The College of Education has had many names over the years. When the Mankato State Normal School began, education, and the training of teachers, was all the school offered. In the 1901-1908 Mankato State Normal School Bulletin had the school divided between the Normal Department proper and the training department, or Practical School. These were the only divisions of the campus until 1938, when the college adopted different areas of study. This began the Division of Professional Education, and the Professional Unit of the College. By 1958, there were eight different divisions of Mankato State College. In 1960, the Division of Professional Education became the Division of Professional Education and Psychology, but this only lasted four years. In 1965, this unit became known as the School of Education. It was not until 1993 that this college became known as the College of Education.

Over the years, the College of Education, and the many different names it encompassed over the years, had different programs to help the students at the college, as well as the community. Department names have also changed over the years, often changing with different trends in education. In 1914, the school had a Laboratory School, or Campus School, where the teachers in training could teach students in the Mankato area. In 1958, this school moved to the upper campus, and got a new name, Wilson Campus School. This school was available for students until Spring 1976, when the lower campus w^ closed. The College also offers a program called Upward Bound, which helps children ages 14-18. Upward Bound helps students who are in high school with their education, as well as encourages them to attend college or some vocational training after high school. This program began in 1978, and continues through today.

The primary role of the today's College of Education is to prepare professional educators, counselors, and education leaders in many roles, creating one of the most stable and high quality school workforces in the world. One program that works toward this mission is the Children’s House. This program provides area families and College of Education students with a hands-on educational learning experience. Attending children learn through play while education students learn how to educate the youth. With nearly 1,700 students enrolled in the COE, approximately 1,100 are undergraduates, making education the most popular major at Minnesota State Mankato.

The College of Education currently offers majors in Aviation, Business Education, Early Childhood, Elementary Education, K-12 and Secondary Education, and Special Education for undergraduates. There is also a Graduate Degree Program, Doctoral Program, Professional Development Program, and Licensure Program under the College of Education.

For more information about Upward Bound, please see their website at: http://www.mnsu.edu/upwardbound/.

For more information about Children's House Please see their website at: https://ed.mnsu.edu/centers-offices-college-of-education/the-childrens-house/

For more information about the College of Education, see their website at: http://ed.mnsu.edu/.

This information was gathered from the Mankato State Normal School, the Mankato State Teacher's College and the Mankato State College Bulletins, as well as Claire E. Faust's book, Mankato State University: The Second Century, The First Twenty-Five Years, 1968-1992.