Back to Main Menu

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.

      New Psychology Research Explores How Ego Interacts with Health

      by Henry Heller

      Charles Fales, a doctoral student studying Industrial-Organizational Psychology, researched how ego interacts with personality, mental health and physical health. In terms of Fales’s research, ego is the mental energy used when undertaking stressful tasks and is refilled through rest and relaxation.  

      Fales’s initial thoughts were “those high in certain personality traits such as agreeableness or conscientiousness may use their mental fuel more quickly than others, and thus may have worse physical or mental health.” Fales notes he also wanted to observe if personality would influence health outcomes in a positive or negative way.  

      The goal of Fales’ research was to help organizations direct vulnerable employees to resources if they are in jeopardy of losing their ego and by extension impacting their health. Several of Fales’ hypotheses, that some personality characteristics, such as agreeableness, lead to a loss of ego and worsening health, were supported.  

      A few findings also indicated Narcissism and Machiavellianism (the manipulation of others for your own goals/wants) can also deplete ego and health. Fales says, “[It’s] interesting to think that both those who are kind or bad/selfish experience similar issues.”  

      This story is brought to you by the  Office of Research and Graduate Studies.

      Events

      VIEW ALL EVENTS
      VIEW ALL EVENTS

       

      View our programming newsletter

      Entrepreneurship News

      Questions?

      Contact the team