The private Catholic university's operating model as a "traditional undergraduate institution with athletic programs... can no longer be sustained."

Students experienced rising life satisfaction and declining loneliness and, surprisingly, even a fonder remembrance of online classes from the early days of the pandemic.

About 8,000 educators entered the profession in 2024-25 while roughly 7,900 left, state data show. In response, Michigan State, Northern, Western, Eastern and Central Michigan universities are joining a new effort aimed at reducing early-career turnover.

President Jeffrey Docking has helped cut the academic budget by 13% without a layoff, all while launching 38 new academic programs in five years.