Michigan Technological University

Jay Abel Hubbell , father of Michigan Tech Michigan Tech was founded in 1885 as the Michigan Mining School . [ 7 ] After much agitation by Jay Abel Hubbell , the state legislature established the school to train mining engineers. Hubbell donated land for the school's first buildings. [ 8 ] The school started with four faculty members and twenty-three students. It was housed in the Houghton Fire Hall from 1886 through 1889. [ 9 ] MTU's first president was Marshman E. Wadsworth (1887–1898). [ 10 ] Enrollment grew to such a point that its name no longer reflected its purpose. The name was then changed to the Michigan College of Mines in 1897. [ 11 ] This name lasted through World War I until 1925, but by this time the school had begun offering a wider variety of degrees and once again decided to change its name to the Michigan College of Mining and Technology in 1927. [ 11 ] Fred W. McNair (1899–1924) was the college's second president. By 1931, enrollment had reached nearly 600. Under President Grover C. Dillman (1935–1956), the school underwent many notable changes, including the construction of the Memorial Union Building, the purchasing of an ice rink and a golf course as well as the procurement of the village of Alberta, Michigan . [ 10 ] In 1956, J. Robert Van Pelt became the new president of the university. He restarted many PhD programs and created a focus on research. This included the school's first analog computation class in 1956–57. [ 12 ] In 1964, one of the final years of his presidency, the school changed from a college to a university, changing its name a final time to Michigan Technological University . The change from the Michigan College of Mining and Technology was necessary for two reasons, according to Van Pelt. First, the college had expanded too greatly and the current name was no longer an accurate title. Also, including "mining" in the name of the college was misleading.

[ 13 ] The name "Michigan Technological University" was chosen in order to retain the nickname "Michigan Tech" that had already been in use since 1927. Along with its new name, the school also gained new constitutional status in 1964. This gave responsibility for control of the university to its Board of Control rather than the state legislature. [ 14 ] The university has historically been focused on engineering, and as of November 2022, 57% of students are enrolled in the College of Engineering. Michigan Tech offers a broad range of programs beyond engineering, with 149 undergraduate programs and 103 graduate programs offered. [ 15 ] [ 5 ] Women at Michigan Tech 1895 advertisement for the Michigan Mining School Main building, ca. 1906 Women began to attend classes at the Michigan College of Mines around 1890. The early female students were mostly daughters of professors or wealthy businessmen of the Houghton and Hancock area. They were allowed to take classes and were given special student status, which meant that they could be enrolled in courses, but were not able to receive a degree. The first woman to receive a degree from the Michigan College of Mines was Margaret R. Holley, who was born in Lake Linden and who had received a liberal arts degree at a different university outside of the Upper Peninsula. She then moved back to Houghton to work on a chemistry degree, which she received in 1933. Two years later, she also received a master's degree in chemistry from the Michigan College of Mines. The first female faculty member of the Michigan College of Mines was Ella Wood, who was hired as an assistant professor for the Humanities department in 1927. She was made an associate professor by 1928, a full professor by 1935, and the head of geography and languages by 1937. Professor Wood was hired by the university five years before women were allowed to pursue degrees.

She also worked in the library and taught meteorology to assist with pilot training sessions to students during WWII. [ 16 ] Her presence encouraged many young women to apply for special student status and take classes at the school and ultimately allowed women to receive degrees at this school. As co-ed enrollment increased, she promoted women involvement on campus and co-educational programs. She also became the academic advisor to all female students and thoroughly enjoyed the role of "mother" [ 16 ] that she was able to play here to all of her students. Wood also held the title "Dean of Women", making her the first woman to receive the title dean at the university. [ 16 ] Margaret Holley Chapman was the first woman to complete a degree program from Michigan College of Mining and Technology, which would become Michigan Technological University in 1964. She earned a Bachelor of Science in General Science in 1933, and another in chemistry the following year. Margaret went on to become a candidate for a master's degree in General Science. Not only was she the first woman to receive a degree from Michigan Tech, she was also the first female trustee and requested that a scholarship be established to help other female students to finance their education. The Margaret H. Chapman Endowed Scholarship is still active to this day. [ 17 ] The first woman to graduate with a degree in Chemical Engineering was Alice Runge in 1942. Following shortly behind was the first woman to graduate with High Honors in Metallurgical & Materials Engineering, Lilian (Heikkinen) Beck, in 1947. She was also the first woman from Michigan Tech to be inducted into the Alpha Sigma Mu honorary fraternity of the International Metallurgical Society. One year later, Marian Ione (Smith) Scott was the first woman to earn a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. [ 18 ] Women in athletics The first female varsity athlete was Nada J. Fenton, who was a member of the rifle team during the 1950s.

She was a graduate of Houghton High school and entered MTU in 1952. Nada holds the record of being the first woman to ever fire on a varsity rifle team in the world. Today Michigan Tech has seven women's varsity sports including basketball , cross country , Nordic skiing , tennis , track and field , volleyball , and soccer .