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.

2025 NVC Competition Live Stream

2025 NVC Awards Live Stream

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.

A student standing with a faculty member holding big winning checks from the New Venture Challenge 2024.

Start up

Build up your venture idea.

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A student smiling and standing in front of his venture display at the 2024 New Venture Challenge.

Family business

Explore the Alternative Entrepreneurial Pathways category at NVC.

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A close-up of the Prusa i3 MK3 printer in the entrepreneurship makerspace, the IDEA Den in Grawn Hall 166.

Product and prototype design

Create and patent your ideas.

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Innovation

Explore your ideas and build your skills.

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DTE donates high-tech picnic table to CMU

by Sanjay Gupta

CMU received a solar-powered picnic table/workstation from DTE Energy to reward students’ research to improve its solar park’s efficiency.

A symbol of the impact of Central Michigan University's School of Engineering and Technology rose amid the snow Monday as DTE Energy erected a solar-powered picnic table/high-tech workstation outside the Engineering and Technology Building.

The donation is in gratitude for the work of 12 engineering and technology students during the past two years of senior projects. The work is designed to give students experiences solving real-world engineering problems, said Kumar Yelamarthi, director of the school.

The students' task was to measure the effectiveness of 200,000 solar panels in DTE's solar park in Lapeer, Michigan, and design software to improve their efficiency.

"It's great to be able to work with high-caliber students to develop this software and then experience the real-world benefits of it in our daily operations. We're thankful for the hard work of everyone involved," said Ed Henderson, DTE's manager of renewable energy operations.

A table for research and education

The solar-powered table is a symbol of DTE's relationship and commitment to Central, which has served as a pipeline for new talent for the company, he said.

"This is the first solar workstation we've donated, and our hope is that the College of Science and Engineering students can use it to develop other software and further their research and education," said Anthony Morabito, supervisor of solar energy operations.

The workstation, built by EnerFusion Inc., produces solar energy that can charge users' devices, he said.

Engineering and Technology seniors this year will use data collected from the table to improve solar efficiencies, and other engineering students will use it for their own research, Yelamarthi said.

The school is working to have even more industry-sponsored projects for students — from DTE and others, including automobiles and manufacturing, he said.

"We help organizations with real-world problems, provide our students with real-world transformative experiences, and prepare the future workforce in the process," he said.

"CMU has a vision for community engagement, and the generosity of our DTE partner is an excellent example of working together to be innovative and sustainable while providing our engineering students real-life experiences," said Provost Mary C. Schutten.

"We are grateful for such community partners and for this very cool table."