he North Campus area is separated from them, primarily by the Huron River.[25] There is also leased space in buildings scattered throughout the city, many occupied by organizations affiliated with the University of Michigan Health System. An East Medical Campus has recently been developed on

 series of one-day walkouts by the unions and their supporters.[19] The university is currently engaged in a $2.5 billion construction campaign.[20]
Law Library

Law Library Interior
In 2003, two lawsuits involving U-M's affirmative action admissions policy reached the U.S. Supreme Court (Grutter v. Bollinger and Gratz v. Bollinger). President George W. Bush took the unusual step of publicly opposing the policy before the court issued a ruling.[21] The court found that race may be considered as a factor in university admissions in all public universities and private universities that accept federal funding. But, it ruled that a point system was unconstitutional. In the first case, the court upheld the Law School admissions policy, while in the second it ruled against the university's undergraduate admissions policy.
The debate continues because in November 2006, Michigan voters passed Proposal 2, banning most affirmative action in university admissions. Under that law, race, gender, and national origin can no longer be considered in admissions.[22] U-M and other organizations were granted a stay from implementation of the passed proposal soon after that election, and this has allowed time for proponents of affirmative action to decide legal and constitutional options in response to the election results. The university has stated it plans to continue to challenge the ruling; in the meantime, the admissions office states that it will attempt to achieve a diverse student body by looking at other factors, such as whether the student attended a disadvantaged school, and the level of education of the student's parents.[22]
Campus[edit]

The Ann Arbor campus is divided into four main areas: the North, Central, Medical, and South Campuses. The physical infrastructure includes more than 500 major buildings,[23] with a combined area of more than 31 million square feet or 712-acre (2.88 km2).[24] The Central and South Campus areas are contiguous, while the North Campus area is separated from them, primarily by the Huron River.[25] There is also leased space in buildings scattered throughout the city, many occupied by organizations affiliated with the University of Michigan Health System. An East Medical Campus has recently been developed on Plymouth Road, with several university-owned buildings for outpatient care, diagnostics, and outpatient surgery.[26]
In addition to the U-M Golf Course on South Campus, the university operates a second golf course called "Radrick Farms Golf Course" on Geddes Road. The golf course is only open to faculty, staff, and alumni.[27] Another off-campus facility is the Inglis House, which the university has owned since the 1950s. The Inglis House is a 10,000-square-foot (930 m2) mansion used to hold various social events, including meetings of the board of regents, and to host visiting dignitaries.[28] The university also operates a large office building called Wolverine Tower in southern Ann Arbor near Briarwood Mall. Another major facility is the Matthaei Botanical Gardens, which is located on the eastern outskirts of Ann Arbor.[29]
All four campus areas are connected by bus services, the majority of which connect the North and Central Campuses. There is a shuttle service connecting the University Hospital, which lies between North and Central Campuses, with other medical facilities throughout northeastern Ann Arbor.[30]
Central Campus[edit]
Red brick building with white stone facade. A tall white-colored stone clock tower with a green roof is in the background

Hill Auditorium and Burton Tower
Central Campus was the original location of U-M when it moved to Ann Arbor in 1837. It originally had a school and dormitory building (where Mason Hall now stands) and several houses for professors on forty acres of land bounded by North University Avenue, South University Avenue, East University Avenue, and State Street. The President's House, located on South University Avenue, is the oldest building on campus as well as the only surviving building from the orig

lated to other issues at the U-M. On March 24, 1965, a group of U-M faculty members and 3,000 students held the nation's first ever faculty-led "teach-in" to protest against American policy in Southeast Asia.[14][15] In response to a series of sit-ins in 1966 by Voice–the campus political party of Students for a Democratic Society, U-M's administration banned sit-ins. In response, 1,500 students had a one-hour sit-in the LSA Building, which housed administrative offices.

nt in 1845.[8] By 1866 enrollment increased to 1,205 students, many of whom were Civil War veterans. Women were first admitted in 1870.[9] James Burrill Angell, who served as the university's president from 1871 to 1909, aggressively expanded U-M's curriculum to include professional studies in dentistry, architecture, engineering, government, and medicine. U-M also became the first American university to use the seminar method of study.[10]
From 1900 to 1920 the university constructed many new facilities, including buildings for the dental and pharmacy programs, chemistry, natural sciences, Hill Auditorium, large hospital and library complexes, and two residence halls. In 1920 the university reorganized the College of Engineering and formed an advisory committee of 100 industrialists to guide academic research initiatives. The university became a favored choice for bright Jewish students from New York in the 1920s and 1930s when the Ivy League schools had quotas restricting the number of Jews to be admitted.[11] As a result, U-M gained the nickname "Harvard of the West," which became commonly parodied in reverse after John F. Kennedy referred to himself as "a graduate of the Michigan of the East, Harvard University" in his speech proposing the formation of the Peace Corps while on the front steps of the Michigan Union.[12] During World War II, U-M's research grew to include U.S. Navy projects such as proximity fuzes, PT boats, and radar jamming.
By 1950, enrollment had reached 21,000, of whom more than one third: 7,700 were veterans supported by the G.I. Bill. As the Cold War and the Space Race took hold, U-M became a major recipient of government grants for strategic research and helped to develop peacetime uses for nuclear energy. Much of that work, as well as research into alternative energy sources, is pursued via the Memorial Phoenix Project.[13]
Red brick plaza, surrounded by trees with green leaves, with two white tents and an American flag flying from a flagpole in the center

The Central Campus Diag, viewed from the Graduate Library, looking North
Lyndon B. Johnson's speech outlining his Great Society program was given during U-M's 1964 spring commencement ceremony.[8] During the 1960s, there were numerous protests against the Vietnam War and related to other issues at the U-M. On March 24, 1965, a group of U-M faculty members and 3,000 students held the nation's first ever faculty-led "teach-in" to protest against American policy in Southeast Asia.[14][15] In response to a series of sit-ins in 1966 by Voice–the campus political party of Students for a Democratic Society, U-M's administration banned sit-ins. In response, 1,500 students had a one-hour sit-in the LSA Building, which housed administrative offices.
Former U-M student and noted architect Alden B. Dow designed the current Fleming Administration Building, which was completed in 1968. The building's plans were drawn in the early 1960s, before student activism prompted a concern for safety, but the Fleming Building's narrow windows, all located above the first floor, and fortress-like exterior led to a campus rumor that it was designed to be riot-proof. Dow denied those rumors, claiming the small windows were designed to be energy efficient.[16]
During the 1970s, severe budget constraints challenged the university's physical development; but, in the 1980s, the university received increased grants for research in the social and physical sciences. The university's involvement in the anti-missile Strategic Defense Initiative and investments in South Africa caused controversy on campus.[17][18] During the 1980s and 1990s, the university devoted substantial resources to renovating its massive hospital complex and improving the academic facilities on the North Campus. In its 2011 annual financial report, the university announced that it had dedicated $497 million per year in each of the prior 10 years to renovate buildings and infrastructure around the campus. The university also emphasized the development of computer and information technology throughout the campus.
In the early 2000s (decade), U-M also faced declining state funding due to state budget shortfalls. At the same time, the university attempted to maintain its high academic standing while keeping tuition costs affordable. There were disputes between U-M's administration and labor unions, notably with the Lecturers' Employees Organization (LEO) and the Graduate Employees Organization (GEO), the union representing graduate student employees. These conflicts led to a

6 Athletics 6.1 School songs

ngs with a combined area of more than 31 million gross square feet (712 acres or 2.38 km²), and has transformed its academic program from a strictly classical curriculum to one that includes science and research.
The university has very high research activity and its comprehensive graduate program offers doctoral degrees in the humanities, social sciences, and STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) as well as professional degrees in medicine, law, social work and dentistry. Michigan was one of the founding members of the Association of American Universities, and its body of living alumni (as of 2012) comprises more than 500,000.
Michigan's athletic teams compete in Division I of the NCAA and are collectively known as the Wolverines. They are members of the Big Ten Conference.
Contents  [hide]
1 History
2 Campus
2.1 Central Campus
2.2 North Campus
2.3 South Campus
3 Organization and administration
3.1 Endowment
3.2 Student government
4 Academics
4.1 Student body
4.2 Research
5 Student life
5.1 Residential life
5.2 Groups and activities
5.3 Media and publications
6 Athletics
6.1 School songs
7 Alumni
8 References
8.1 Specific
8.2 General
9 External links
History[edit]

Main article: History of the University of Michigan
Painting of a rolling green landscape with trees with a row of white buildings in the background

University of Michigan (1855) Jasper Francis Cropsey
The University of Michigan was established in Detroit in 1817 as the Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania, by the governor and judges of Michigan Territory. The Rev. John Monteith was one of the university's founders and its first President. Ann Arbor had set aside 40 acres (16 ha) that it hoped would become the site for a new state capitol, but it offered this land to the university when Lansing was chosen as the state capital. What would become the university moved to Ann Arbor in 1837 thanks to governor Stevens T. Mason. The original 40 acres (160,000 m2) became part of the current Central Campus.[7] The first classes in Ann Arbor were held in 1841, with six freshmen and a sophomore, taught by two professors. Eleven students graduated in the first commenceme