Montana State University

File:Looking N at Montana Hall - Montana State University - 2013-07-09.jpg

Montana became a state on 8 November 1889. Several cities competed intensely to be the state capital, the city of Bozeman among them.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/montana_state_university/msu-s-history-from-humble-start-to-wondrous-university/article_0ab574f5-999d-5ffe-af2b-567be0b680be.html|title=MSU's history — from humble start to 'wondrous' university|last=Schontzler|first=Gail|work=Bozeman Daily Chronicle|access-date=15 May 2018|language=en}} In time, the city of Helena was named the state capital. As a consolation, the state legislature agreed to put the state's land-grant college in Bozeman. Gallatin County donated half of its 160-acre poor farm for the campus, and money for an additional 40 acres, which had been planned to hold a state capital, was raised by the community, including a $1,500 donation from rancher and businessman Nelson Story, Sr.{{Cite book|title=A History, Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana|last=Burlingame|first=Merrill|publisher=Office of Information: Montana State University|year=1968|location=Bozeman, Montana}} This land, as well as additional property and monetary contributions, was now turned over to the state for the new college.

MSU was founded in 1893 as the Agricultural College of the State of Montana.{{Cite web|url=http://www.montana.edu/opa/facts/SchoolNames.html|title=Historical School Names - Office of Planning & Analysis {{!}} Montana State University|website=www.montana.edu|language=en-US|access-date=15 May 2018}} It opened on 16 February with five male and three female students. The first classes were held in rooms in the county high school, and later that year in the shuttered Bozeman Academy (a private preparatory school). The first students were from Bozeman Academy and were forced to transfer to the college. Only two faculty existed on opening day: Luther Foster, a horticulturist from South Dakota who was also Acting President, and Homer G. Phelps, who taught business. Within weeks, they were joined by S. M. Emery (who ran the agricultural experiment station) and Benjamin F. Maiden (an English teacher from the former Bozeman Academy). Augustus M. Ryon, a coal mine owner, was named the first president of the college on 17 April 1893. Ryon immediately clashed with the board of trustees and faculty. Where the trustees wanted the college to focus on agriculture, Ryon pointed out that few of its students intended to go back to farming. While the rapidly expanding faculty wanted to establish a remedial education program to assist unprepared undergraduates (Montana's elementary and secondary public education system was in dire shape at the time), Ryon refused. The donation of the Story land to the college occurred in 1894, but Ryon was forced out in 1895 and replaced by the James R. Reid, a Presbyterian minister who had been president of the Montana College at Deer Lodge since 1890.

The college grew quickly under Reid, who provided 10 years of stability and harmony. The student body grew so fast that the high school building was completely taken over by the college. A vacant store on Main Street was rented to provide additional classroom space. Both the Agricultural Experiment Station (now known as Taylor Hall) and the Main Building (now known as Montana Hall) were constructed in 1896, although the agricultural building was the first to open. Both structures were occupied in 1898. The university football team was established in 1897, and the college graduated its first four students that same year. The curriculum expanded into civil and electrical engineering in 1898.

File:Hamilton Hall - Montana State University - Bozeman, Montana - 2013-07-09.jpg

Reid resigned for health reasons in 1905 and was succeeded by James M. Hamilton, an economist. Determined to make the college into a school of technology, he rapidly expanded the curriculum areas such as biology, chemistry, engineering, geology, and physics.{{Cite web|url=https://mhs.mt.gov/Portals/11/shpo/docs/MSUHD.pdf|title=National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Montana State University Historical District|website=Montana Historical Society|access-date=15 May 2018}} Hamilton also devised the university motto, "Education for Efficiency", which the college continued to use until the 1990s. Further marking this change in direction, the school was officially renamed the Montana College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts in 1913{{Cite web|url=http://www.montana.edu/marketing/about-msu/history/|title=Montana State University History - Marketing {{!}} Montana State University|website=www.montana.edu|language=en-US|access-date=15 May 2018}} (although that name was in widespread use as early as 1894). The college's first great rapid expansion of physical plants also began under Hamilton. Constructed during this time were Linfield Hall (1908), Hamilton Hall (1910), and Traphagen Hall (1919). The giant whitewashed "M" on the side of Mount Baldy in the foothills of the Bridger Range was first built in 1916, and in 1917 ROTC came to campus for the first time.

File:Montana State University Bozeman, Romney Gym.jpg

Hamilton resigned in 1919 to become Dean of Men, and his successor was agricultural expert Alfred Atkinson. Atkinson's tenure lasted 17 years (1920 to 1937). A firm believer in Hamilton's vision for the school, Atkinson worked hard to continue the rapid expansion of the campus. The iconic, barrel-vaulted Gymnasium Building (now Romney Hall) was built in 1922, replacing a dilapidated "drill hall" and giving the school's men's basketball team its first home court.{{Cite news|url=http://arc.lib.montana.edu/msu-exponent/objects/exp-034-21-001-006.pdf|title=Building — 1893-1939|date=14 April 1943|work=MSU Exponent|access-date=15 May 2018|page=2}} The Heating Plant, Lewis Hall, and Roberts Hall followed in 1923. By the 1920s, the school was commonly referred to as Montana State College (MSC). Herrick Hall followed in 1926. The college was justifiably proud of its academic accomplishments, but its sports teams entered a golden age as well. In 1922, Atkinson hired George Ott Romney and Schubert Dyche as co-head coaches of the football and men's basketball teams. Between 1922 and 1928 (the year he departed Montana for Brigham Young University), Romney's football teams compiled a 28–20–1 record. This included the 1924 season in which his team went undefeated until the final game of the year. As a co-head basketball coach, Romney's teams compiled a 144–31 record and invented the fast break. After Romney left, Schubert Dyche coached the "Golden Bobcats" team of 1928, which had a 36–2 record and won the national championship.The starting lineup consisted of John "Brick" Breeden, J. Ashworth "Cat" Thompson, Orland Ward, Frank Worden, and Max Worthington. In his seven years as a basketball coach, Dyche's teams compiled a 110–93 record (this included the dismal 1932–33 and 1933–34 seasons), but won their conference championship twice. In 1930, the college built Gatton Field, a football field on what is now the site of the Marga Hosaeus Fitness Center. In one of President Atkinson's last accomplishments, the Dormitory Quadrangle (now Atkinson Quadrangle) was built.

The first three decades of the 20th century were rowdy ones on the college campus. Bozeman had a large red-light district by 1900, alcohol was plentiful and cheap, and there was little in the way of organized entertainment such as theaters to occupy the student body. President Reid spent much of his presidency cracking down on dancing, drinking, gambling, and prostitution by students. President Hamilton sought to improve the atmosphere for women by building Hamilton Hall, which was not only the first on-campus housing for students but also the first all-women's housing on campus. Access by men to Hamilton Hall was strictly limited to young teenage boys (who acted as servants); adult males were permitted only in the first-floor lounge, and only on Sundays. Atkinson Quadrangle was built on the location of the College Inn, also known as the "Bobcat Lair," a popular student drinking and dancing hangout.

File:Looking SSW at Strand Union - Montana State University - Bozeman, Montana - 2013-07-09.jpg

The college suffered greatly during the Great Depression. The price of agricultural products (Montana's economic mainstay) soared during World War I, as European and Russian farms were devastated by military campaigns, in which American and European armies demanded food. For a few years after the war, these prices remained high. But as European agriculture began to improve, an agricultural depression swamped the United States beginning in about 1923. State tax revenues plunged, and fewer buildings were constructed on campus after 1923.

File:Roland renne.jpg

In 1943, the state board of higher education appointed MSC economist Roland "Rollie" Renne to be the new acting president of the college; he was named the permanent president of the college on 1 July 1944 and served until 1964.

File:Looking N at Brick Breed Fieldhouse - parking lot construction - Montana State University - Bozeman, Montana - 2013-07-09.jpg

File:Cobleigh Hall - Montana State University - Bozeman, Montana - 2013-07-09.jpg

In February 1964, Leon H. Johnson was appointed president of MSC. A research chemist who joined the college in 1943, he had most recently been the executive director of the school's Endowed and Research Foundation (at the time, MSC's largest research unit) and Dean of the Graduate Division. Deeply committed to the college's research function, he pushed for MSC to be named a university — a change Renne had since the early 1950s, and which the Montana state legislature approved on 1 July 1965. At that time, the school received its new name, Montana State University (MSU).{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=sZ0zAAAAIBAJ&sjid=t-gDAAAAIBAJ&pg=7514%2C65798|work=Spokesman-Review |location=(Spokane, Washington) |title=University of Montana new name for Missoula campus|date=1 July 1965 |page=8}} Bachelor's degree programs in economics, English, history, music, political science, and other disciplines were quickly established, as was the first university honors program. Johnson was a devoted admirer of the arts, and MSU's art and music programs blossomed. Johnson quickly worked to end the acrimonious relationship with the University of Montana, and the two schools began to present a united front to the state legislature.

In 1966, Johnson altered and enlarged the university's administrative structure to help cope with increasing enrollment and increasing campus complexity. These changes included creating a 12-member executive council to advise him. The council included newly created vice presidents — overseeing areas such as academic affairs, administration, finance, and research.{{Cite book|title=In the People's Interest: A Centennial History of Montana State University|last1=Rydell|first1=Robert|last2=Safford|first2=Jeffrey|last3=Mullen|first3=Pierce|publisher=Montana State University Foundation|year=1992|isbn=0-9635114-0-8|location=Bozeman, Montana|pages=98–99}}

Johnson was deeply conservative — fiscally, socially, and politically. He was deeply committed to continuing Renne's educational plan but declined to spend money on new buildings (preferring to consolidate and renovate rather than expand). He also continued Renne's policies largely barring from campus speakers who were not clearly in the political mainstream. Johnson's policies were largely supported by the student body and the taxpaying public. MSU practiced a policy known as in loco parentis, in which it acted as a "parent" toward the "children" attending school there. To that end, Johnson instituted dress codes, required adult chaperones at dances, banned alcohol, and instituted mandatory military training for freshmen and sophomores. Although many American college campuses were engulfed by student radicalism, MSU's student body was as conservative as Johnson was and accepted these restrictions. For many years, the biggest issues on campus were ending Saturday morning classes and building student parking lots.

There were some campus protests, however. The first protest against the Vietnam War occurred in 1966 (drawing about 100 students), two underground student newspapers briefly appeared, and some students organized clubs to debate issues of the day. There were minor faculty and student protests when Johnson attempted to prevent English professor James Myers from assigning students to read James Baldwin's novel Another Country, and in the summer of 1968 a few faculty organized a symposium on the war. When about 150 students rallied in front of Montana Hall in 1969 to ask for co-ed and "open visitation" dorms (e.g., to allow men into women's dorm rooms, and vice versa), Johnson threatened to call out the city police.

MSU's Bobcat Stadium saw its genesis during the Johnson years. Growing student unrest over the football team's use of decrepit Gatton Field (while the basketball team used modern Brick Breeden Fieldhouse) led to a proposal by Johnson in April 1968 to build a 16,000-seat stadium funded by student fees. The proposal failed in December 1968 after students argued that the university should concurrently build a new fitness center as well.

President Johnson died of a heart attack on 18 June 1969. He'd suffered a heart attack in October 1968 and then underwent surgery out of state in April 1969.

William Johnstone, a professor of education and Vice President for Administration at MSU, took over as Acting President. He was the first and (as of 2013) the only Montanan to become president of MSU. Johnstone pledged to build the fitness center first, and in December 1969 the student body approved the finance plan for the new football stadium. On 2 April 1970, about 250 students engaged in a sit-in in Montana Hall to protest Myers' termination, but it ended peacefully a day later. Myers was terminated, and another eight faculty resigned in protest. But during his year in office, the university completed Cobleigh Hall (ironically named for the last individual to be named acting president).

File:Bobcat Stadium detail - Montana State University - Bozeman, Montana - 2013-07-09.jpg

Carl W. McIntosh was named MSU's eighth president in June 1970. Previously the president of 28,000-student California State University, Long Beach, McIntosh brought a consultative and deliberate style of decision-making to the university. He faced a poor fiscal climate: The state was entering a decade-long depression brought about by a steep drop in commodity prices, the state's higher education system had grown too large and unwieldy, and Governor Thomas L. Judge had established a blue-ribbon committee to close several of the state's colleges. In 1974, women faculty at MSU sued, alleging gender discrimination. They won their suit in 1976, leading to a $400,000 damages award, a back-pay award, and extensive promotions (which also increased salaries). To accommodate these fiscal realities, McIntosh ordered several doctoral and master's degree programs terminated, and all advanced degree programs in the social sciences and liberal arts canceled.

But McIntosh also scored several successes. In 1972, he persuaded the legislature to allow MSU to participate in the Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho (WWAMI) medical education program, which allowed 20 (now 30) Montana citizens per year to begin medical school at MSU before completing studies at the University of Washington. The College of nursing (Sherrick Hall) was finished in 1973, and after three long years of construction, Reno H. Sales Stadium (now Bobcat Stadium and Martel Field) and the Marga Hosaeus Fitness Center both opened. In 1974, the long-planned Creative Arts Complex (Cheever Hall, Haynes Hall, and Howard Hall) was also completed. Unfortunately, major increases in inflation led to significant design changes. Instead of a 1,200-seat concert hall with superb acoustics, a cramped and aurally dead 260-seat auditorium was built. Finally, in 1976, the university completed the new medical science building, Leon Johnson Hall.

In 1976, the "hidden million" controversy ended McIntosh's tenure as president. In 1975, Montana's first Commissioner of Higher Education, Lawrence K. Pettit (a former MSU professor of political science) launched an investigation of several Montana colleges and universities. He was particularly interested in MSU, where McIntosh's laid-back governance style was widely considered to have hurt the university. In March 1976, Pettit announced he was confiscating $1 million in surplus student fees from MSU — money he argued the university was trying to hide from state auditors and the legislature. The monies were the result of excessively high enrollment in the 1974–1975 school year and were intended to help see the university through the 1975–1976 school year (when the legislature would not meet, and thus could not provide the needed budgetary boost to handle the over-enrollment).The monies would have covered less than 25 percent of the over-enrollment of 700 students. Pettit all but accused MSU and McIntosh of fraud, and McIntosh refused to attack Pettit's statements as mischaracterizations and slander. The public outcry about the "hidden million" led the board of regents to request McIntosh's resignation on 30 June 1977, which he tendered. (Pettit resigned the following year, his combative attempt to turn the commissioner's office into a sort of chancellorship having failed.)

William Tietz, MSU's ninth president, arrived in August 1977 just as economic conditions in the state were improving. With three of the four vice presidencies at the university open, Tietz imposed his stamp on the administration almost immediately. This included a strong emphasis on research, faculty development, better teaching, and diversity (particularly for Native Americans, the handicapped, and women). His aggressiveness, energy, and immediate re-budgeting of funds into faculty sabbaticals helped win over professors, who voted against unionization in 1978. Tietz's major goal, increasing research funding, was greatly helped by a 1981 decision of the legislature to refund indirect cost payments back to the university. This led to an immediate 15 percent recovery of federal funds, and in time private foundation funding rose significantly as well.

Only two buildings were constructed during Tietz's presidency — the Visual Communications Building in 1983 and the Plant Growth Center in 1987. Most of his focus as president was on raising salaries. A third building, the modern home of the Museum of the Rockies, opened in 1989. But this structure was paid for by bonds. Faculty salaries had declined 23 percent during the 1970s (due to wage freezes) and MSU was in the bottom 10 percent of salaries for faculty nationwide. Cooperative Extension Service salaries were dead last in the nation. The state legislature implemented a new salary funding formula that rectified many of these problems. Some university programs were also re-established, such as the honors program, and some new ones were formed, such as the Writing Center.

The state once more entered a severe economic downturn in the mid-1980s. Budget cuts totaling nearly 10 percent, coupled with an enrollment shortfall, led to significant retrenchment. Tietz argued MSU should focus on its strongest programs. Thus, a wide array of programs were terminated: Membership in the Center for Research Libraries; sports like skiing, women's gymnastics, and wrestling; degree programs like engineering science, business education, and industrial arts; and the office of institutional research. Departments were merged and downsized, and Tietz proposed closing the School of Architecture. A battle broke out to save it, and Tietz backed off his decision. Tietz increasingly blamed Governor Ted Schwinden for a failure to support higher education, and lashed out repeatedly against the governor when Schwinden publicly ridiculed MSU's new Tech Park (a {{convert|90|acre|m2|adj=on}} project designed to function as a technology incubator). Although a second faculty unionization effort failed in 1989, Tietz resigned in March 1990, frustrated by the constant battles with an "old guard" resistant to turning MSU toward high technology.

File:Looking NE Engineering and Physical Sciences Building - Montana State University - 2013-07-09.jpg

Michael P. Malone was named MSU's Acting President on 1 January 1991,"Garfield County Native Named MSU President." Lewiston Morning Tribune. 6 November 1991. and permanently appointed to the position in March 1991, Malone was named MSU's 10th president.[http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/article_d142e15a-3b1e-57cd-a8a7-bbcd62e55b98.html Schontzler, Gail. "MSU President Mike Malone Dies." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. December 21, 1999.] Accessed 10 August 2013. He had served as MSU's Dean of Graduate Studies from 1979 to 1988,"Michael P. Malone, 59, Native of Pomeroy." Lewiston Morning Tribune. 24 December 1999. and then three one-year temporary appointments as vice president for Academic Affairs while a fruitless national search occurred for a permanent replacement. As Dean of Graduate Studies, he'd been critical of what he perceived as the state's unwillingness to invest in high technology education.Lamba, David. "Wary of Change." Los Angeles Times. 23 October 1986.

Malone's governance style was democratic, friendly, and personal. His friendly style made him personally popular with legislators and earned their respect. Nonetheless, he was criticized for focusing too much on how little money MSU had and for criticizing the legislature too much for not investing in higher education.Schontzler, Gail. "Geoff Gamble - A Hard Act to Follow." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. 29 August 2009.

Malone was the first MSU president to preside over the Billings, Great Falls, and Havre campuses. On 1 July 1994, Montana restructured the Montana University System. Eastern Montana College in Billings, Montana Northern College in Havre, and the Vocational-Technical Center in Great Falls lost their independence and were made satellite campuses of Montana State University. Although Montana's seven tribal colleges remained independent (as they are sponsored by sovereign nations), the state required them to integrate their teaching, operations, and academic operations with both Montana State University and the University of Montana to continue to receive state funding.

Montana State University celebrated its centennial in 1993. A university history called In the People's Interest: A Centennial History of Montana State University was published to celebrate the centennial, authored by three Montana State history professors--Jeffrey J. Safford, Pierce Mullen, and Robert Rydell.{{Cite book |last1=Rydell |first1=Robert W. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6eLK3od4QK4C |title=In the People's Interest: A Centennial History of Montana State University |last2=Safford |first2=Jeffrey J. |last3=Mullen |first3=Pierce C. |date=1992 |publisher=Montana State University Foundation |isbn=978-0-9635114-0-9 |language=en}}

File:Aasheim Gate - Malone Centennial Mall - Montana State University - Bozeman, Montana - 2013-07-09.jpg

During Malone's presidency, Montana State University witnessed "one of the greatest expansions in campus history", as a large number of new buildings were constructed. These included the $1 million Centennial Mall (1993), the $22 million Engineering and Physical Sciences Building (1997), the $10 million Bobcat Stadium renovation, the $13.5 million renovation of Brick Breeden Fieldhouse, the $12 million Agricultural Biosciences Building (1999), and the $7.5 million Renne Library renovation (1999). A strong sports fan, Malone's focus extended to sports personnel as well as sports facilities. In 1999, he fired Bobcats football head coach Cliff Hysell after eight losing seasons and hired Mike Kramer, the winning coach at Eastern Washington University.Bergum, Steve. "Bad Vibes From Start." The Spokesman Review. 6 October 2000. In October 1999, he fired MSU women's basketball head coach Tracey Sheehan and assistant coach Jeff Malby after an NCAA investigation revealed that the two coaches were overworking their team and causing injuries to student-athletes."MSU Women's Basketball Coaches Sheehan, Malby Fired." Associated Press. 1 November 1999.

Like William Tietz before him, Malone also pushed hard for faculty and the university to seek and win federal funding for scientific research. Federal research funding grew from just $13 million in the late 1980s to more than $50 million in 1999.[http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/article_efe4cfb8-efb2-59e6-8a7f-c1669f50c6f9.html "Obituary for Michael P. Malone." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. December 21, 1999.] Accessed 10 August 2013. The undergraduate curriculum was revamped, enrollment hit a historic high of 11,746 students in 1999, and the Burns Telecommunications Center was established. Malone benefitted from a strong economy that eased many of the fiscal pressures Tietz faced. He expanded alumni fund-raising programs and pushed the MSU Foundation to redouble its fund-raising efforts. But the legislature was not forthcoming with salary increases. He weathered a strike by clerical and administrative support staff in 1992. He was later criticized, however, for initiating projects without having the money to complete them and then using the subsequent construction crisis to raise the funds to finish the project. Tuition doubled during his time in office, angering students, and some faculty criticized his willingness to construct new buildings while declining to pay for teaching equipment.

The MSU community was shocked when Malone died of a heart attack on 21 December 1999, at Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport. He was the second MSU president to die in office, and the second to die of heart failure.

File:Looking NW at Chemistry and Biochemistry Building - Montana State University - 2013-07-09.jpg

Malone's successor, Geoffrey Gamble, was named the 11th president of Montana State University on 5 October 2000.Anez, Bob. "Gamble Named New MSU President." Associated Press. 6 October 2000. His governance style was open and consultative.[http://www.montana.edu/mountainsandminds/article.php?article=7802 Ellig, Tracy. "An Unprecedented President." Mountains & Minds Magazine. Fall 2009.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140612215515/http://www.montana.edu/mountainsandminds/article.php?article=7802 |date=12 June 2014 }} Accessed 10 August 2013. In addition to making the president's executive council more representative and reaching out to the Faculty Senate, he established a new 25-member University Planning, Budget, and Analysis Committee to establish the university budget. Legislatively, Gamble promoted MSU's accomplishments, praised legislators for their financial support (even when it was not forthcoming), and spoke of state funding for the university in terms of investment that led to economic and job growth. According to Cathy Conover, MSU's chief legislative lobbyist, Gamble's style was "a sea change" that led the Republican-dominated state legislature to rave about him.

Montana State University also implemented the "Core 2.0 curriculum" during Gamble's tenure as president. This program encourages undergraduate students to engage in research or practice their art before graduation.

Gamble also focused on research. Between 2000 and 2009, federal research funding at MSU grew by 61 percent to $98.4 million.[http://www.bigskybusiness.com/index.php/politics/montana-politics/719-msu-has-record-enrollment "MSU Has Record Enrollment." Big Sky Business Journal. October 6, 2009.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160314090636/http://bigskybusiness.com/index.php/politics/montana-politics/719-msu-has-record-enrollment |date=14 March 2016 }} Accessed 10 August 2013. Gamble trademarked the name "University of the Yellowstone" to reflect the high level of research MSU conducted in the greater Yellowstone National Park ecosystem.Schontzler, Gail. "Montana State Eyes Profile as University for Yellowstone Region." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. 15 August 2007.

Gamble also made diversity a major effort in his presidency. He appointed the university's first permanent female vice president, and by 2009 women outnumbered men among MSU's deans, five to four. He appointed Henrietta Mann (chair of the MSU Department of Native American Studies, and one of the most prominent Indian educators in the United States) his representative to the seven tribal colleges which participate in the Montana University System and created a Council of Elders to bring leaders of the tribal colleges together twice a year at MSU for discussions. Native American enrollment at MSU rose 79 percent (to a historic high of 377 students) during Gamble's time in office.

In 2006, a major sports scandal engulfed Montana State University. On 30 June 2006, former MSU basketball player Branden Miller and former MSU football player John LeBrum were charged with murdering local cocaine dealer Jason Wright.Miller played basketball for MSU from 2004 to 2005. Lebrum played football for MSU in the fall of 2003.[http://www.belgrade-news.com/news/article_b73e046c-92f5-5d40-81cd-2a81016f41ca.html Ewan, Jeremy. "Wright Murder: Many Hands Helped Break Case." Belgrade News. July 4, 2006.] Accessed 10 August 2013.[http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/article_bb026183-46b9-5915-9895-f0f676e93945.html Sullivan, Ted. "Wright Murder Case: Anatomy of a Crime.' Bozeman Daily Chronicle. December 15, 2007.] Accessed 10 August 2013. After an 18-month investigation, six additional current and former MSU athletes were charged with buying and selling cocaine. Three of the six were charged with running a cocaine smuggling ring that sold {{convert|26|lb|kg}} of cocaine in Bozeman between June 2005 to May 2007.

Court records later revealed that some MSU coaches knew Miller carried handguns in his athletic bag at school and that the murder weapon and other handguns had been secreted in Brick Breeden Fieldhouse.[https://www.espn.com/college-sports/news/story?id=2507683 "Montana State President to Respond to Murder Crisis." Associated Press. July 2, 2006.] Accessed 10 August 2013. In August 2007, Sports Illustrated ran a front-page article, "Trouble in Paradise", that recounted drug use, violence, theft, intimidation, and illegal activities by current and former MSU student-athletes and the complicity of the low-level coaching staff.[https://archive.today/20130811102409/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1105362/ Dohrmann, George. "Trouble in Paradise." Sports Illustrated. August 13, 2007.] Accessed 10 August 2013. An investigation by the NCAA revealed significantly lower graduation rates for MSU football and basketball players under football coach Mike Kramer as well as men's basketball coach Mick Durham, and a large number of athletes on or flirting with academic probation.[http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/sports/bobcats/football/article_19fcdf80-1815-11e2-8ec3-0019bb2963f4.html "Former Montana State Head Coach Mike Kramer in Hot Water at Idaho State." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. October 16, 2012.] Accessed 10 August 2013. Gamble quickly fired Kramer, who then sued MSU for unlawful dismissal. Kramer and MSU settled out of court, and Kramer received a payment of $240,000. In 2009, Gamble said his hardest time as president was dealing with the sports scandal.[http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/article_701cd980-3963-591d-8292-3d7201bf098f.html Schontzler, Gail. "Gamble to Retire as MSU President." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. March 23, 2009.] Accessed 10 August 2013.

Gamble announced his retirement on 22 March 2009.

Waded Cruzado, the former president of New Mexico State University, succeeded Gamble as president, taking office on 4 January 2010. Since her arrival, the university's headcount enrollment has grown from 13,559 in the fall of 2010 to a record 16,902 in the fall of 2018 – a 24.66 percent increase – making MSU the largest university in the state of Montana.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/montana_state_university/msu-sets-new-enrollment-record-students/article_5c600779-bed9-54ec-bae2-a273f11a2398.html|title=MSU sets new enrollment record — 16,902 students|last=Schontzler|first=Gail|date=24 September 2018|work=Bozeman Daily Chronicle|access-date=24 September 2018|language=en}}

In addition to enrollment increases, the campus has seen the completion of numerous major construction and renovation projects since Cruzado's arrival. In the fall of 2010, the university reopened one of its most heavily used classroom buildings on campus, Gaines Hall, after a $32 million renovation funded by the Montana Legislature.Schontzler, Gail. “Gaines Hall: MSU transformed most-used classroom building from ‘dungeon’ to a showplace.” Bozeman Daily Chronicle. 21 September 2010.

That same fall, the university opened its new, 40,000-square-foot Animal Bioscience Building. The $15.7 million building was funded, in part, by donations from Montana's livestock and grains industry. In addition to classroom and teaching laboratory space, the building is home to the MSU College of Agriculture's Department of Animal and Range Sciences.Schontzler, Gail. “Animal Bioscience Building brings MSU livestock teaching research into the 21st century.” Bozeman Daily Chronicle. 5 November 2010.

While the Gaines Hall renovation and the Animal Biosciences building were underway before Cruzado took office, in the fall of 2010 she launched an ambitious 90-day campaign to raise $6 million in private donations for a $10 million project to replace and expand the 38-year-old south end zone of the university's football stadium. The university would cover the remaining $4 million for the project, paying it back from revenues generated by MSU Athletics, including ticket sales. The campaign was successful and resulted in a new end zone opening for the fall 2011 season.Schontzler, Gail. “Bobcat Stadium expansion exceeds $10 million goal.” Bozeman Daily Chronicle. 3 November 2011. The end zone project resulted in a net gain of 5,200 seats for the stadium for a total capacity of 17,500. However, through additional standing-room-only attendance, the stadium thrice exceeded 21,000 spectators in the fall of 2013.“The Automated ScoreBook.” 2013 season, Montana State University. Accessed 23 November 2013.

The fall of 2010 also marked the official opening of Gallatin College Programs at MSU, offering two-year degrees. The program was previously known as MSU-Great Falls College of Technology in Bozeman and was located away from the central campus, but with the renaming, Gallatin College was also given offices and classrooms in Hamilton Hall, located in the campus center.“Gallatin College Programs set to open at MSU.” Bozeman Daily Chronicle. 8 September 2010. The program's first dean, Bob Hietala, oversaw a period of steady enrollment growth, with Gallatin College growing from 100 students at its start to more than 800 in fall 2019.{{Cite news|url=https://www.montana.edu/news/19048/msu-announces-fall-enrollment|title=MSU announces fall enrollment|date=20 September 2019|work=MSU News Service|access-date=31 October 2019}} The program also expanded into new spaces, leasing empty classrooms in the local high school and space in a commercial building off-campus.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/education/dean-who-led-growth-of-gallatin-college-to-retire/article_4da34bb0-376f-504e-b619-9fb1c1ec48ed.html|title=Dean who led growth of Gallatin College to retire|last=Schontzler|first=Gail|date=3 December 2018|work=Bozeman Daily Chronicle|access-date=31 October 2019}}

MSU marked its 125th anniversary in 2018 with a year of celebratory events. Several thousand attended daylong events on 16–17 Feb. featuring family activities, music, fireworks, and speeches commemorating the university's history.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/montana_state_university/msu-set-to-celebrate-th-anniversary-with-bobcat-birthday-bash/article_3c74e438-10a6-5030-b34c-063b85483879.html|title=MSU set to celebrate 125th anniversary with Bobcat Birthday Bash|last=MSU News Service|work=Bozeman Daily Chronicle|access-date=22 May 2018|language=en}} A newly installed statue of Abraham Lincoln by Bozeman-area artist Jim Dolan was unveiled at a ceremony honoring the former president's contributions to land-grant universities.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/montana_state_university/msu-s-th-birthday-bash-honors-lincoln/article_f8aea188-784d-57a1-a271-5191eb67f81e.html|title=MSU's 125th birthday bash honors Lincoln|last=Schontzler|first=Gail|work=Bozeman Daily Chronicle|access-date=22 May 2018|language=en}}

In November 2019, the board of regents voted to raise Cruzado's salary by $150,000, citing her performance as president and amid reports Cruzado had received a larger offer from another university. Cruzado declined to name the university that wanted to hire her. The 50% raise received support for putting Cruzado's salary in line with other universities' presidents' salaries but also criticism given Montana's median salary ($53,000) and the pay of lower-level employees. In 2020, Cruzado's salary stood at $476,524 per year.{{Cite web|last=Schontzler|first=Gail|date=22 November 2019|title=Cruzado's record raise met with jeers and kudos|url=https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/montana_state_university/cruzado-s-record-raise-met-with-jeers-and-kudos/article_bcd2d56b-3369-532d-8b81-ba579c36ad55.html|access-date=14 Jan 2021|website=Bozeman Daily Chronicle}}

Severe snow and cold during the winter of 2019 contributed to the collapses of two gymnasium roofs at the university's Marga Hosaeus Fitness Center.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/roof-collapses-at-montana-state-gym/article_fe1c0bb0-4c02-50af-9555-417d830dae76.html|title=Roof collapses at Montana State gym|last1=Schontzler|first1=Gail|date=7 March 2019|work=Bozeman Daily Chronicle|access-date=15 April 2019|last2=Monares|first2=Freddy}} The center's south gym roof fell during the early morning hours of 7 March, followed two days later by the north gym roof.{{Cite web|url=http://www.montana.edu/communications/south-gym-roof-collapse.html|title=Campus Roof Updates|last=Cruzado|first=Waded|date=12 March 2019|website=Montana State University|access-date=12 March 2019}} No one was injured in the collapses, and the entire fitness center is in the process of being rebuilt.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/montana_state_university/msu-demolishing-gyms-where-roofs-collapsed/article_9444bc45-7d7d-5855-be66-64c8ee912b37.html|title=MSU demolishing gyms where roofs collapsed|last=Schontzler|first=Gail|date=26 March 2019|work=Bozeman Daily Chronicle|access-date=15 April 2019}} Two inflatable gym structures, known as North and South Dome, exist as temporary replacements until the new Marga Hosaeus Fitness Center is completed.{{Cite news|url=https://www.kbzk.com/news/local-news/msu-pop-up-domes-officially-open-temporarily-replacing-collapsed-gyms|title=MSU 'pop up' domes officially open, temporarily replacing collapsed gyms|last=Boyer|first=Cody|date=2 October 2019|work=KBZK|access-date=31 October 2019}}

The COVID-19 pandemic in the spring of 2020 forced Montana's public university system to switch to online and remote course delivery midway through the spring semester.{{Cite web|url=https://mus.edu/coronavirus/remote-delivery-memo.html|title=Transition to Remote Delivery of Courses|last=Christian|first=Clayton|date=12 March 2020|website=Montana University System|access-date=14 April 2020}} To help stem the spread of the disease, the university canceled events, encouraged students not to return after spring break, and asked employees to work from home, essentially emptying the campus.{{Cite web|url=https://www.montana.edu/health/coronavirus/archived-comms.html#email20|title=COVID-19 Update for March 16|last=Cruzado|first=Waded|date=16 March 2020|website=Montana State University|access-date=14 April 2020}} The in-person spring commencement ceremony was also replaced by an online alternative.{{Cite web|url=https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/coronavirus/graduation-canceled-montana-state-plans-alternative-celebrations/article_31d8f84e-f8ee-5679-a7cb-66bc72b909dc.html|title=Graduation canceled, Montana State plans alternative celebrations|last=Schontzler|first=Gail|website=Bozeman Daily Chronicle|date=3 April 2020 |language=en|access-date=14 April 2020}}

In October 2023, Montana State officials were notified that the institution was under investigation by the US Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights for discrimination related to the administration's handling of an incident involving death threats received by members of the Queer Straight Alliance, a registered campus student organization, in the Spring of 2023{{cite news |url=https://www.msuexponent.com/news/anonymous-death-threat-galvanizes-msu-s-queer-community/article_723ceff4-bea0-11ed-b3c5-17b400c43f96.html |publisher=The MSU Exponent|title=Anonymous death threat galvanizes MSU's queer community}} it was reported that more than 20 students filed complaints with the Federal Agency. {{cite news |url=https://dailymontanan.com/2023/10/24/montana-state-university-under-investigation-by-federal-office-for-civil-rights/ |publisher=The Daily Montanan|title=Montana State University under investigation by federal office for civil rights}}

Two months later, the university was informed that it faced additional allegations, this time about failing to adequately respond to complaints of harassment made by female and Jewish students on campus.{{cite news |url=https://dailymontanan.com/2023/12/18/montana-state-university-faces-second-office-for-civil-rights-discrimination-investigation/|publisher=The Daily Montanan|title=Montana State University faces second office for civil rights discrimination investigation}} The following month, federal agencies informed university officials of a third civil rights investigation related to allegations of discrimination against a student who had reported incidents of sexual harassment.{{cite news |url=https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/education/feds-to-visit-msu-after-opening-another-civil-rights-investigation/article_e0d5aac4-c056-11ee-b382-8776b32725fb.html |publisher=The Bozeman Dailly Chronicle|title=Feds to visit MSU after opening another civil rights investigation}} One month after that notification, MSU received a fourth notice of investigation from the Deptment of Education, alleging discrimination against students with disabilities.{{cite news |url=https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/education/feds-open-a-fourth-investigation-into-montana-state/article_cf3c8270-d022-11ee-9198-736e71b92343.html |publisher=The Bozeman Daily Chronicle|title=Feds open a fourth investigation into Montana State}}{{cite news|url=https://dailymontanan.com/2024/02/21/montana-state-university-under-investigation-for-discrimination-on-basis-of-disability/ |publisher=The Daily Montanan|title=Montana State University under investigation for discrimination on basis of disability}} This time, the notice was accompanied by a warning from investigators:

{{Quote|text=Please be advised that the University must not harass, coerce, intimidate, discriminate, or otherwise retaliate against an individual because that individual asserts a right or privilege under a law enforced by OCR or files a complaint, testifies, assists, or participates in a proceeding under a law enforced by OCR ... If this happens, the individual may file a retaliation complaint with OCR.{{cite news |url=https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/montana-state-university-under-investigation-discrimination-basis-disability |publisher=News From the States|title=Montana State University under investigation for discrimination on basis of disability}}}}

Also in February 2024, a team of Department of Education lawyers and investigators visited the Bozeman campus and met with select students and administrators to discuss allegations of civil rights violations on campus.{{cite news |url=https://dailymontanan.com/2024/01/30/federal-office-for-civil-rights-officials-to-visit-montana-state-university/ |publisher=The Daily Montana|title=Federal office for civil rights officials to visit Montana State University}} At the time of the visit, there were 11 pending Department of Education investigations of violations at Montana State, some going back as far as 2016.{{cite news |url=https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/education/feds-open-a-fourth-investigation-into-montana-state/article_cf3c8270-d022-11ee-9198-736e71b92343.html |publisher=The Bozeman Dailly Chronicle|title=Feds open a fourth investigation into Montana State University}}{{cite web|url=https://ocrcas.ed.gov/open-investigations?field_ois_state=All&field_ois_discrimination_statute=All&field_ois_type_of_discrimination=All&items_per_page=20&field_ois_institution=Montana%20State%20University&field_ois_institution_type=All&field_open_investig=&field_open_investigation_date_1=&field_open_investigation_date_2=&field_open_investigation_date=&field_open_investigation_date_3=&order=field_open_investigation_date&sort=asc|title=US Department of Education Pending Investigations}}

(Acting president) Luther Foster - 16 February 1893, to 17 April 1893

1. Augustus M. Ryon - 17 April 1893, to 1895

2. James R. Reid - 1895 to 1904

3. James M. Hamilton - 1904 to 1919

4. Alfred Atkinson - 1920 to 1937

5. A. L. Strand - 1937 to 1942

(Acting president) William Cobleigh - 1942 to 1943

6. Roland Renne - 1943 to 1964 (acting from 1943 to 30 June 1944)

7. Leon H. Johnson - February 1964 to 1969 (died in office)

(Acting president) William Johnstone - 1969-1970

8. Carl W. McIntosh - 1970 to 1977

9. William Tietz - August 1977 to December 1990Schontzler, Gail. "Bill Tietz - The Maverick Who Shaped MSU." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. 2 November 2007.

10. Michael P. Malone - March 1991 to 21 December 1999 (died in office)[http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/article_d142e15a-3b1e-57cd-a8a7-bbcd62e55b98.html Schontzler, Gail. "MSU President Mike Malone Dies." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. December 21, 1999], accessed 10 August 2013; [http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/article_efe4cfb8-efb2-59e6-8a7f-c1669f50c6f9.html "Obituary for Michael P. Malone." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. December 21, 1999], accessed 2013-08-10.

(Interim president) Terry Roark - 21 January 2000 to 30 November 2000"MSU Hosts Public Reception for Interim President." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. 17 February 2000.

11. Geoffrey Gamble - 1 December 2000, to 22 December 2009

12. Waded Cruzado - 1 January 2010, to present (as of January 2022)[http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/article_7047d32c-701e-50ec-bba5-bfcc0be9ea2c.html Schontzler, Gail. "Cruzado's Salary $280,000, Top in State Government." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. October 31, 2009], accessed 11 August 2013; [http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/article_0c739e55-f6ab-565f-83ff-f7d62a74b6bc.html Schontzler, Gail. "Gamble Upbeat On Last Day at Montana Hall."Bozeman Daily Chronicle. December 23, 2009], accessed 2013-08-11.

{{Infobox US university ranking

| Forbes = 277

| USNWR_NU = 296 (tie)

| THE_WSJ = > 600

| Wamo_NU = 158

| USNWR_W = 872 (tie)

| THES_W = 801–1000

| QS_W =

| ARWU_W = 901–1000

}}

MSU offers baccalaureate degrees in 60 fields, master's degrees in 68 fields, and doctoral degrees in 35 fields through its nine colleges.

MSU is the national leader for Phi Kappa Phi Graduate Fellowships and is among the top ten institutions in the country for recipients of Goldwater Scholarships, having produced 74 of the scholars as of May 2019.{{Cite web|url=https://goldwater.scholarsapply.org/2019-goldwater-scholars-by-institution-state/|title=2019 Scholars by Institution State {{!}} Barry Goldwater|website=goldwater.scholarsapply.org|language=en-US|access-date=6 December 2019}} The university counts among its graduates several recipients of the Rhodes and Truman scholarships, and MSU has consistently produced winners of USA Today Academic All-America honors. Montana State University offers the world's only Master of Fine Arts degree in Science and Natural History Filmmaking, and MSU's Museum of the Rockies is home to the largest T. Rex skull ever found—bigger, even, than "Sue" at the Chicago Field Museum.

Academic programs, procedures, and policies are overseen by the Office of the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost. This office handles all teaching-related issues and is responsible for faculty hiring, establishing academic programs and curricula, course scheduling, and accreditation.{{Cite web|url=https://www.montana.edu/provost/|title=MSU Office of the Provost - Office of the Provost {{!}} Montana State University|website=www.montana.edu|language=en-US|access-date=19 June 2018}} The position has been held since April 2017 by Robert Mokwa.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/montana_state_university/msu-names-mokwa-as-provost/article_8ee83870-82a3-5d8c-b68d-0af8ff1d3a69.html|title=MSU names Mokwa as provost|last=Schontzler|first=Gail|work=Bozeman Daily Chronicle|access-date=19 June 2018|language=en}} He succeeded Martha Potvin, who in 2010 became the university's first female provost.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/msu-hires-first-female-provost/article_9244f10e-cdc0-11df-97da-001cc4c002e0.html|title=MSU hires first female provost|last=Schontzler|first=Gail|date=2 October 2010|work=Bozeman Daily Chronicle|access-date=19 June 2018|language=en}}

{{Div col|colwidth=22em}}

• College of Agriculture
• College of Arts and Architecture
• Jake Jabs College of Business and Entrepreneurship
• College of Education, Health & Human Development
• Norm Asbjornson College of Engineering
• College of Letters & Science
• College of Nursing
• Graduate School
• Gallatin College
• Honors College
• Roland R. Renne Library{{cite web | url=http://www.montana.edu/deanscouncil/ | title=Dean's Council | publisher=Montana State University | access-date=20 June 2013}}

{{div col end}}

Montana State University maintains extensive research programs, providing opportunities for undergraduates, graduates, and advanced graduate students, as well as some exceptional high school students. The university is in the top 3 percent of colleges and universities in the United States in research expenditures{{Cite web|url=http://www.montana.edu/marketing/about-msu/#VeryHighResearch|title=MSU at a Glance {{!}} Montana State University|website=Montana State University|language=en|access-date=21 May 2018}} and regularly reports annual research expenditures over $100 million, including a record $138.8 million in the fiscal year that ended in June 2019.{{cite news|url=https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/montana_state_university/montana-state-sets-new-research-record-of-million/article_933030e8-a168-593a-ba3b-fdc93270f5bb.html|title=Montana State sets new research record of $138 million|last=Schontzler|first=Gail|date=23 September 2019|work=Bozeman Daily Chronicle|access-date=24 September 2019}} In that same year the university said its faculty wrote 1,100 grant proposals, which led to grant awards worth about $485 million which will be spent over several years.

MSU's Office of Research and Economic Development coordinates programs that encourage faculty to pursue externally funded research. Its Office of Research Compliance oversees programs that promote ethical and responsible research and ensures compliance with local, state, and federal regulations for research.{{cite web|url=http://www.montana.edu/orc/index.html|title=Office of Research Compliance - Office of Research Compliance {{!}} Montana State University|website=www.montana.edu|language=en-US|access-date=21 May 2018}} The Office of Sponsored programs manages financial, reporting, compliance, auditing, and related tasks for externally funded research.{{Cite web|url=http://www.montana.edu/research/osp/aboutus/index.html|title=About Us - Office of Sponsored Programs {{!}} Montana State University|website=www.montana.edu|language=en-US|access-date=21 May 2018}}

The university maintains a technology transfer office to commercialize MSU faculty inventions, spur businesses based on those technologies, and network with businesses looking to license MSU technologies. The office manages more than 500 technologies and 375 patents, trademarks, and copyrights.{{Cite web|url=http://tto.montana.edu/index.html|title=Technology Transfer Office - Technology Transfer Office {{!}} Montana State University|website=tto.montana.edu|language=en-US|access-date=21 May 2018}}

The Renne Library--or the Montana State University Library--contains, (in addition to supporting the research and information needs of Montana State faculty, students, and the Montana Extension Service) a department dedicated to manuscript materials, photographs, and other historical ephemera called the Merrill G. Burlingame Archives and Special Collections, or the Montana State University Archives and Special Collections.{{Cite web |title=Archives and Special Collections - MSU Library {{!}} Montana State University |url=https://www.lib.montana.edu/archives/ |access-date=2022-04-18 |website=www.lib.montana.edu}}

Gallatin College{{Cite web |title=Gallatin College - Gallatin College {{!}} Gallatin College |url=https://gallatin.montana.edu/ |access-date=2023-01-31 |website=gallatin.montana.edu}} is a two-year college for degree-seeking students and is housed on MSU campus to provide access to MSU campus student services including dormitories, library facilities, and health services. As of May 2018,{{cite web|url=http://gallatin.montana.edu/about/|title=About Us|date=Fall 2016|website=Gallatin College|publisher=Montana State University|access-date=15 May 2018}} Gallatin College offers six Associate of Applied Science degrees, five Certificates of Applied Science, a Professional Certificate in business management, Associate of Arts and Associate of Science transfer degrees, and a Developmental Education Program. It also offers a Dual Enrollment program for local high school students to broaden their available range of coursework offerings and share educational resources between MSU and local high schools.

MSU houses approximately 4,200 students in its residence halls, approximately 70 percent of them freshmen.{{Cite web|url=https://www.montana.edu/reslife/halls/yellowstone.html|title=Yellowstone Hall - Residence Life - Montana State University|website=www.montana.edu|access-date=15 May 2018}} The university also offers housing to families and to graduate students.{{cite web|url=http://www.montana.edu/fgh/|title=Family and Graduate Housing - Family and Graduate Housing - Montana State University|access-date=13 December 2016}}

File:Shield of the United States Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps.svg

Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC) Detachment 450 at Montana State University (MSU) hosts the 450th AFROTC Cadet Wing. It was activated in 1952 and has approximately 110 cadets.{{Cite web |title=Air Force ROTC {{!}} Montana State University |url=https://www.montana.edu/airforce/ |access-date=2024-09-06 |website=www.montana.edu}}

{{Main|Montana State Bobcats}}

The MSU athletic teams are nicknamed the Bobcats, and they participate in NCAA Division I (I-FCS for football) in the Big Sky Conference, of which Montana State University is a charter member. They field 13 varsity sports.{{cite web|url=http://www.msubobcats.com/|title=Montana State Athletics|access-date=13 December 2016}} Originally playing as the "Aggies," men's teams compete in football, basketball, track, cross-country, skiing, rodeo and tennis. Women's teams include volleyball, basketball, track, cross-country, tennis, golf, rodeo, and skiing.

Montana State University has won several national championships in men's rodeo, three national championships in football, and one national championship in men's basketball. Non-varsity (club) sports include rugby, men's hockey, men's lacrosse, baseball, figure skating, fencing and ultimate frisbee. Montana State University has an ongoing rivalry with the University of Montana, most notably the cross-state football matchup, known as the "Brawl of the Wild", but also includes the cross-state club lacrosse matchup, known as the "Copper Cup".

{{main|Montana State Bobcats men's basketball|Montana State Bobcats women's basketball}}

The school's basketball teams achieved fame throughout the 1920s by playing "racehorse basketball" and becoming one of the first schools in the nation to employ what is known as the fast break. Montana State College coach Ott Romney, who graduated with a Master from MSC before World War I,{{cite web|title=G. Ott Romney Staff Bio {{!}} Athletic Director|url=http://byucougars.com/staff/athletics/g-ott-romney|publisher=Brigham Young University|access-date=20 August 2011}} pioneered the style of play, and by 1926 had assembled a team suited to playing an up-tempo brand of ball. Cat Thompson, John "Brick" Breeden, Frank Ward, Val Glynn, and Max Worthington were at the heart of the MSC team that won the Rocky Mountain Conference title three straight seasons, and bested Utah State, BYU, Colorado, and University of Denver. The 1928–29 team defeated the AAU Champion Cook's Painters in a two-of-three series, winning the Rocky Mountain Conference title. The team was named National Champions by the Helms Foundation, which also named Cat Thompson one of the five greatest players in the first half of the 20th century in college hoops.

{{Main|Montana State Bobcats football}}

In 1956 the Bobcats football team took a share of the NAIA championship in the Aluminum Bowl in Little Rock, Arkansas playing to a 0–0 tie with the Pumas of St. Joseph's College from Rensselaer, Indiana. In 1976 the Bobcats of Montana State won a national football title in NCAA Division II at Wichita Falls, Texas beating the Zips of Akron, Ohio 24–13 in the title game. In 1984, the Bobcats returned to a national football title game played in Charleston, South Carolina, beating the Bulldogs of Louisiana Tech 19-6 for their third national football title. The MSU Bobcats football is the only college team with national titles in three different classifications. The team has won 20 conference titles and has made the NCAA FCS playoffs in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024.

Montana State Bobcats Alpine and Nordic Ski team compete in the Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Skiing Association and the NCAA Western Region and has produced 13 national champions. The Bobcat Nordic and Alpine ski program venues at Bridger Bowl and Bohart Ranch have hosted six NCAA National Championships.{{cite web|title=Bobcat Skiing A Commitment to Excellence|url=http://www.montana.edu/bobcats/upload/cbfile_e_e_e_e_e_e_200804.pdf|publisher=Montana State University|access-date=21 August 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120318045210/http://www.montana.edu/bobcats/upload/cbfile_e_e_e_e_e_e_200804.pdf|archive-date=18 March 2012}}

File:Steve Daines official Senate portrait.jpg|Steve Daines
U.S. Senator, 2015–present

File:Denny Rehberg, official portrait, 111th Congress.jpg|Denny Rehberg
Member of U.S. House of Representatives, 2001-2013

File:Ann Sandberg.jpg|Ann Linnea Sandberg
Immunologist

File:Brian Schweitzer official photo.jpg|Brian Schweitzer
23rd Governor of Montana

File:JanStenerud.jpg|Jan Stenerud
Retired NFL placekicker, member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame

• Ken Amato, (1998) NFL longsnapper{{cite web|last=WALKER|first=TERESA M.|title=Ken Amato, former MSU long snapper, catches on with the Titans|url=http://www.notes.hypercrit.net/2008/08/jeff-amato-former-msu-long-snapper-catches-on-with-the-titans/|publisher=Bozeman Daily Chronicle|access-date=21 August 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120331000126/http://www.notes.hypercrit.net/2008/08/jeff-amato-former-msu-long-snapper-catches-on-with-the-titans/|archive-date=31 March 2012}}
• Rudy Autio, Ceramic Artist{{cite web|title=Oral history interview with Rudy Autio, 1983 Oct. 10-1984 Jan. 28|url=http://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/interviews/oral-history-interview-rudy-autio-11713|publisher=Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institutio|access-date=20 August 2011}}
• Tony Boddie, USFL and NFL running back
• John W. Bonner, 13th Governor of Montana{{cite web|url= http://www.nga.org/cms/home/governors/past-governors-bios/page_montana/col2-content/main-content-list/title_bonner_john.html|title= Montana Governor John Woodrow Bonner|publisher= National Governors Association|access-date= 10 October 2012}}
• Marianne Cargill Liebmann, heir and major shareholder of Cargill.{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/profile/marianne-liebmann/|title=Marianne Liebmann|website=Forbes |access-date=13 December 2016}}
• Erin Cech, sociologist and academic{{Cite web |title=Erin Cech - PCOSUW {{!}} Montana State University |url=https://www.montana.edu/president/universitywomen/extraordinary/eow_profiles/cech.html |access-date=2022-07-09 |website=www.montana.edu}}
• Kevin Michael Connolly, (2008) Author, Photographer, and Filmmaker{{cite web|title=Kevin Connolly to deliver MSU Freshmen Convocation lecture on Sept. 8|url=http://www.montana.edu/cpa/news/nwview.php?article=8737|publisher=Montana State University|access-date=21 August 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120318044108/http://www.montana.edu/cpa/news/nwview.php?article=8737|archive-date=18 March 2012}}
• Doug Coombs, (1985) Winner of the World Extreme Skiing Championship, in 1991 and 1993Porter Fox, "Legendary: Remembering Doug Coombs" Powder 35, no. 1 (Sept. 2006): 76–87, on 77.{{cite web|title=Extreme skiing pioneer and mountain guide killed in a cliff fall in France|url=http://www.skiinghistory.org/coombs.html|publisher=Skiing Heritage|access-date=21 August 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514081820/http://www.skiinghistory.org/coombs.html|archive-date=14 May 2011}}
• John Dahl, (1980) Director and screenwriter{{cite web|last=Schmidt|first=Carol|title=Calling the shots|url=http://www.montana.edu/mountainsandminds/article.php?article=9650|publisher=Montana State University|access-date=21 August 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111008045240/http://www.montana.edu/mountainsandminds/article.php?article=9650|archive-date=8 October 2011|url-status=dead}}
• Steve Daines, United States Senator from Montana{{cite web|title=Meet Steve Daines|url=http://daines.house.gov/meet-steve/|publisher=United States House of Representatives|access-date=3 December 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202205415/http://daines.house.gov/meet-steve/|archive-date=2 December 2013}}
• Lance Deal, (1984) 1996 Olympic silver medalist for the hammer throw{{cite web|title=Director of Track & Field Venues and Program Support|url=http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=22483|publisher=Oregon Ducks Track and Field|access-date=21 August 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110901080928/http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=22483|archive-date=1 September 2011}}
• Dennis Erickson, (1970) Professional football NFL head coach and collegiate head coach{{cite web|title=Dennis Erickson Named To Snohomish County Sports Hall of Fame|url=http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/062810aad.html|publisher=Sun Devil Athletics Football|access-date=21 August 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100803042715/http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/062810aad.html|archive-date=3 August 2010}}
• Zales Ecton, (1919) Montana Senator served 1947–1951{{cite web|title=Zales Ecton, Former U.S. Senator from Montana, 1947–1952 (Republican)|url=http://www.govtrack.us/congress/person.xpd?id=403732&tab=votes|publisher=United States Government Documents|access-date=21 August 2011}}{{cite web|title=Collection 1069 – Zales N. Ecton Papers, 1947–1953|url=http://www.lib.montana.edu/collect/spcoll/findaid/1069.html|publisher=Montana State University|access-date=21 August 2011}}
• Charles E. Erdmann, (1972) Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces
• Dane Fletcher, NFL linebacker
• Jack Gillespie (born 1 October 1947) played for the New York Nets of the American Basketball Association during the 1969–70 season.
• Patricia Peck Gossel, medical historian and curator
• Jennifer Graylock, photographer
• Maurice Ralph Hilleman (1966), Microbiologist and Vaccinologist{{cite news|title=Trail-blazing biologist whose vaccines saved millions from death – and tens of millions from disease|url=https://www.thetimes.com/article/obituary-maurice-hilleman-xnspb9vj930|publisher=Times Newspapers Ltd|access-date=21 August 2011}}
• Lester Hogan (1942), American physicist and a pioneer in microwave and semiconductor technology
• Carol Judge (Nursing 1962, M.S. 1983), First Lady of Montana (1973–1980) and healthcare advocate{{cite news|first=Charles S. |last=Johnson |title=Column: Recalling Carol Judge, first lady, RN and advocate |url=http://helenair.com/news/local/column-recalling-carol-judge-first-lady-rn-and-advocate/article_049c2341-4fa9-5108-9f73-2da439110370.html |work=Independent Record |date=13 December 2014 |access-date=4 January 2015}}
• Craig Kilborn, (1987) TV host, Sportscaster, Actor{{cite web|title=Yahoo Movies: Craig Kilborn Biography|url=https://movies.yahoo.com/movie/contributor/1804707049/bio|publisher=Yahoo Movies|access-date=21 August 2011}}
• David S. Lee, (1960) and Honorary Ph.D. (1993) Regent of the University of California, chairman of the board, eOn Communications Corporation
• Peter Liversidge, (1994) artist
• John Lovick, (1985) magician
• Travis Lulay, (2006) CFL quarterback
• Sam McCullum, (1974) NFL wide receiver{{cite web|title=Sam McCullum|url=http://www.schoolofthelegends.com/user/3107/view|publisher=School of the Legends|access-date=21 August 2011}}{{dead link|date=February 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
• Allan J. McDonald, (1959) aerospace consultant and author
• R. C. McDonough, Justice of the Montana Supreme Court{{cite web|url=https://courts.mt.gov/external/library/docs/judgesbio2.pdf |title=Biographies and Histories of Montana's Justices, Judges, and Courts, 1865-2020|publisher=State Law Library of Montana|date=2020|page=63}}
• Mike McLeod, (1979) NFL safety{{cite web|last=Cnockaert|first=Jim|title=Chronicle article – Mike McLeod|url=http://www.bobcatnation.com/bobcatbb/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=9233|publisher=Bozeman Daily Chronicle – Bobcat Alumni Message Board|access-date=21 August 2011}}
• Wally McRae, (1958) Rancher, Cowboy Poet, Activist{{cite web|last=Becker|first=Michael|title=There's more to Wally McRae than 'Reincarnation'|url=http://www.montana.edu/mountainsandminds/index2009.php|publisher=Montana State University|access-date=21 August 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110819112246/http://www.montana.edu/mountainsandminds/index2009.php|archive-date=19 August 2011}}
• Jill Mikucki, (2005) microbiologist, Antarctic researcher
• Joseph P. Monaghan, (1954) United States Representative from Montana{{cite web|url= http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=M000848|title=MONAGHAN, Joseph Patrick, (1906 - 1985)|publisher= Biographical Directory of the United States Congress|access-date= 14 October 2012}}
• Duane Nellis, (1976) president of Texas Tech University, former president of the University of Idaho
• Frosty Peters, American football player
• Wendy Red Star (2004) Photographer, sculptor, performance artist; humanizes misconceptions of indigenous peoples with wit, satire
• Larry Rubens, (1982) NFL center{{cite web|title=Panther Football College Players|url=http://www.meadfootball.com/alumni.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100812035221/http://www.meadfootball.com/alumni.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=12 August 2010|access-date=21 August 2011}}
• Reno Sales (1898), Chief Geologist of Anaconda Copper, "father of mining geology," namesake of the Reno H. Sales Stadium
• Ann Linnea Sandberg, immunologist
• Brian Schweitzer, (MS 1980) Governor of Montana{{cite web|title=Brian Schweitzer|url=http://www.nga.org/cms/home/governors/current-governors/col2-content/main-content-list/brian-schweitzer.html|publisher=National Governors Association|access-date=15 October 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121104034608/http://www.nga.org/cms/home/governors/current-governors/col2-content/main-content-list/brian-schweitzer.html|archive-date=4 November 2012}}
• Mary Higby Schweitzer (Ph.D. 1995), Paleontologist
• Jan Stenerud (1966) NFL kicker{{cite web|title=Jan Stenerud Kicker, 1967–79|url=http://www.chiefswarpath.com/teamhistory/stenerud.htm|publisher=Chiefs Warpath|access-date=21 August 2011}}
• Kari Swenson, Veterinarian and 1984 Olympic Women's Biathlon 3 x 5 km relay Bronze Medalist.{{cite web|url=https://tv.yahoo.com/the-abduction-of-kari-swenson/show/1468/castcrew |title=The Abduction of Kari Swenson | Episode guide and videos |publisher=Yahoo! TV |date=20 April 2011 |access-date=23 November 2013}}
• Cristina Takacs-Vesbach (1999), Antarctic researcher, microbial ecologist{{Cite web|url=https://biology.unm.edu/core-faculty/takacs-vesbach.shtml|title=C. Takacs-Vesbach|website=biology.unm.edu|publisher=University of New Mexico|access-date=14 June 2016}}
• Joe Tiller (1964), the most successful head football coach in Purdue University history. Was an early pioneer of the spread formation.
• Kirk Timmer, NFL linebacker
• Lawrence VanDyke, United States Circuit Judge{{Cite web |date=2019-09-20 |title=Who Is Lawrence VanDyke? |url=https://www.nationalreview.com/bench-memos/who-is-lawrence-vandyke/ |access-date=2022-05-31 |website=National Review |language=en-US}}
• Trista Vick-Majors, Antarctic researcher, biogeochemist, microbial ecologist
• Peter Voulkos, Ceramic Artist
• Sarah Vowell, (1993) Writer, Journalist, and Voice Actor{{cite web|title=Notable L&S Alumni|url=http://www.montana.edu/lettersandscience/alumni_notable.html|publisher=Montana State University|access-date=21 August 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120210023239/http://www.montana.edu/lettersandscience/alumni_notable.html|archive-date=10 February 2012}}
• Irving Weissman (1961) Professor of Pathology and Developmental Biology and Director of the Stanford Institute of Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine

• Richard Brautigan, taught Creative Writing Spring, 1982{{cite web|title=Richard Brautigan Teaching|url=http://www.brautigan.net/teaching.html|publisher=Brautigan.net|access-date=20 August 2011}}
• Bob DeWeese, modern artist and professor, 1949-1977{{cite web|title=DeWeese Art|url=http://www.deweeseart.com/new-page-58|publisher=deweeseart.com|access-date=12 February 2023}}
• Peter Fonda, taught Film Workshop, Fall, 2000{{cite web|title=MSU Today Bulletin, Sep. 1, 2000|url=http://www.montana.edu/msutoday/archive/bulletin20000901.shtml#on3|publisher=Montana State University|access-date=20 August 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120318044000/http://www.montana.edu/msutoday/archive/bulletin20000901.shtml#on3|archive-date=18 March 2012}}
• Jack Horner, former Regents Professor of Paleontology and Curator of Paleontology, Museum of the Rockies, taught Paleontology{{cite web|title=Letters and Science Faculty|url=http://www.montana.edu/wwwes/facstaff/horner.htm|publisher=Montana State University}}
• Patrick Markey, taught as adjunct professor.{{cite web|title=Horse Whisperer Producer Affiliates with MSU Film School|url=http://www.montana.edu/cpa/news/wwwpb-archives/univ/markey.html|publisher=Montana State University|access-date=20 August 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120318044009/http://www.montana.edu/cpa/news/wwwpb-archives/univ/markey.html|archive-date=18 March 2012|url-status=dead}}
• Christopher Parkening, Classical Guitarist (Honorary Doctorate 1983),{{cite web|title=Academic Faculty|url=http://seaver.pepperdine.edu/academics/faculty/member.htm?facid=christopher_parkening|publisher=Pepperdine University|access-date=23 August 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001145135/http://seaver.pepperdine.edu/academics/faculty/member.htm?facid=christopher_parkening|archive-date=1 October 2011|url-status=dead}} teaches annual Master Guitar Class{{cite web|title=MSU University Summer Class|url=http://www.montana.edu/cpa/news/nwview.php?article=7311|publisher=Montana State University|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120318043709/http://www.montana.edu/cpa/news/nwview.php?article=7311|archive-date=18 March 2012}}
• Robert Pirsig, author of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, taught creative writing 1959–1961.{{cite book|title=In the People's Interest: A Centennial History of Montana State University|last1=Rydell|first1=Robert|last2=Safford|first2=Jeffrey|last3=Mullen|first3=Pierce|publisher=Montana State University Foundation|year=1992|isbn=0-9635114-0-8|location=Bozeman, Montana|pages=49}}
• Bill Pullman, taught Theater and active with [https://web.archive.org/web/20120507072251/http://www2.montana.edu/shakespeare/ Montana Shakespeare in the Parks]{{cite web|title=Six Honorary Degrees to Be Awarded By UMass Amherst at Commencement Ceremonies|url=http://www.umass.edu/newsoffice/newsreleases/articles/75119.php|publisher=University of Massachusetts Amherst|access-date=20 August 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080705042242/http://www.umass.edu/newsoffice/newsreleases/articles/75119.php|archive-date=5 July 2008}}{{cite news|title=New York Times Movie & TV Full Biography|url=https://movies.nytimes.com/person/58045/Bill-Pullman/biography|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100919034246/http://movies.nytimes.com/person/58045/Bill-Pullman/biography|url-status=dead|archive-date=19 September 2010|department=Movies & TV Dept.|work=The New York Times|author=Rebecca Flint Marx|date=2010|access-date=20 August 2011}}
• David Quammen, Science, Nature, and Travel Writer (Honorary Doctorate, 2000) taught and served as Wallace Stegner Professor in Western American Studies, 2006–2008.{{cite web|last=Boswell|first=Evelyn|title=New Stegner professor to hit the ground running|url=http://www.montana.edu/cpa/news/nwview.php?article=4110|publisher=Montana State University|access-date=20 August 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070820020652/http://www.montana.edu/cpa/news/nwview.php?article=4110|archive-date=20 August 2007}}
• Frances Senska, taught Ceramics Arts, 1946–1973.{{cite web|title=Frances Senska|url=http://www.craftinamerica.org/artists_clay/story_222.php?PHPSESSID=7e913787669b0f34d10d1c25e11a570e|publisher=Craft in America|access-date=20 August 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140123185614/http://www.craftinamerica.org/artists_clay/story_222.php|archive-date=23 January 2014}}{{cite web|title=Humble Grace: A Tribute to Frances Senska|url=http://www.artmuseum.org/index.php/exhibitions/exh-archived/151-humble-grace-a-tribute-to-frances-senska?f936e45de371569e7c870c0c95a279b9=69741d32020ed68afd8c00abbfa89dce|publisher=Yellowstone Art Museum|access-date=20 August 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120330232944/http://www.artmuseum.org/index.php/exhibitions/exh-archived/151-humble-grace-a-tribute-to-frances-senska?f936e45de371569e7c870c0c95a279b9=69741d32020ed68afd8c00abbfa89dce|archive-date=30 March 2012}}
• Gary Strobel, Microbiologist and Professor Emeritus of Plant Pathology, teaches Plant Sciences{{cite web|title=Gary Strobel: Microbiologist at MSU|url=http://www.distinctlymontana.com/article/gary-strobel-microbiologist-msu|publisher=Distinctly Montana|access-date=22 August 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111004052747/http://www.distinctlymontana.com/article/gary-strobel-microbiologist-msu|archive-date=4 October 2011}}

MSU's Office of Student Engagement organizes programs, events, and services for students.{{Cite web|url=http://www.montana.edu/engagement/about.html|title=About - Office of Student Engagement {{!}} Montana State University|website=www.montana.edu|language=en-US|access-date=21 May 2018}} The office registers student clubs and organizations and currently has more than 300 listed groups.{{Cite web|url=http://www.montana.edu/engagement/organizations/explore.html|title=Explore and Join - Office of Student Engagement {{!}} Montana State University|website=www.montana.edu|language=en-US|access-date=21 May 2018|archive-date=22 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180522121405/http://www.montana.edu/engagement/organizations/explore.html|url-status=dead}}

As of 2020, seven fraternities and five sororities are active.{{Cite web |title=Fraternity & Sorority Life |url=http://www.montana.edu/fslife/index.html |publisher=Montana State University |access-date=27 May 2020}}{{Cite web |url=http://www.montana.edu/fslife/ifc.html |title=Interfraternity Council |publisher=Montana State University |access-date=27 May 2020}}

{{Notelist}}

{{Reflist|30em}}

{{Collier's Poster|Montana State College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts|Montana State University}}

• {{Official website}}
• [http://www.msubobcats.com Official athletics website]

{{Montana State University}}

{{Colleges and universities in Montana}}

{{Big Sky Conference navbox}}

{{Montana Sports}}

{{authority control}}

Category:Buildings and structures in Bozeman, Montana

Category:Tourist attractions in Bozeman, Montana

Category:1893 establishments in Montana