Ferris State University is an institute of higher learning whose main campus is located in Big Rapids, Michigan in Mecosta County. The school was founded in 1884 by Woodbridge Nathan Ferris, an educator from New England who at one time was Governor of the state of Michigan.

Originally named Ferris Industrial School, it became Ferris Institute in 1899 and remained privately owned until 1931. Ferris became a state school in 1949 and was renamed Ferris State College. The school became a university and assumed its current name, Ferris State University, in 1987.

The first classes at Ferris Industrial School were held in what is now the Fifth Third Bank building on the corner of Michigan Avenue and Maple Street. The orignal building, known as Old Main, was destroyed by a fire in 1950.

Ferris State University now boasts eight colleges: Allied Health Sciences, Arts and Sciences, Business, Education and Human Services, Optometry, Pharmacy, Technology, and Kendall College of Art and Design. Ferris grants doctorate degrees via its Optometry and Pharmacy colleges.

As of the Fall 2003 semester, over 11,000 students were enrolled at Ferris State University, 80% of whom live on the 880 acre (3.6 km²) campus. The University also has substantial enrollments at its locations in downtown Grand Rapids: Kendall College and the Applied Technology Center. The university's faculty-student ratio is 1:15, and all classes are taught by professional instructors, not graduate assistants.

As of 2003, Ferris State University was the largest employer in Mecosta County. Ferris State University