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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.

      When the wind blows…

      by Sanjay Gupta
      Central Michigan University encourages the campus community to be prepared for tornadoes and severe weather events.

      Any time of day, any time of year.

      That’s when tornadoes and other severe weather can strike.

      And that’s a key message of Severe Weather Awareness Week, March 24-30, as Jon Kujat, Central Michigan University's manager of risk management, environmental health and safety, and emergency management, encourages the campus community to prepare for severe weather events.

      Tornadoes are especially common during the late spring and early summer and can devastate buildings and property in seconds. The average lead time for warning of a tornado is 10-15 minutes, which is why students, faculty and staff are encouraged to prepare and plan before a tornado strikes.

      University preparedness plans and notification mechanisms include:

      • An emergency action plan for each building on campus that includes procedures for tornadoes and other emergencies.
      • Status as a storm-ready facility.
      • NOAA weather radios are located throughout campus, usually in building coordinators’ offices.
      • Floor plans showing tornado shelters for every floor and every building on the main campus and Global Campus sites in Michigan.
      • Central Alert emergency notification system.
      • Exterior warning sirens (not intended to be heard inside of buildings).

      More information is available on CMU’s emergency management webpage, the Michigan Committee for Severe Weather Awareness, the National Weather Service and Michigan State Police.

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      Entrepreneurship News

      Questions?

      Contact the team