Northern Illinois University

Northern Illinois University

Type	Public Research
Established	1895
Academic affiliation	APLU URA
Endowment	$71.2 million
President	Douglas D. Baker
Provost	Lisa C. Freeman
Students	20,130
Undergraduates	15,027
Postgraduates	5,103
Location	DeKalb, Illinois, U.S.
Campus	University town; 945.13 acres (382.5 ha)
Colors	Cardinal and Black
Nickname	Huskies
Sporting affiliations	NCAA Division I FBS MAC
Website	www.niu.edu

Coordinates: 41°56′2″N 88°46′40″W / 41.93389°N 88.77778°W / 41.93389; -88.77778

Northern Illinois University (NIU) is a public research university in DeKalb, Illinois, United States, with satellite centers in Chicago, Hoffman Estates, Naperville, Rockford, and Oregon. It was founded as Northern Illinois State Normal School on May 22, 1895, by Illinois Governor John P. Altgeld as part of an expansion of the state's system for producing college-educated teachers. Douglas Baker was named the university's twelfth president in May 2013.

The university is composed of seven degree-granting colleges and has a student body of 25,000 with over 225,000 alumni. Many of NIU's programs are nationally accredited for meeting high standards of academic quality, including business, engineering, nursing, visual and performing arts, and all teacher certification programs. NIU is one of only two public universities in Illinois that compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the highest levels of all sports, Division I. The University's athletic teams are known as the NIU Huskies and compete in the Mid-American Conference (MAC).