Fast Facts About Minnesota State Mankato

Since 1868, when the Mankato Normal School was founded and its first 27 students enrolled in classes, this has been an institution where big ideas meet real-world thinking.

The school became Mankato State Teachers College in 1921, Mankato State College in 1957 and Mankato State University in 1975. In 1998, it took the name that stands today—Minnesota State University, Mankato. Although our first graduates earned one- or two-year degrees to become teachers, the University has been granting four-year degrees in a growing number of disciplines since 1927. The first master’s degrees were awarded in 1954, and the first doctorate was conferred in 2009.

Minnesota State Mankato is led by Dr. Richard Davenport, who became the 12th president of the University on July 1, 2002. President Davenport and the faculty, students and staff are committed to solving problems, finding solutions and making life better for people throughout our state, our region and our global society.

The Place

• Approximately 85 miles southwest of the Twins Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota State Mankato sits atop 303 acres overlooking the Minnesota River Valley. The Greater Mankato area has a population of nearly 53,000.

• Minnesota State Mankato at Edina serves students in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area with classes in more than 15 areas of study, including graduate education in business, educational leadership and nursing.

• Minnesota State Mankato adds $377.13 million annually to the Mankato economy (2007 Economic Impact Study by Wilder Research, St. Paul).

The People

• More than 15,000 students, including more than 600 international students from approximately 75 countries.

• More than 1,500 faculty and staff, including more than 700 teaching faculty, 80 percent with terminal degrees.

• More than 1,700 students of color, a diverse faculty and staff and an institutional commitment to welcoming underrepresented populations.

• More than 109,000 alumni worldwide.

The Leadership:

• Dr. Richard Davenport, President

• Dr. Linda Baer, Interim Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs

• Mr. Ed Clark, CIO and Vice President for Technology

• Dr. Robert H. Hoffman, Vice President for Strategic Business, Education and Regional Partnerships

• Mr. Jeffrey P. Iseminger, Interim Vice President for University Advancement

• Mr. Richard J. Straka, Vice President for Finance and Administration

The Programs

• More than 130 undergraduate programs of study, including 13 pre-professional, 46 undergraduate and graduate certificate, one associate and 134 bachelor’s degree programs; and more than 70 graduate programs including master’s, specialist and doctoral programs. These programs are offered through six academic colleges: Allied Health and Nursing; Arts and Humanities; Business; Education; Science, Engineering and Technology; and Social and Behavioral Sciences. Several of the programs, or portions of them, are also offered through various College of Extended Learning venues, including the facility at 7700 France in Edina.

• Academic quality as recognized by 25 national accrediting agencies including the Higher Learning Commission, a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, and AACSB International (MBA program).

• One of 11 U.S. universities to receive Campus Technology magazine’s 2009 Campus Technology Innovator award.

• Applied research opportunities through the Organizational Effectiveness Group; Center on Aging; Center for Continuous Learning; Center for School-University Partnerships; Center for Applied Research in Law Enforcement; International Renewable Energy Technology Institute; Kessel Institute for the Study of Peace and Change; Minnesota Center for Automotive Research; Minnesota Center for Engineering and Manufacturing Excellence; Minnesota Center for Transportation Research; Minnesota Modeling and Simulation Center; Minnesota Rapid Prototyping & Production Center; Small Business Development Center, Space Image Processing Center; Strategic Business, Education and Regional Partnerships; the annual Undergraduate and Graduate Research Conferences; and the Water Resources Center.

• Other creative on-site learning opportunities through partnerships with Public Achievement and Dakota Meadows Middle School, the Department of Trade and Economic Development and Condux/MICO, Healthcare Education Industry Partnership, Mayo Clinic, Committee Against Domestic Violence, SpeechGear computerized voice recognition, and the Urban and Regional Studies Institute; competitive student teams including Forensics, Clean Snowmobile, and Formula SAE Collegiate Design; and professional-level student involvement in the award-winning EMuseum and Weather Analysis Laboratory.

• Opportunities for global learning through international partnerships with universities, businesses and organizations; and international lectures and cultural events including the annual International Festival and annual Asian-Pacific American, Fagin Pan-African Student Leadership, Native Nations, and Chicano-Latino conferences.

• Four of the Minnesota Department of Education’s TRIO programs (Upward Bound, Student Support Services, Educational Talent Search and McNair Achievement) serving both underrepresented pre-college and college students.

• NCAA Division I men’s and women’s hockey (Western Collegiate Hockey Association); NCAA Division II (Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference) men’s baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, track, and wrestling; and NCAA Division II women’s basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track and volleyball, all serving more than 600 student athletes.

• Finished in 21st place nationally in the 2011-12 NACDA Directors’ Cup. Finished in second place in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference/U.S. Bank All-Sports Award in 2011-12.

• A vibrant campus life with more than 200 academic student groups, intramural sports, leadership and religious organizations, honorary and professional fraternities and sororities, and special interest groups; a nationally recognized service-learning program with more than 2,000 students participating; a Women’s Center; and an LGBT Center that helped earn Minnesota State Mankato’s status as one of the 100 Best Campuses for LGBT students by The Advocate College Guide for LGBT Students.

• Strong ties to alumni through the online community, the monthly e-newsletter the Alumni Reporter, the print and online editions of TODAY magazine and reunions, Homecoming and other gatherings near and far.

The Numbers

• Annual budget: $184 million.

• Annual tuition and fees: $7,532 (undergraduate in-state).

• $124 million in scholarships, grants, work-study, and other support awarded annually in 2012-13.

• More than $16 million in federal grants, $6 million in state grants and $3.1 million in institutional grants/scholarships.

• $3.5 million in non-institutional scholarships/grants.

• $86 million in student loans, and $2.1 million in federal and state work-study.