Minnesota State University, Mankato
Minnesota State University, Mankato is a public university in Mankato, Minnesota, United States. It is Minnesota's second-largest university, and has over 145,000 living alumni worldwide. Founded in 1868, it is the second-oldest member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system and is commonly referred to as the flagship institution. It was established as the "Second State Normal School" in 1858 and officially opened as "Mankato Normal School" a decade later.
Across seven colleges and schools, Minnesota State offers over 130 undergraduate programs of study, over 80 master's programs, and 4 doctoral programs. MNSU has two satellite campuses: one in the Twin Cities suburb Edina and one in Owatonna. Through the College of Extended Learning, it provides bachelor's degrees online and at the Normandale Partnership Center in Bloomington. In 2023, MNSU partnered with Saint Paul College to launch the Minnesota Polytechnic and Applied Learning Institute, becoming Minnesota's first polytechnic institute.
The Minnesota State Mavericks compete in 21 intercollegiate sports, most at the NCAA Division II level in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. Its men's and women's ice hockey teams compete at the Division I level, respectively in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association and Western Collegiate Hockey Association.
History
1860–1921: Founding and early years
The state legislature recognized the need for an education center in southern Minnesota in 1858. In 1860, the legislature chartered the development of other state-run normal schools across the state. The largest and fastest-growing cities outside of Saint Paul, Saint Cloud and Mankato, were selected for the sites, dependent on local fundraising to establish the schools with seed money. Through the efforts of local attorney and state legislator Daniel Buck, the newly formed City of Mankato donated $5,000 raised from the community and sold $5,000 in bonds to found the second state normal school, Mankato Normal School. It was chartered in state law in 1860 and held its first classes in 1868, with an enrollment of 27. The school's original mission was to train and educate teachers for rural schools in southern Minnesota. Early coursework included mathematics, science, civil engineering, agriculture, western classics, and basic pedagogy. The first Normal School-owned building's cornerstone was laid on June 22, 1869. George M. Gage served as Mankato Normal School's principal from 1868 to 1872.During this period, Mankato Normal School provided educational certificates that allowed graduates to become schoolteachers, and most of the students were women. In relation to this focus on women's education, Mankato Normal School is noted as the first public college in the U.S. to be headed by a woman, suffragette Julia Sears, in 1872. In 1873, the State Normal Board demoted Sears to assistant principal, replacing her as principal with David C. John. Sears's salary as assistant principal was reduced from $1,500 to $1,200 and resulted in a letter to Gage that it was doubtful that she would see him again in Minnesota. In response, the assistant principal position was offered to Cornelius Hyde. Both Sears and Hyde arrived for work on September 1, 1873.
After it was determined that Hyde would receive the position, 41 students refused to attend classes and 32 were expelled for failing to return after three days. 60 residents signed a petition requesting that Hyde return to his position as instructor and that Sears be reinstated as assistant principal. This became known as the "Sears Rebellion", which lasted until Sears left the school for a professorship at Peabody Normal School. These events were commemorated when a new residence hall was dedicated in honor of Sears in 2008 and a commission on the status of women was founded to support the advancement of women's education at the institution in the 1990s.
1921–1957: Teaching college, post-WWII expansion
By 1921, the school had grown to the point that it began to offer four-year bachelor's degrees. As a result, it was renamed "Mankato State Teachers College". The original Old Main building was destroyed in a fire in 1922 and a new building was completed on April 4, 1924. Enrollment dipped during World War II and the college refocused its extension programs on providing education to members of the Works Progress Administration and Naval Corps.Clarence L. Crawford became college president in 1946. He held the position for 20 years, overseeing and promoting tremendous growth of the college from approximately 400 students at the time of his arrival to about 14,000 when he retired in 1966. During the postwar period, student enrollment expanded greatly. The original university buildings were then in what was known as the Valley Campus, down the hill in lower Mankato. The Valley Campus's size and footprint lacked the space needed to handle the growing student body. The Mankato Teachers College received 12 former Army barracks as a short-term solution. By the late 1950s work began on an entirely new, modern campus atop the river valley bluff. This became the Highland Campus. An experimental school, the Wilson School, was built on the Highland Campus to research and apply new teaching methods for students in grades K–12. The intention was to provide student teachers the opportunity to learn and experiment with new methods in a university environment.
1957–1995: Transition to comprehensive university
By 1957, the institution's mission had broadened to comprehensive four-year college education, and the legislature changed the school's name to Mankato State College. By the 1960s the institution had grown so rapidly that a bill was proposed in the state legislature to elevate it to university status. Originally, Mankato State was to have been renamed the University of Southern Minnesota; a later amendment would have renamed it Minnesota State University. It was to be a second and independent state university equal in stature to the University of Minnesota at a time when there was only one research institution. There was significant opposition from the University of Minnesota and from Governor Karl Rolvaag at the time.In 1975 the college successfully made the case for university status and was renamed "Mankato State University". This change reflected a further 40% growth in the student body to 12,000 students by 1972. Following this, the number of programs increased, to include science, technology, engineering, health sciences, and others. While the transition to "state university" was being considered, the administration also explored the prospect of combining the Valley Campus buildings with the Highland Campus on the recommendation of a consultant hired by the Higher Education Coordinating Commission. Despite some faculty opposition to the merger, Mankato State University received permission to consolidate in May 1977 and completed the consolidation under President Margaret Preska on May 5, 1980. The Valley Campus was eventually sold to a private developer and the Highland Campus grew.
1995–present: Minnesota State system, doctoral offerings
In 1995, the seven state universities were transferred to the newly created Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system by a mandate from the state legislature. The university was renamed Minnesota State University, Mankato in 1998 in recognition of its significant contribution to the state's higher education system. This name change was also intended to broaden recognition of the university in the Midwest. Richard Rush, then the president of the university, said of the name change, "Our goal is to make this university the other great public university in Minnesota." This marked a significant change in direction in the institution's history, one that would later be realized as it fought to be authorized to award doctoral degrees. It was during this time that the institution began to call itself Minnesota State.In 2007, in another major milestone, the university was authorized to begin offering applied doctoral degrees.
Academics
MNSU offers over 130 undergraduate programs of study, 13 pre-professional programs, and over 85 graduate programs. It provides a comprehensive education: each undergraduate program of study includes general requirements in mathematics, writing, cultural diversity, speech, information technology, and the environment. Minnesota State is among the nation's top-producing master's institutions of Fulbright recipients, producing 11 student grant awards and 41 Fulbright Scholars.Each year, over 3,000 students graduate from MNSU. The Office of the Registrar confers around 3,000 bachelor's, 600 master's, 50 specialist, and 10 doctoral degrees. MNSU's Career Development Center reports that 85% of graduates find employment in an area related to their field, and 90% were employed or continuing their education within 12 months of graduation.
Organization and administration
The university is organized into seven discipline-specific colleges. Academic programs, schools, and extended learning are divided among them:Institutes and centers
Fourteen university-wide interdisciplinary centers and institutes work across collegiate lines:Notable programs
MNSU has a history of creating new programs to meet the demand of new and developing fields. It was the nation's first institution to offer a Master of Fine Arts degree in forensics. It also offered one of the first interdisciplinary programs in urban studies and local government management.The Aviation and Airport Management program is Minnesota's only accredited aviation program. Graduates are often hired to work in nearby states as the program also serves regional needs. The university has developed national partnerships with Delta Air Lines and Sun Country Airlines that provide on-the-job training and direct hire before graduation.