1. Middle Tennessee State University, situated the geographic center of the state in Murfreesboro, is the oldest and largest institution in the Tennessee Board of Regents system. With an enrollment of more than 25,000 students, it is the No. 1 choice of undergraduates in Tennessee

2. We opened on a 100-acre campus on Sept. 11, 1911, as one of three teacher preparatory, or “normal,” schools opened by the state of Tennessee.  Today, we are a Carnegie Doctoral Research Intensive University that occupies more than 1,000 acres in Rutherford County, including a 500-acre main campus; an agricultural campus; an aerospace facility at the Murfreesboro airport; and the Miller Horse Science Center.

3. MTSU houses a wide variety of nationally recognized academic degree programs at the baccalaureate, master’s, and doctoral levels. The University is composed of eight undergraduate colleges offering more than 40 departments and more than 140 degree programs. The College of Graduate Studies offers more than 100 degree programs.

4. MTSU has received regional, national and international acclaim for a variety of programs and activities, including unique offerings in programs as diverse as recording industry management, horse sciences, aerospace, and our first-of-its-kind academic program in Concrete Industry Management. In addition, many of our more traditional programs, like agricultural science, nursing, accounting, and education, are considered to be among the best in the region.

5. Our 250,000-square-foot, $147 million Science Building, set to open by the 2015 spring semester, represents one of the most significant investments made by the state of Tennessee toward the enhancement of science and technology education.

6. We are the No. 1 producer of college graduates in the Tennessee Board of Regents system; the second-largest producer of graduates in the state among public universities; the No. 1 producer of adult (25-years-old and older) and low-income (Pell Grant eligible) graduates in the state; and the most efficient producer of graduates among the state’s public universities, helping more students reach their educationalgoals with fewer tax dollars per pupil from the state.

7. We are one of just 108 colleges and universities recognized by the Chronicle of Higher Education for producing Fulbright scholars in 2012–2013, ranked alongside universities such as Duke, Harvard, and Yale. No other Tennessee institution made the list.

8. For the third year in a row, we were designated a “military-friendly institution” by G.I. Jobs magazine. MTSU also has the state’s first federal VetSuccess on Campus program.

9. In 2012, we were the only institution of higher education in Tennessee to receive the Adult Learner Friendly Institution designation from the Coalition of Adult Learning Focused Institutions. Officially, half of MTSU students are classified as adults.

10. All of our 17 athletics programs met or exceeded multiyear Academic Progress Rate (APR) requirements. On July 1, 2013, we moved from the Sun Belt Conference, where we won nine All-Sports trophies and more than 50 conference championships, to Conference USA. Our athletics program will benefit greatly from C-USA’s television partnerships, increased bowl tie-ins and larger national footprint.

Some of MTSU’s most notable alumni include Senator Albert Gore Sr. (’32); Nobel Prize–winning economist James M. Buchanan (’40); Dot Records founder Randy Wood (’41); Hollywood movie composer (of the Austin Powers trilogy, among many others) George S. Clinton (’69); former U.S. congressman and past chair of the House Science Committee Bart Gordon (’71); 1988 National Teacher of the Year Terry Weeks (’72, ’74); and former CNN producer Jeffrey Reid (’81).

Also: journalist Karla Winfrey (’82), Grand Ole Opry vice president and general manager Pete Fisher (’87); former NFL quarterback Kelly Holcomb (’94); chart-topping country music songwriter Eric Paslay (’05); current NFL players Erik Walden (’07) and Phillip Tanner (’10); and WNBA players Alysha Clark (’09) and Amber Holt (’11). Country music artists Chris Young and Hillary Scott (of Lady Antebellum) attended MTSU.

Grounded in its Academic Master Plan, our University has developed a blueprint for the individual success of each student that can be defined by these three primary objectives:

• Maintaining our commitment to quality. Quality students engaged with distinguished faculty in an embracing, nurturing community;
• Fostering a student-centered environment. Where the academic, cultural and societal needs of our students are at the forefront of all that we do; and;
• Promoting strategic partnerships and alliances. Establishing relationships that support our educational efforts and provide breadth and relevance to our academic offerings.

As we look to the future, MTSU is working to develop a community committed to learning, growth, and service. We hold these values dear, and there’s a simple phrase that conveys them:  “I am True Blue.”

New students at convocation take the True Blue Pledge. It underscores our core values of honesty and integrity; respect for diversity; engagement in the community; and committing to reason, not violence. Each time these words are repeated, they express not only the ideals the University wishes to share with its students but also our devotion to student success.

True Blue stands for the very best of what Blue Raiders expect from one another.

The MTSU community has been overwhelmed by the passion and attachment that True Blue has received on campus since it was introduced at the August 2011 convocation exercises. The Student Government Association adopted it as its official motto and redesigned its seal to emphasize True Blue. The pledge was incorporated into numerous student events, rallies, and other activities. Find out more at www.mtsu.edu/trueblue.