Michigan State University (MSU)’s implementation of on-campus support services and pre-college initiatives within the community is one of the many reasons it makes Diverse’s Top 100 undergraduate and graduate degree programs for minority students.
James Cotter, MSU’s director of the office of admissions, calls MSU the “institution of the people” as well as the “institution of the state” because it is considered the original land-grant university.
“We see more applications from the state of Michigan, we admit more students from the state of Michigan and we enroll more students from the state of Michigan than any of the other institutions in the state of Michigan,” says Cotter.
Paulette Russell, who is the director of the office for inclusion and intercultural initiatives, defined the mission of land-grant institutions as being “expected to provide broader access to higher education and the opportunities that flow as a result of graduating from colleges and universities.”
In the fall of 2016, of the 50,344 students enrolled, MSU had representations from all of Michigan’s 83 counties, all 50 states and 138 countries around the world. Among the 7,950 students from the incoming class, 24.7 percent were minority students, 13.6 percent were international students, 9.7 percent were first-generation college students and 18.5 percent were Pell Grant recipients, according to MSU’s website.
“The state of Michigan has a very diverse population and as a result, I think students look to Michigan State as a place for tremendous opportunity,” says Cotter. “And as a result, students of color have looked to Michigan State as a place where they feel like there is opportunity to come, to grow and to learn like all other students.”
To keep the focus on Michigan communities, MSU established pre-college programs for local youth. The Summer Scholars Program is a three-week program to help prepare first, second and third year high school students for the college environment. In order to apply, students must be a part of the urban school districts of Benton Harbor, Chicago, Detroit, Flint, Grand Rapids, Lansing and Saginaw, according to the program’s website.
