....
, U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow
Debbie Stabenow
Deborah Ann Greer "Debbie" Stabenow is the junior United States Senator from Michigan and a member of the Democratic Party. Before her election to the U.S. Senate, she was a member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Michigan's 8th congressional district from 1997 to 2001...
and Tim Johnson, U.S. ambassador to Brazil Donna Hrinak
Donna Hrinak
Donna Jean Hrinak is the current president of Boeing Brazil, since September 2011. Prior to that, in 2008 she joined PepsiCo where she was vice president of global public policy and government affairs. Prior to that she worked for Kraft Foods, where she was corporate affairs director for Latin...
, former Jordan Prime Minister Adnan Badran
Adnan Badran
Adnan Badran is a Jordanian scientist, academic and politician. He was the prime minister of Jordan from April 7, 2005 to November 27, 2005.-Early life:Badran was born in Jerash, Jordan...
, billionaire philanthropists Tom Gores
Tom Gores
Tom Gores is an American billionaire with an estimated current net worth of $2.4 billion dollars. He appears on the Forbes list of 2011 World's Billionaires. On June 1, 2011 he became the owner of the Detroit Pistons.-Biography:...
and Eli Broad
Eli Broad
Eli Broad is an American businessman from Detroit, Michigan who resides in Los Angeles, California.-Life and career:An only child, Broad was born in the Bronx to Lithuanian Jewish immigrant parents. His father was a housepainter, his mother was a dressmaker. His family moved to Detroit when he...
, Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court Wallace B. Jefferson
Wallace B. Jefferson
Wallace Bernard Jefferson is the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Texas. His current term ends on December 31, 2014.- Historic judicial appointments and election :Jefferson has three times made Texas judicial history...
, trial lawyer Geoffrey Feiger, former Food and Drug Administration
Food and Drug Administration
The Food and Drug Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments...
official Peter Rheinstein
Peter Rheinstein
Peter Howard Rheinstein is an American physician, lawyer, author, and administrator . He was an official of the Food and Drug Administration 1974-1999.-Education:...
, former Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick
Kwame Kilpatrick
Kwame Malik Kilpatrick is a former mayor of Detroit, Michigan. Kilpatrick's mayorship was plagued by numerous scandals and rampant accusations of corruption, with the mayor eventually resigning after being charged with ten felony counts, including perjury and obstruction of justice...
, Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
-winning novelist Richard Ford
Richard Ford
Richard Ford is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist and short story writer. His best-known works are the novel The Sportswriter and its sequels, Independence Day and The Lay of the Land, and the short story collection Rock Springs, which contains several widely anthologized stories.-Early...
, Teamsters
Teamsters
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters is a labor union in the United States and Canada. Formed in 1903 by the merger of several local and regional locals of teamsters, the union now represents a diverse membership of blue-collar and professional workers in both the public and private sectors....
president James P. Hoffa
James P. Hoffa
James Phillip Hoffa is an attorney and labor leader and the General President of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. Hoffa was first elected during December 1998 and took office on March 19, 1999...
, Quicken Loans
Quicken Loans
Quicken Loans Inc., headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, is the largest online mortgage lender and the 5th largest retail mortgage lender overall in the USA. The company consists of the QuickenLoans.com online lending site, the Rock Financial brand in southeast Michigan, One Reverse Mortgage, based...
founder and Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association in 1970 as an expansion team...
owner and billionaire Dan Gilbert, Sergeant at Arms of the U.S. House of Representatives
Sergeant at Arms of the United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives Sergeant at Arms is an officer of the House with law enforcement, protocol, and administrative responsibilities. The Sergeant at Arms is elected at the beginning of each Congress by the membership of the chamber...
Wilson Livingood
Wilson Livingood
Wilson "Bill" Livingood , a 33-year veteran of the United States Secret Service, was elected Sergeant at Arms of the United States House of Representatives on January 4, 1995, for the 104th Congress, and subsequently re-elected through the current Congress.From Philadelphia, he grew up in Texas and...
, former Michigan U.S. Senator and Secretary of Energy
United States Secretary of Energy
The United States Secretary of Energy is the head of the United States Department of Energy, a member of the President's Cabinet, and fifteenth in the presidential line of succession. The position was formed on October 1, 1977 with the creation of the Department of Energy when President Jimmy...
Spencer Abraham
Spencer Abraham
Edmund Spencer Abraham is a former United States Senator from Michigan. He served as the tenth United States Secretary of Energy, serving under President George W. Bush. Abraham is one of the founders of the Federalist Society....
, former Vice President of the Republic of Liberia
Liberia
Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
Harry Moniba
Harry Moniba
Dr. Harry Fumba Moniba was a politician in Liberia hailing from the northeastern county of Lofa. He was the vice-president of Liberia from 1984 to September 1990 under the banner of the National Democratic Party of Liberia and ran for president in 1997...
, and former U.S. Ambassador to Italy
United States Ambassador to Italy
Since 1840, the United States has had diplomatic representation in the Italian Republic and its predecessor nation, the Kingdom of Italy, with a break in relations from 1941 to 1944 while Italy and the U.S. were at war during World War II. The U.S. Mission to Italy is headed by the Embassy of the...
Peter Secchia. Alumni in Hollywood include actors James Caan, Anthony Heald
Anthony Heald
Philip Anthony Mair Heald, known professionally as Anthony Heald , is an American actor known for portraying Hannibal Lecter's jail nemesis, Dr. Frederick Chilton in The Silence of the Lambs and Red Dragon, and for playing assistant principal Scott Guber in David E. Kelley's Boston Public...
, Robert Urich
Robert Urich
Robert Urich was an American actor. He played the starring roles in the television series Vega$ and Spenser: For Hire...
and William Fawcett
William Fawcett (actor)
William "Bill" Fawcett was a character actor in Hollywood B-films and in television. His career extended from 1946 until the early 1970s. He is probably best remembered for his role as the cantankerous, rusty-voiced Pete Wilkey of the Broken Wheel Ranch on the NBC series Fury, co-starring Peter...
; comedian Dick Martin
Dick Martin (comedian)
Thomas Richard "Dick" Martin was an American comedian and director, best known for his role as the cohost of the sketch comedy program Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In from 1968 to 1973.-Early life and career:...
, film director Sam Raimi
Sam Raimi
Samuel Marshall "Sam" Raimi is an American film director, producer, actor and writer. He is best known for directing cult horror films like the Evil Dead series, Darkman and Drag Me to Hell, as well as the blockbuster Spider-Man films and the producer of the successful TV series Hercules: The...
, and Academy Award winning film editor of The Hurt Locker
The Hurt Locker
The Hurt Locker is a 2009 American war film about a three-man United States Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal team during the Iraq War. The film was directed by Kathryn Bigelow and the screenplay was written by Mark Boal, a freelance writer who was embedded as a journalist in 2004 with a US bomb...
and the Spider-Man
Spider-Man (film)
Spider-Man is a 2002 American superhero film, the first in the Spider-Man film series based on the fictional Marvel Comics character Spider-Man. It was directed by Sam Raimi and written by David Koepp...
films, Bob Murawski
Bob Murawski
Bob Murawski is an American film editor as well as a film distributor of cult horror and independent films under the "Box Office Spectaculars" and "Grindhouse Releasing" labels. He was awarded the 2010 Academy Award, BAFTA, and A.C.E. awards for "Best Film Editing" on the feature film, The Hurt...
, as well as screenwriter David Magee
David Magee
David Magee is an American screenwriter who was nominated for a 2004 Academy Award and a Golden Globe for Finding Neverland. Along with Simon Beaufoy he wrote the screenplay for Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day starring Frances McDormand and Amy Adams, which was released in 2008.His screen...
. Puerto Rican comedian Sunshine Logroño
Sunshine Logroño
Emmanuel Logroño , better known as Sunshine Logroño is a Puerto Rican actor, radio announcer, television show host, singer, comedy writer, entrepreneur and comedian...
(who has played the occasional Hollywood movie) was a graduate student at MSU. Journalists include NBC reporter Chris Hansen
Chris Hansen
Christopher Edward "Chris" Hansen is an American television infotainment personality. He is known for his work on Dateline NBC, in particular the former segment known as To Catch a Predator, which revolved around catching potential Internet sex predators using a sting operation.-Career:Hansen...
, AP White House Correspondent Nedra Pickler
Nedra Pickler
Nedra Pickler is an American national political journalist employed by the Associated Press since 2000. She covered the United States presidential elections in 2004 and 2008...
, and NPR Washington Correspondent Don Gonyea
Don Gonyea
Don Gonyea is an American journalist. He currently serves as the White House correspondent for National Public Radio's All Things Considered, Morning Edition, Weekend Edition, and Talk of the Nation programs....
. Novelist Michael Kimball
Michael Kimball
- Biography & Career :Michael Kimball was born February 1, 1967 in Lansing, Michigan and is the author of The Way the Family Got Away , How Much of Us There Was ; Us , and Dear Everybody . He has also published the book Words under the conceptual pseudonym Andy Devine...
graduated in 1990. Author Erik Qualman
Erik Qualman
Erik Qualman is an American author of Socialnomics: How Social Media Transforms the Way We Live and Do Business, and is a speaker within the Internet community. In 2010, Socialnomics was a Book of the Year finalist as voted on by the American Marketing Association...
graduated with honors in 1994 and was also Academic Big-Ten in basketball. Susan K. Avery, the first woman president and director of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is a private, nonprofit research and higher education facility dedicated to the study of all aspects of marine science and engineering and to the education of marine researchers. Established in 1930, it is the largest independent oceanographic research...
, received an MSU bachelor's degree in physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
. In addition, two of the Little Rock Nine
Little Rock Nine
The Little Rock Nine was a group of African-American students who were enrolled in Little Rock Central High School in 1957. The ensuing Little Rock Crisis, in which the students were initially prevented from entering the racially segregated school by Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus, and then...
attended Michigan State, including Ernest Green
Ernest Green
Ernest Gideon Green was one of the Little Rock Nine, a group of African-American students who, in 1957, were the first black students ever to attend classes at Little Rock Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. Green was the first black to graduate from the school in 1958...
, the first black student to graduate from Little Rock Central High School, and Carlotta Walls LaNier
Carlotta Walls Lanier
Carlotta Walls LaNier was the youngest of the Little Rock Nine, a group of African-American students who, in 1957, were the first black students ever to attend classes at Little Rock Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. She was the first black female to graduate from Central High School...
. The University awarded an honorary degree to Robert Mugabe
Robert Mugabe
Robert Gabriel Mugabe is the President of Zimbabwe. As one of the leaders of the liberation movement against white-minority rule, he was elected into power in 1980...
in 1990, but revoked it in 2008.
Spartans formerly or currently in the NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
include Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Greg Kelser
Greg Kelser
Gregory Kelser is a retired American basketball player and current television color commentator. Kelser played in the NBA from 1979–1986 and is best known for his standout career at Michigan State....
, Jay Vincent
Jay Vincent
Jay Fletcher Vincent is a retired American professional basketball player.A 6'7" forward, Vincent played at Michigan State University under coach, Jud Heathcote, where he teamed with Magic Johnson and Greg Kelser to win the 1979 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament...
, Steve Smith
Steve Smith (basketball)
Steven Delano "Steve" Smith is a retired American basketball player. He played with several teams in his 14-season National Basketball Association career, including the Miami Heat, the Portland Trail Blazers and the San Antonio Spurs, but is perhaps best known for his five-year stint with the...
, Scott Skiles
Scott Skiles
Scott Allen Skiles is the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks and former American professional basketball player. He also is the former head coach of the NBA's Chicago Bulls and Phoenix Suns. Skiles holds the NBA record for assists in one game, with 30...
, Jason Richardson
Jason Richardson
Jason Anthoney "J-Rich" Richardson is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association.A 6'6", 225 lb...
, Mateen Cleaves
Mateen Cleaves
Mateen Ahmad Cleaves is an American former professional basketball player who played in six NBA seasons. He is currently a music talent manager....
, Alan Anderson, Zach Randolph
Zach Randolph
Zachary Randolph , nicknamed Z-Bo, is an American professional basketball player currently with the Memphis Grizzlies of the NBA...
, Morris Peterson
Morris Peterson
Morris Peterson, Jr. is an American professional basketball player who is currently a free agent.- College career :...
, Charlie Bell
Charlie Bell (basketball)
Charlie Will Bell III is an American professional basketball guard for the Golden State Warriors of the NBA.-Career:He began playing basketball at Flint Southwestern Academy High School, and had an excellent college career at Michigan State University, appearing in three NCAA Final Fours, and...
and Shannon Brown
Shannon Brown
Shannon Brown is an American professional basketball player who plays at the shooting guard and point guard positions. He last played in the National Basketball Association for the Los Angeles Lakers. Brown attended Proviso East High School in Maywood, Illinois, was named Illinois Mr...
. On the American Football League
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
's All-Time Team
American Football League All-Time Team
The American Football League All- Time Team was selected on January 14, 1970. The first and second teams would be determined by a panel of members of the AFL's Hall of Fame Board of Selectors: Since the First team included two halfbacks, rather than a halfback and a fullback, Cookie Gilchrist, a...
are tight-end Fred Arbanas
Fred Arbanas
Frederick Vincent Arbanas is an American former college and professional football player. Drafted out of Michigan State by the American Football League's Dallas Texans in 1961, he missed the 1961 season with injuries...
and safety George Saimes
George Saimes
George Thomas Saimes is a former American football defensive back and fullback for Michigan State University and the Buffalo Bills of the American Football League, which produced American Football League Championships in 1964 and 1965...
. In the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
, MSU alumni include Carl Banks, who was a member of the Giants teams that won Super Bowls XXI
Super Bowl XXI
Super Bowl XXI was an American football game played on January 25, 1987 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California to decide the National Football League champion following the 1986 regular season. The National Football Conference champion New York Giants won their first Super Bowl by defeating...
and XXV
Super Bowl XXV
Super Bowl XXV was an American football game played on January 27, 1991 at Tampa Stadium in Tampa, Florida to decide the National Football League champion following the 1990 regular season. The National Football Conference Champion New York Giants defeated the American Football Conference ...
. Banks was a standout in their Super Bowl XXI victory in which he recorded 14 total tackles, including ten solo tackles, as well as being part of the NFL's 1980's All-Decade Team
Morten Andersen
Morten Andersen
Morten Andersen , nicknamed "The Great Dane", is a former National Football League kicker. He holds the distinction of being the all-time leading scorer in NFL history, as well as being the all-time leading scorer for two different teams; the New Orleans Saints, with whom he spent 13 seasons, and...
, Plaxico Burress
Plaxico Burress
Plaxico Antonio Burress is an American football wide receiver who currently plays for the New York Jets of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers eighth overall in the 2000 NFL Draft...
, Andre Rison
Andre Rison
Andre Previn Rison is a retired American football wide receiver who played professionally for the National Football League's Indianapolis Colts, Atlanta Falcons, Cleveland Browns, Green Bay Packers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Kansas City Chiefs, Oakland Raiders, and the Canadian Football League's...
, Derrick Mason
Derrick Mason
Derrick James Mason is an American football wide receiver for the Houston Texans of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Tennessee Oilers in the fourth round of the 1997 NFL Draft. He played college football at Michigan State.Mason has also played for the Baltimore Ravens where he...
, Muhsin Muhammad
Muhsin Muhammad
Muhsin Muhammad II is a retired American football wide receiver who played for the Carolina Panthers and Chicago Bears of the National Football League. He was originally drafted by the Panthers in the second round of the 1996 NFL Draft...
, T. J. Duckett, Flozell Adams
Flozell Adams
Flozell "The Hotel" Adams is an American football offensive tackle who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the second round of the 1998 NFL Draft. He played college football at Michigan State....
, Julian Peterson
Julian Peterson
Julian Thomas Peterson is a free agent linebacker in the National Football League. He was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the first round of the 2000 NFL Draft. He played college football at Michigan State...
, Charles Rogers, Jim Miller
Jim Miller (quarterback)
James Donald Miller is a former NFL quarterback, last under contract with the New York Giants. He was drafted in the 6th round of the 1994 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers, 178th overall. Miller attended Waterford Kettering High School and graduated in 1989...
, Earl Morrall
Earl Morrall
Earl Edwin Morrall is a former American football quarterback in the National Football League. Morrall, who also occasionally punted, played 21 seasons in the National Football League as both a starter and reserve. In the latter capacity, he became known as the greatest backup quarterback in NFL...
, Wayne Fontes
Wayne Fontes
Wayne Fontes is a former American football coach and college and professional football player who was the head coach of the NFL's Detroit Lions from 1988 to 1996. His 67 wins and 71 losses are each the most for a head coach in team history.-Background and early career:Fontes was born in the...
, Bubba Smith
Bubba Smith
Charles Aaron "Bubba" Smith was an American professional football player who became an actor after his retirement from the sport. He first came into prominence at Michigan State University, where he twice earned All-American honors as a defensive end on the Spartans football team...
and Drew Stanton
Drew Stanton
Drew Emeric Stanton is a quarterback for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League. He played collegiately for the Michigan State Spartans.-Early life:...
. Former MSU quarterback Jeff Smoker
Jeff Smoker
Jeff Smoker is an American football quarterback who played for the National Football League's St. Louis Rams from 2004 to 2005. He was also the starting quarterback for the Arizona Rattlers of the Arena Football League.-Michigan State:Jeff Smoker attended Michigan State University...
now plays in the Arena Football League. Former Michigan State players in the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
include All Star Defensemen Duncan Keith
Duncan Keith
Duncan Keith is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who is an alternate captain for the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League...
, Rod Brind'Amour
Rod Brind'Amour
Roderic Jean Brind'Amour is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who played 20 seasons in the National Hockey League for the St. Louis Blues, Philadelphia Flyers and Carolina Hurricanes. He captained the Hurricanes to the franchise's first Stanley Cup championship in...
, Anson Carter
Anson Carter
Anson Carter is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey right winger of Barbadian descent who last played for HC Lugano in the Swiss Nationalliga A. In the past, he has played for eight different National Hockey League teams, most notably with the Boston Bruins, Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver...
, Donald McSween
Donald McSween
"They're definitely a more talented team than we are, but the talented team doesn't always win" --Don McSween...
, Adam Hall
Adam Hall
-Playing career:Hall was a member of the United States National Development Team Program, and twice represented the United States at the World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, in 1999 and 2000. He was selected 52nd overall by the Nashville Predators in the second round of the 1999 NHL Entry Draft...
, John-Michael Liles
John-Michael Liles
John-Michael Liles is an American professional ice hockey defenseman currently playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the NHL...
, Justin Abdelkader
Justin Abdelkader
Justin Abdelkader is an American ice hockey forward currently playing for the Detroit Red Wings.-College career:On April 7, 2007 Abdelkader scored the game-winning goal in the 2007 NCAA Championship Game against Boston College, securing the NCAA Division 1 National Championship for Michigan State...
, brothers Kelly Miller and Kip Miller
Kip Miller
Kip Charles Miller is a retired American ice hockey forward. He last played for the American Hockey League Grand Rapids Griffins in 2006–07. He was drafted by the Quebec Nordiques as their 4th-round pick in the 1987 NHL Entry Draft, 72nd overall.Miller played college hockey for the Michigan State...
, as well as their cousins, brothers Ryan Miller
Ryan Miller
Ryan Miller is a professional ice hockey goaltender for the Buffalo Sabres.Other people named Ryan Miller:*Ryan Miller , video game designer and author*Ryan Miller , lead singer and guitar player for the band Guster...
and Drew Miller
Drew Miller
Andrew Miller is an American professional ice hockey winger currently playing for the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League ....
. Former Michigan State players in Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
include Hall of Fame
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of...
inductee Robin Roberts
Robin Roberts (baseball player)
Robin Evan Roberts was a Major League Baseball starting pitcher who pitched primarily for the Philadelphia Phillies . He spent the latter part of his career with the Baltimore Orioles , Houston Astros , and Chicago Cubs...
, Kirk Gibson
Kirk Gibson
Kirk Harold Gibson is a former Major League Baseball player and currently the manager of the Arizona Diamondbacks. As a player, Gibson was an outfielder who batted and threw left-handed...
, Steve Garvey
Steve Garvey
Steven Patrick Garvey , nicknamed "Mr. Clean" because of the squeaky clean image he held throughout his career in baseball, is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and current Southern California businessman...
and Mark Mulder
Mark Mulder
Mark Alan Mulder is a retired left-handed starting pitcher in Major League Baseball.-Oakland Athletics:...
. Olympic gold medal
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
ists include Savatheda Fynes and Fred Alderman. The Spartans are also contributing athletes to Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
, as Kevin Reiman, Doug Demartin
Doug DeMartin
Doug DeMartin is an American soccer player who last played for Portland Timbers in the USSF Division-2 Professional League.-College and Amateur:...
, Dave Hertel
Dave Hertel
Dave Hertel is an American soccer player who currently plays for Richmond Kickers in the USL Professional Division.-Youth and College:...
, Greg Janicki
Greg Janicki
Greg Janicki is an American soccer player currently playing for Vancouver Whitecaps FC in Major League Soccer.-Youth and College:...
, Kenzo Webster, Rauwshan McKenzie
Rauwshan McKenzie
Rauwshan McKenzie is an American soccer player who currently plays for Real Salt Lake in Major League Soccer.-College and Amateur:...
, John Minagawa-Webster and Ryan McMahen
Ryan McMahen
Ryan McMahen is an American soccer player, currently without a club.-College and Amateur:McMahen played college soccer at Michigan State University from 2001 to 2005. He finished his career with 26 goals and 28 assists, coming out of the midfield; the latter was good enough for second all-time in...
have all played in Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
. In addition, Alex Skotarek
Alex Skotarek
Alexander “Alex” Skotarek is a retired German American soccer defender. He played in both Europe and the North American Soccer League during the 1970s and early 1980s. He also earned ten caps with the U.S. national team in 1975 and 1976.-College:Skotarek attended Michigan State University where...
, Steve Twellman
Steve Twellman
Steve Twellman was a U.S. soccer player who spent three seasons in the North American Soccer League.Twellman attended Michigan State University where he played on the Spartans soccer team during its first years playing in the NCAA Division I...
and Buzz Demling
Buzz Demling
Arthur "Art" or "Buzz" Demling is a former U.S. soccer defender who played in the North American Soccer League and the Major Indoor Soccer League. He was a member of the U.S. soccer team at the 1972 Summer Olympics. He also earned four caps with the U.S. national team between 1973 and...
played in the North American Soccer League
North American Soccer League
North American Soccer League was a professional soccer league with teams in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984.-History:...
, with Demling playing in the 1972 Summer Olympics
1972 Summer Olympics
The 1972 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from August 26 to September 11, 1972....
and the United States Men's National Soccer Team
United States men's national soccer team
The United States men's national soccer team represents the United States in international association football competitions. It is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF...
in the 1970s.
See also
- List of land-grant universities
- Morrill Land-Grant Colleges ActMorrill Land-Grant Colleges ActThe Morrill Land-Grant Acts are United States statutes that allowed for the creation of land-grant colleges, including the Morrill Act of 1862 and the Morrill Act of 1890 -Passage of original bill:...
- Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act
- List of colleges and universities in Michigan
- State of Michigan Education