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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.
Engineering a sweet solution
by
Sanjna Jassi
CMU’s society of women engineers creates a motorized candy sorter at the third annual hackathon.
Cardboard, a color sensor, some duct tape and 24 hours: For members of the Society of Women Engineers at Central Michigan University, it was a recipe for technological innovation.
In just one day, the group of engineering students created a functional candy sorting machine at the College of Science and Engineering's third annual hackathon. The challenge brought together student organizations and individuals for innovative and collaborative competition.
In the SWE team's machine, M&M candies placed into a tube at the top of the machine are read by a color sensor. The machine deposits each candy to a corresponding color dish using code team members wrote.
"We started the project using a tutorial we found that explained a similar idea, but we quickly began to branch out from it and make it our own design," said Hannah White, junior mechanical engineering student and president of SWE. "We didn't really have anything to go off, which in the end was pretty cool."
The team spent about 14 hours creating the candy sorter and said they'd recommend the hackathon experience for all students.
When worlds collaborate
The organization chose the project because of its mix of mechanical and electrical engineering concepts. Andrea D'Amour, mechanical engineering student and vice president of SWE, said it was exciting to see the mechanical and electrical engineering disciplines working together.
"I was excited to talk with the electrical engineers about what they were doing and see how they code a sorter," she said.
For some participants, the hackathon was a chance to apply engineering concepts to a real project earlier than they would in class. And the teamwork and problem-solving required to tackle challenges as a cohesive unit offered a glimpse into future jobs.
Hackathon is a great opportunity for hands-on experience," said electrical engineering student Shannon Thompson. "It's also a way for us to build community as an organization and learn together."
Written by Anna Kendall, University Communications intern.
Signature Programs
Isabella Bank Institute for Entrepreneurship
Explore special opportunities to learn new skills and travel the world.
Compete & Win
New Venture Challenge 2025
Present your venture and win BIG at the New Venture Challenge.
Build your skills
Workshops and events
Boost your entrepreneurial skills through our workshops, mentor meetups and pitch competitions.
Develop your ideas
IDEA Den
Learn about the entrepreneurship makerspace on campus in Grawn Hall.
Ready, Set, Pitch!
Make-A-Pitch 2024
Present a 2-minute pitch at the Make-A-Pitch Competition and you could win prizes and bragging rights!
Meet Mentors
Mentorship and support
Connect with mentors and faculty who are here to support the next generation of CMU entrepreneurs.
Support students
Make an impact
Are you a CMU alum looking to support CMU student entrepreneurs? Learn how you can support or donate to the Entrepreneurship Institute.
View our programming newsletter
Alumni give back to students through mentorship, real-world experiences
The Wakeling Gendron Entrepreneurial Scholars program wrapped its first cohort this academic year.
Students compete to win cash prizes at the New Venture Challenge
Pitched 40 ventures at NMV Challenge, Friday, April 19, CMU. Judges awarded $100,000 in cash prizes.
Wakeling Gendron Scholars make a life-changing trip to Texas
Wakeling and Gendron Scholars attended SXSW in Texas, meeting industry leaders and gaining entrepreneurial insights.
Business barriers lead CMU students to a new venture
Justin Ashman and Philip Mundt won Central Michigan University's New Venture Competition with their 3-D printing operation, Form Further.
