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.

      CMU launches meal swipe donation program

      by Sanjna Jassi
      CMU launches meal swipe program and $1 meals to help hungry students.
      ​

      There's new help for hungry students at Central Michigan University starting this week.

      A new meal swipe donation program and low-cost $1 meal option launched today, just in time for the start of the new semester. A committee of students and staff representing the Financial Wellness Collaborative, the CMU Student Food Pantry, the Student Ombuds Office and Auxiliary Services collaborated to develop and implement the programs.

      Giving and receiving help

      Students may register to receive meal swipes by completing the online request form at Engage Central.

      To donate guest meal swipes, please visit the CentralCard office in the Bovee University Center beginning Feb. 10.

      If you need other help, please contact a Care Advocate by calling 989-774-2273 or contact the CMU Counseling Center at 989-774-3381.

      Swipe here for help

      Students who need short-term help in the form of extra meals can register to receive meal swipes using an online form on Engage Central.

      Eligible students may receive a block of 10 meals once per semester. The swipes will be added to their CMU CentralCard the next business day and can be used at any campus residential restaurant, said Cal Seelye, executive director of auxiliary services.

      A bank of unused guest swipes from the fall semester is available now, and every student with a residential meal plan will be able to donate their unused guest meals.

      "For this program to be sustainable, we will need students to donate their unused guest meal swipes," Seelye said.

      Students can visit the CentralCard office in the Bovee University Center to donate up to three guest swipes beginning Feb. 10 and may donate additional guest meal swipes after spring break.

      Dinner for a dollar

      Students who need an affordable meal also will be able to purchase meals for $1 just outside the Down Under Food Court from 6-7 p.m. on Mondays and Thursdays.

      "These meals create an opportunity for students to access food on days when the Student Food Pantry is not offering a distribution," Seelye said.

      The complete meals may include soups, sandwiches, fruits and vegetables and will make use of unused food from dining operations whenever possible, he said.

      The $1 meals will be sold for cash only, and the funds collected will offset a portion of the cost of the program.

      Take care at CMU

      CMU President Bob Davies said the meal swipe and $1 meal programs are just two among the many support programs designed to help students in need.

      "At CMU, we take care of one another," he said. "Whether a student needs help with access to food from the Student Food Pantry, help addressing financial hardship from the Student Emergency Fund, or help addressing stress or anxiety from our Counseling Center, this community is here to help."

      Events

      VIEW ALL EVENTS
      VIEW ALL EVENTS

       

      View our programming newsletter

      Entrepreneurship News

      Questions?

      Contact the team