Central Michigan University (CMU, CMICH) is a public research university located in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1892 as a private normal school and became a state university in 1895. CMU is one of eight research universities in Michigan and is classified as an "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" institution. The university has more than 14,000 students on its Mount Pleasant campus. CMU provides 200 academic programs for students pursuing undergraduate, master's, specialist, or doctoral degrees. The Central Michigan Chippewas are part of the NCAA Division I Mid-American Conference, where they compete in six men's and ten women's sports.

History

CMU opened in 1892 as the Central Michigan Normal School and Business Institute. Prof. Charles F. R. Bellows, who graduated from the University of Michigan, became the school’s first principal in June 1892.

In the first year, 31 students attended classes in the Carpenter Building in downtown Mount Pleasant. Bellows studied the future campus location and helped build the original Main Building, which opened in September 1893. Within two years, the school bought land and constructed a $10,000 school building.

During Bellows’ time at the school, he used his own money to create a separate Conservatory for Music, which was added to the Normal School in 1900. He continued teaching and gave speeches to teachers across the state. Bellows also worked to advertise the school to attract more students.

In 1895, the Michigan State Board of Education took control of the school and renamed it Central Michigan Normal School. Bellows left the school the next year. He returned to Ypsilanti, Michigan, in 1902 to join the faculty of the Michigan State Normal College (now Eastern Michigan University).

By 1918, the campus covered 25 acres with five buildings. On June 1, 1959, the campus had grown to 235 acres with 40 buildings, and 4,500 students were enrolled. At this time, the school was renamed Central Michigan University. This change showed the school’s growth in both the number of courses offered and its physical size after World War II. Enrollment increased three times over the next 10 years.

To help meet the need for doctors in rural areas, CMU opened a medical school in 2010.

• Charles F. R. Bellows (1892–1896)
• Charles McKenny (1896–1899)
• Charles Grawn (1900–1918)
• E. C. Warriner (1918–1939)
• Charles L. Anspach (1939–1959)
• Judson Foust (1959–1968)
• William Beaty Boyd (1968–1975)
• Harold Abel (1975–1985)
• Arthur Emmett Ellis (1985–1988)
• Edward B. Jakubauskas (1988–1992)
• Leonard E. Plachta (1992–2000)
• Michael Rao (2000–2009)
• Kathy Wilbur (2009–2010)
• George Ross (2010–2018)
• Robert Davies (2018–2024)
• Neil J. MacKinnon (2024–present)

Organization and administration

Central Michigan University is led by a group of trustees. These eight members are chosen by the Governor of Michigan, with the approval of the Michigan Senate, and they serve for eight years. The board chooses and evaluates the President of Central Michigan University, who is currently Neil J. MacKinnon. Paula Lancaster became Provost and Executive Vice President of Central Michigan University on February 1, 2025. She had been acting in that role since September 10, 2024.

Academics

Central Michigan University (CMU) is considered "selective" by U.S. News & World Report. For the Class of 2025 (enrolled in fall 2021), CMU received 18,517 applications and accepted 14,273 students, which is a 77.1% acceptance rate. Of those accepted, 1,909 students enrolled, resulting in a yield rate of 13.4% (the percentage of accepted students who chose to attend). CMU's freshman retention rate is 77%, meaning 77% of first-year students stayed for their second year. Of those students, 61.7% graduated within six years.

Of the 57% of incoming freshmen who submitted SAT scores, the middle 50% of test-takers had composite scores between 1010 and 1223. Of the 10% of enrolled freshmen who submitted ACT scores, the middle 50% had composite scores between 19.25 and 26.

Central Michigan University has experienced a significant decrease in enrollment in recent years. Between 2012 and 2022, total enrollment dropped by 46%.

CMU has eight academic divisions:
• College of Business Administration
• College of the Arts and Media
• College of Education and Human Services
• Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow College of Health Professions
• College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
• Covenant HealthCare College of Medicine
• College of Science and Engineering
• College of Graduate Studies

Academic work and research at CMU are supported by the Central Michigan University Libraries. The university also owns and operates the Brooks Astronomical Observatory.

CMU's neuroscience program was awarded the title of undergraduate program of the year in 2013 by the Society for Neuroscience.

The most popular undergraduate majors, based on 2021 graduates, were:

The Central Michigan University College of Graduate Studies offers over 70 graduate degree programs at the Master's, Specialist, or Doctoral levels.

As of 2024, the university supported 69 public charter schools serving 29,000 students across Michigan through its Governor John Engler Center for Charter Schools.

According to the National Science Foundation, CMU spent $15.6 million on research and development in 2018.

Student life

Central Michigan University has 21 on-campus residence halls, located in four areas across the campus. In 2006, the 21st and 22nd residence halls opened in the East complex. In 2019, the university closed and tore down Barnes Hall, which was the oldest residence hall and the only one not connected to others. In 2022, the university closed the North Residence Halls.

• North Residence Halls (unoccupied): Larzelere, Trout, Calkins, Robinson
• South Residence Halls: Beddow, Merrill, Thorpe, Sweeney
• East Residence Halls: Saxe, Herrig, Woldt, Emmons; Celani and Fabiano
• The Towers: Carey, Cobb, Troutman, Wheeler ("The Original Towers"), Campbell, Kesseler, and Kulhavi ("The New Towers")

On March 3, 2022, the university announced that Larzelere, Trout, Calkins, and Robinson would close during the 2022 Fall semester due to lower student numbers. These halls have not reopened since.

Most CMU residence hall rooms are two-bedroom suites for four people. Three of the Original Towers (Cobb, Troutman, and Wheeler), which are nine-story buildings, have one-bedroom suites for three or four people. The fourth Original Tower, Carey, was changed to double-occupancy rooms in 2020 to manage lower student numbers. The New Towers, along with Fabiano and Celani, are four-bedroom suites for upperclassmen. Residents of Robinson, Carey, Celani, Fabiano, Campbell, Kesseler, and Kulhavi pay extra for their rooms.

Each of the three remaining areas—East, South, and Towers—is connected to a Residential Restaurant. The Towers have the Eatery, South has the Merrill Virtual Dining Hall, and East has Dine&Connect. Both East and Towers have convenience stores that stay open until midnight.

Some residence halls are part of Living Learning Communities, linked to specific academic programs. These communities help students live and study with others in similar fields.

• Beddow Hall – Business
• Herrig Hall – Music
• Emmons Hall – Health Professions
• Woldt Hall – Science and Engineering
• Sweeney Hall – Education and Human Services
• Thorpe Hall – Honors Program
• Calkins Hall – Leader Advancement Scholars & Public Service Residential Community
• Troutman Hall – Multicultural Advancement/Cofer Scholars
• Cobb Hall – Public Service
• Kulhavi Hall – Transfer Students

CMU only has co-ed (mixed-gender) residence halls. Sweeney Hall was the last to change from all-female to mixed-gender in the fall of 2010.

Construction began on two new buildings, Celani and Fabiano, near the East Quad in spring 2005. These buildings are similar to the New Towers, which opened in 2003. On December 1, 2005, Celani Hall was named to honor Thomas Celani and his wife, Vicki. On April 20, 2006, Fabiano Hall was named to honor the Fabiano family. Both halls opened in fall 2006, along with a new Residential Restaurant for the six East Area halls.

CMU recognizes academic, social, and professional Greek organizations that follow university rules, such as anti-hazing policies. Currently, there are 9 fraternities and 11 sororities. Other groups focus on honors, degrees, and multicultural backgrounds. Some fraternities have faced issues, including one that allegedly used KKK symbols during recruitment.

On March 2, 2018, a 19-year-old student named James Eric Davis Jr. shot and killed his parents when they came to campus to take him home for spring break. After the shooting, Davis ran away, and the campus was locked down. About 15 hours later, he was arrested and taken to a hospital. The event disrupted student travel and campus activities for several days. Davis was charged with two murders and unlawful possession of a firearm. He was later found not guilty by reason of insanity and sent to a psychiatric institution.

The campus newspaper, Central Michigan Life, is published every Thursday during the academic year. The website, www.cm-life.com, gets 1 million page views yearly and is updated daily. CM Life has won awards for being one of the top non-daily newspapers in the U.S. and the best college newspaper in Michigan. It has also won the National Pacemaker Awards multiple times and was a finalist for an online Pacemaker in 2010. CM Life has won the Best College Media Company award seven years in a row from 2014 to 2020.

Other student-run media include two college radio stations (FM 91.5 WMHW-FM and FM 101.1), a student-produced newscast (News Central 34), and a student-run television station (MHTV). In 2005, a student-operated music label called Moore Media Records (MMR) was created.

The university also owns WCMU-TV, a PBS station, and WCMU-FM, an NPR affiliate. These stations serve Northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula through repeater stations.

In 2003, White Pine Music, the recording label of the CMU School of Music, was established.

In February 2008, Grand Central Magazine, an online publication run by CMU’s Department of Journalism, was launched. It is updated weekly and covers topics like sports, entertainment, technology, and travel.

In September 2022, Verge Magazine, a fashion and lifestyle magazine run entirely by CMU students, was launched. It is available online and in print. As of December 2023, Verge has released seven issues and sold over 500 physical copies.

Athletics

The school's athletics programs are connected to NCAA Division I. CMU was part of the Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference from 1950 to 1970. Most Central Michigan teams compete in the Mid-American Conference. The one exception until recently was the women's lacrosse team, which became a full varsity team in the 2015–2016 school year. The team played in the Southern Conference for a time but joined the MAC for the 2021 season.

The football program has produced players such as Antonio Brown and Joe Staley. Before moving to Division I, the football team won its second NCAA Division II national championship in 1974 by beating the Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens 54-14. Important Division I years include 1994, 2006, 2007, and 2009, when the team won the MAC Football Championship Game. In 2009, the team finished the season ranked #23 in the final AP Poll and #24 in the final Coaches Poll, which was the first time a CMU football team had ever ended the season ranked in the Top 25 at the NCAA Division I-FBS level. Since 2014, the football program has participated in college bowl games, and its players continue to set MAC records yearly.

Often beating the Michigan Wolverines and Michigan State Spartans in dual meets, CMU's wrestling team won its 10th straight MAC championship and 7th straight conference tournament title in 2008. The Chippewas tied for seventh at the NCAA Championships, scoring a school-record 69 points. Four individuals earned All-America honors.

The women's basketball program has achieved new success. In 2018, the team reached the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament. The team beat the LSU Lady Tigers and the Ohio State Buckeyes in the first two rounds but lost to the Oregon Ducks in the third round.

In 1958, the men's swimming and diving team came in second place behind the North Central at the second annual NAIA national meet, which was held in Muncie, Indiana.

In May 2020, the university ended its men's track and field program due to budget cuts caused by the coronavirus pandemic. In June of the same year, CMU received a waiver from the NCAA Division I Council that allowed the football program to remain in the Football Bowl Subdivision and gave the school two years to meet FBS requirements.

Notable alumni

• U.S. representative Dan Kildee
• U.S. representative Brenda Lawrence
• 62nd governor of Kentucky Matt Bevin
• Former NBA All-Star and coach of the Grand Canyon Antelopes Dan Majerle
• Four-star general William Kernan
• Four-star general Jimmy Ross
• Anthony Zinni, United States Marine Corps general
• Stephen Lanza, United States Army lieutenant general