MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY

public, coeducational institution of higher learning in East Lansing, Mich., U.S. It was a pioneer among land-grant universities and is a noted institution of research. Through its 14 colleges it provides comprehensive undergraduate, graduate, and professional degree programs. The university has long been active in plant science studies and operates a plant research laboratory with the U.S. Department of Energy. Other research and public service facilities include the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory, the Kellogg Center for Continuing Education, and centres and institutes for international studies, economic development, and environmental toxicology. Also on campus is the W.J. Beal Botanical Garden (created 1863), one of the oldest botanical gardens in North America. Enrollment at the university is approximately 40,000. Chartered in 1855 by the state legislature, Michigan State University opened in 1857 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first agricultural college in the United States. It is considered the prototype for the land-grant colleges created under the aegis of the Morrill Act of 1862. The botanist Liberty Hyde Bailey established the nation's first horticultural laboratory at the school in 1888. The school's original focus on agricultural and mechanical arts later expanded, and its name changed four times before 1963, when it became Michigan State University. Notable alumni include educator William Chandler Bagly, football player Herb Adderley, and basketball player Earvin (Magic) Johnson, Jr.