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.

Learn more

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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Leadership Safari 2024 fosters community and belonging

by Symantha Dattilo

CMU’s 2024 Leadership Safari welcomed over 1,100 incoming students to campus, offering them a transformative experience designed to help them transition into college life. The annual program, which continues to be a hallmark of the CMU first-year experience, is a multi-day leadership camp that introduces leadership principles, team-building activities, and community engagement. This year’s Safari not only created excitement but also provided a foundation of belonging and connection to new students.

Safari guides are lined up in their vests in front of the Central Michigan University sign smiling and posed Leadership Safari also provides opportunities to the campus community, with 179 student volunteers dedicating their time to serve as staff members. These volunteers, known as C Team members and Safari Guides, played an essential role in helping new students navigate their first few days on campus and fostering an environment of inclusion and support.

Reflecting on the program’s impact, one participant shared their experience stating, “Safari was a positive look into the upcoming years of college from a rural background of my own and many others. It was inspiring and created a sense of purpose for its willing participants.” This sentiment echoes the feedback of many other attendees who found Leadership Safari to be a pivotal moment in the state of their journey at CMU.

Leadership Safari participants are sitting on the ground in their groups doing an activity outside of the Kulhavi Events Center According to post-event surveys, 88% of participants felt they belonged at Central Michigan University as a result of attending Leadership Safari. This sense of belonging is one of the key goals of the program.

Mai-Ling Francis, Assistant Director of the Leadership Institute, expressed her pride in the continued success of Leadership Safari. “Safari is proud to continue welcoming students home to campus, right alongside the IMPACT program,” she said. “Our goal is to create an inclusive, supportive environment where every student feels like they are a part of the CMU community from day one.”

Students looking to get more involved in Leadership Safari have the opportunity to apply to serve as a member of C Team or as a Safari Guide for next year’s program. Applications are currently open, with a deadline of Friday, November 15. Interested students can visit Engage Central to apply online. For any questions, students are encouraged to contact SAFARI@cmich.edu.