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Isabella Bank Institute for Entrepreneurship

We are a dedicated institute for student entrepreneurs across campus and beyond. We aim to maximize your success by fostering your entrepreneurial mindset, promote inter-disciplinary collaboration and provide support for the creation and development of your new ventures. Jumpstart your ideas and get involved today!

Tune in for excitement!

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. 

Start your entrepreneurial journey

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.

Student opportunities

  • Meet experienced alumni, faculty, entrepreneurs, investors, and other business and political leaders.
  • Learn practical skills, innovative thinking, and connect with mentors and entrepreneurial resources.
  • Attend skill-building workshops and compete in pitch competitions and Hackathons.
  • Take part in special scholarship programs and travel experiences.
  • Pitch your venture at our signature New Venture Challenge event and compete for up to $20,000 in cash awards.

      Find your path

      Are you interested in becoming an entrepreneur?

      Every journey is unique. Explore the opportunities that interest you.

      David M. and Eunice Sutherland Burgess Endowed Speaker: Arthur Yorinks – “My Life in the Arts”

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      Professional headshot of Arthur YorinksThe Clarke Historical Library presents Arthur Yorinks on Tuesday, April 11th as the David M. and Eunice Sutherland Burgess Endowed Speaker.  Join us for this online event that begins at 7:00 p.m. Registration is required; register for this event at clarke.cmich.edu/SpeakerSeries. 

      Arthur Yorinks’ life in the arts began when he was six - with music and stories - and he’s still listening to (and sometimes playing) music and living in the world of story. He is the author of over forty acclaimed and award-winning books, including Hey, Al, which earned the Caldecott Medal in 1987. His writing has been hailed as “one of the most distinctive prose styles in children’s literature.” In his talk, he’ll share highlights of his wide-ranging career and his collaborations with a broad spectrum of celebrated artists, including Maurice Sendak, with whom he formed Night Kitchen Theater to present plays, operas, and musical comedies to children. He currently serves as a writer and executive producer through Night Kitchen Studios to develop projects based on the work of Maurice Sendak for Apple TV. In addition to his literary work, Yorinks has written and directed for opera, theater, dance, film, and radio.

      The David M. and Eunice Sutherland Burgess lecture supports authors, storytellers, and scholars to talk about the enduring importance of storytelling.

      This online event is free and open to the public. Individuals needing accommodations should contact the Clarke at clarke@cmich.edu or by phone at 989-774-3864.

       


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