Charles Stewart Mott • Businessperson / Philanthropist
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The official history of the University of Michigan-Flint began in 1944, when the Flint Board of Education requested that a University of Michigan Extension Office open in Flint. Charles Stewart Mott and other area citizens, already planning the cultural center, were interested in the idea of higher education in the community. Three years later, the Regents of the University funded a study exploring the possibilities for higher education in Flint.
The community responded enthusiastically to the study, which called for the establishment of a four-year liberal arts college in Flint comparable to the College of Literature, Science and the Arts on the Ann Arbor campus. The city assisted the university by supplying buildings and land. C.S. Mott donated money to build a classroom and office building, and the Sponsors Fund of Flint donated funds for operating expenses. Cooperation between the community and the University of Michigan brought about the opening of a two-year senior college (located on the land now occupied by Mott Community College) in 1956, which offered baccalaureate degree programs in the liberal arts and sciences and in the professional fields of education and business administration. Approximately 167 junior students enrolled the first semester.
The Mott Foundation, the University of Michigan-Flint, community members and community organizations continue to work in harmony to bring the best of what higher education has to offer to this community and the world.
The community responded enthusiastically to the study, which called for the establishment of a four-year liberal arts college in Flint comparable to the College of Literature, Science and the Arts on the Ann Arbor campus. The city assisted the university by supplying buildings and land. C.S. Mott donated money to build a classroom and office building, and the Sponsors Fund of Flint donated funds for operating expenses. Cooperation between the community and the University of Michigan brought about the opening of a two-year senior college (located on the land now occupied by Mott Community College) in 1956, which offered baccalaureate degree programs in the liberal arts and sciences and in the professional fields of education and business administration. Approximately 167 junior students enrolled the first semester.
The Mott Foundation, the University of Michigan-Flint, community members and community organizations continue to work in harmony to bring the best of what higher education has to offer to this community and the world.