University of Michigan

In 1817 the University of Michigan was founded in Detroit as the Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania.⁠[1]

In 1837 the Michigan Legislature selected Ann Arbor as the home of the university, prompting a move from Detroit. In 1841 six young men enrolled in the first collegiate classes taught in Ann Arbor.⁠[1]

In 1850 the Medical School opened as the university’s second academic college, with more than 100 students.⁠[1]

In 1852 Henry Philip Tappan was named the first president of the University of Michigan; in 1863 the Board of Regents fired him.⁠[1]

In 1859 the university’s Law School was founded.⁠[1]

In 1869 the university began to own and operate its own hospital, which it describes as a first for an American university.⁠[1]

In February 1870 Madelon Louise Stockwell broke the gender barrier at the university when she was admitted; 33 more women joined her that September.⁠[1]

After graduating from Ohio Northern University in 1879, George Franklin GettyGeorge Franklin GettyGeorge Franklin Getty (1855–1930) was an American lawyer and oil businessman who began investing in Oklahoma oil in 1903 and founded Minnehoma Oil Company; he was the father of oil businessman and art collector J. Paul Getty.Open the full entry obtained his law degree from the University of Michigan and later practiced law in Minneapolis; he was the father of J. Paul GettyJ. Paul GettyJ. Paul Getty (1892–1976) was an American oil businessman and art collector who held a controlling interest in the Getty Oil Company and founded the J. Paul Getty Museum; his bequest built the J. Paul Getty Trust after his death.Open the full entry.⁠[2]

Following field studies by University of Michigan researchers, Professor Thomas Francis announced on April 12, 1955, that the new polio vaccine was “safe, effective and potent.”⁠[1]

At 2:00 a.m. on October 14, 1960, John F. Kennedy gave an unscripted campaign speech on the steps of the Michigan Union, urging students to spend a few years working in developing countries to build understanding between those nations and the United States; less than a year later, the federal Peace Corps agency was formed.⁠[3]

On May 22, 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson spoke at the University of Michigan’s graduation exercises in Ann Arbor, setting out his vision of the “Great Society” and declaring, “The Great Society rests on abundance and liberty for all.”⁠[4]

From 8 p.m. on March 24 until 8 a.m. on March 25, 1965, a teach-in on the Vietnam War was held in the Angell Hall Auditorium at the University of Michigan, attended by about 3,000 people; Arnold Kaufman described it as the first American teach-in.⁠[5]

On May 4, 2025, President Santa J. Ono announced that he had been named the sole finalist for the presidency of the University of Florida; on May 8 Domenico Grasso, chancellor of UM-Dearborn since 2018, became interim president of the University of Michigan, effective immediately. Florida’s board of governors later rejected Ono’s appointment.⁠[6][7]

On January 12, 2026, the Board of Regents named Kent Syverud, chancellor of Syracuse University, as the university’s 16th president, with his term to begin on May 11, 2026.⁠[8][9]

In April 2026 Syverud announced that he could not take the job after being diagnosed with brain cancer, saying he was undergoing treatment at the University of Michigan; the board said he would instead teach at the university’s law school and advise the board. Grasso remained interim president while the board searched for another leader.⁠[9][7]

On August 18, 2026, the university named C. Cybele Raver, provost and vice chancellor of Vanderbilt University, as its choice for next president; she would be its 17th president and the second woman in the role.⁠[7]

On September 1, 2026, the Board of Regents unanimously elected Raver as the university’s 17th president, to take office in Ann Arbor on December 1, 2026; Grasso was to continue as interim president through November 30.⁠[10]

As of October 2026 Domenico Grasso was interim president and C. Cybele Raver was president-elect. The university is governed by the Board of Regents, which consists of eight members elected at large in biennial statewide elections.⁠[10][11]

The university’s “Facts & Figures” page, updated in September 2026, shows fall 2025 enrollment of 35,358 undergraduates and 18,130 graduate students in Ann Arbor, 6,199 undergraduates and 1,806 graduate students at Dearborn, and 5,534 undergraduates and 1,585 graduate students at Flint. The page lists total employment of 30,800, separately lists 24,000 employees at University of Michigan Health (not including the Medical School), and more than 668,000 living alumni; it does not give a separate faculty count.⁠[12]

University of Michigan: Official website: https://umich.edu/ (opens in a new window)⁠[13]

X: Official account: https://x.com/umich (opens in a new window)⁠[13]

LinkedInLinkedInLinkedIn is a social networking platform for professionals. It was founded in 2002 by Reid Hoffman and others, launched in 2003, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2011; after Microsoft acquired it for approximately $26.2 billion in 2016, it became a wholly owned Microsoft subsidiary. Its revenue comes from membership subscriptions, advertising, and recruitment solutions.Open the full entry: Official account: https://www.linkedin.com/school/university-of-michigan/ (opens in a new window)⁠[13]

YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is Google’s video-sharing and creator platform, founded in 2005 by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim and acquired by Google in 2006. Built around video uploading, viewing, and creator earnings, the platform has developed Shorts, YouTube Music, Premium, YouTube TV, and products for children, and is headquartered in San Bruno, California, United States.Open the full entry: Official account: https://www.youtube.com/user/um (opens in a new window)⁠[13]