
Start up
Passion. Potential. Pitches. Don't miss any of the 2025 New Venture Challenge excitement.
Tune in Friday, April 11 at 1 p.m. for great ideas and fierce competition. Then, join the judges, mentors, spectators and teams as they see who is going home with thousands of dollars in venture financing. The awards broadcast begins at 6:30 p.m. and one team will walk away as the overall best venture.
Central Michigan University’s College of Business Administration is the home of the Isabella Bank Institute for Entrepreneurship and the first Department of Entrepreneurship in the state of Michigan. We are a student-centric hub where experiential, curricular, and external entrepreneurial opportunities intersect.
Our mission is to maximize student success by fostering a campus-wide entrepreneurial mindset that promotes inter-disciplinary collaboration and the creation of new ventures.
We aim to create innovative programming, boost cross-campus and ecosystem collaboration and provide a comprehensive mentoring program.
Our institute provides extracurricular opportunities and is open to all undergraduate and graduate CMU students.
Are you interested in becoming an entrepreneur?
Every journey is unique. Explore the opportunities that interest you.
The Central Michigan University Board of Trustees will meet in formal session on the Mount Pleasant campus on Tuesday. Preceding Tuesday’s meeting, Richard Rothaus, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, will guide Trustees through a tour of the college’s facilities. The visit will include a glimpse at the future CLASS Career Pathways Center, the Center for Learning through Games and Simulations and the Institute for Transformative Dialogue.
During Tuesday’s formal session, Trustees will begin discussions to plan for a presidential search, including the hiring of a national search firm to assist with the process.
Also included on Tuesday’s agenda are a request for the authorization of renovations to Merrill Dining Hall and a request to approve the proposed tuition rate for the College of Medicine for the 2025-26 academic year. CMU President Bob Davies also will present a report on the accomplishments of students, faculty and staff since the last meeting of the Board.
Trustees also will consider approval of tenure, sabbaticals and emeritus rank, along with new endowments and naming opportunities.
Highlights for Monday’s committee meetings include:
Agendas for the February meetings, including both Monday’s committee meetings and the formal session Tuesday, are available on the Board of Trustees Agendas and Minutes webpage.
Board of Trustees meetings are open to the university community and members of the public. All meetings will be held in the President’s Conference Room in the Bovee University Center, with seating for up to 25 individuals in the adjoining Lake Superior Room; all meetings are also available via live stream:
Per the Board of Trustees bylaws, individuals wishing to address the Board of Trustees during the public comment period must submit a request in advance of the meetings in one of two ways:
Explore special opportunities to learn new skills and travel the world.
Present your venture and win BIG at the New Venture Challenge.
Boost your entrepreneurial skills through our workshops, mentor meetups and pitch competitions.
Learn about the entrepreneurship makerspace on campus in Grawn Hall.
Present a 2-minute pitch at the Make-A-Pitch Competition and you could win prizes and bragging rights!
Connect with mentors and faculty who are here to support the next generation of CMU entrepreneurs.
Are you a CMU alum looking to support CMU student entrepreneurs? Learn how you can support or donate to the Entrepreneurship Institute.