Kansas State Normal

Emporia State University

Motto	Changing Lives for the Common Good
Type	State university
Established	March 7, 1863 (1863-03-07)
Academic affiliation	Kansas Board of Regents
Endowment	$83.57 million (2017)
Budget	$91.82 million (2017)
President	Allison Garrett
Provost	David Cordle
Academic staff	597
Administrative staff	207
Students	5,732 (fall 2017)
Location	Emporia, Kansas, U.S. 38°24′58″N 96°10′47″W / 38.416023°N 96.179584°W / 38.416023; -96.179584Coordinates: 38°24′58″N 96°10′47″W / 38.416023°N 96.179584°W / 38.416023; -96.179584
Campus	Rural, 234 acres (0.95 km2)
Colors	Black and Gold
Nickname	Hornets
Sporting affiliations	NCAA Division II – MIAA
Mascot	Corky the Hornet
Website	emporia.edu

Emporia State University, often referred to as Emporia State or ESU, is a public university in Emporia, Kansas. Established in March 1863 as the Kansas State Normal School, Emporia State is the third-oldest public university in the state of Kansas. Emporia State is one of six public universities governed by the Kansas Board of Regents.

The university offers degrees in more than 80 courses of study through four colleges and/or schools: the School of Business, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, School of Library and Information Management, and The Teachers College.

Emporia State's intercollegiate athletic teams are known as the Hornets, with the exception of the women's teams, which are known as the Lady Hornets. Emporia State competes in NCAA Division II and has been a member of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) since 1991. Since joining the NCAA Division II in 1991, the Lady Hornets basketball team is the only team to win a NCAA championship.

The origins of the university date back to 1861, when Kansas became a state. The Kansas Constitution provided for a state university, and from 1861 to 1863 the question of where the university would be located—Lawrence, Manhattan or Emporia—was debated. In February 1863, Manhattan was selected as the site for the state's land-grant college, authorized by the 1862 Morrill Land-Grant Act–what evolved into Kansas State University. Lawrence and Emporia were therefore left as the only candidates for a state university. The fact that Amos Adams Lawrence had donated $10,000 (plus interest), as well as 40 acres (160,000 m²) to the city of Lawrence had great weight with the Kansas Legislature, and Lawrence was selected by one vote over Emporia as the location of the University of Kansas. On March 7, 1863, the Kansas Legislature passed the enabling act to establish the Kansas State Normal School, which would one day become Emporia State University; it did not open until February 15, 1865. The first class graduated two and a half years later; it consisted of two women, Mary Jane Watson and Ellen Plumb. Ellen was the daughter of US Senator Preston B. Plumb.