History of the Kelley School of Business

Business offerings expand with "commercial courses" in the Department of Economics and Social Science.

The business school is established as the School of Commerce and Finance with 70 students enrolled.

The School joins the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, which began accreditation standards in 1919 to ensure top-quality business education.

Indiana Business Review, published by the School of Business's Indiana Business Research Center, debuts.

Bureau of Business Research organized.

The School, housed in Rawles Hall, is renamed the School of Business Administration

Herman B Wells succeeds William A. Rawles as dean.

First graduate degree offered by the School, the Master of Science in Business, is approved.

Name of the School is shortened to the School of Business.

School of Business enrollment triples to 915 at the end of World War II and temporary housing is erected at Indiana University.

First MBA offered, replacing the Master of Science in Business and the Master of Commercial Science.

IU School of Business Alumni Association established—now the largest business school alumni association in the world.

First doctoral degree, the Doctor of Commercial Science, awarded.

First executive education program begins, the Indiana Executive Program.

Business Horizons academic journal begins publication.

First MBA classes offered in Indianapolis via closed-circuit television with Bloomington faculty.

Computers in Business  (renamed to Foundations of Business Information Systems and Decision Making in Fall 2025) class (K201) created.

First overseas institution building project implemented, the National Training Center for Office Administration in Djakarta, Indonesia.

School breaks ground on building at 10^th and Fee Lane.

First MBA program in East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) with the University of Dacca.

Becomes one of three founding members of the Consortium for Graduate Study in Management.

Innovative integrated core, or I Core, programming for undergraduate students developed at the School of Business is emulated by schools around the nation.

Business Honors Program begins.

E.W. Kelley establishes the first fully-funded professorship and chair at the school.

Indianapolis campus established. 

Indiana University's NCAA championship basketball team includes six business majors.

School becomes founding member of The Washington Campus.

The Wall Street Journal reports Indiana University as one of the top four undergraduate business schools in the nation.

Faculty work with Chinese officials (seen here in Bloomington) to establish first MBA program in China.

Executive MBA Program begins in Indianapolis.

Outstanding Educational Institution Award received from the National Black MBA Association.

The 10,000th MBA degree awarded in Bloomington.

MBA Academies introduced.

School celebrates 75 years as part of the International Business Forum in Wiesbaden, Germany.

School named the Kelley School of Business in honor of E. W. Kelley, BS'39 (pictured here with his wife, Wilma).

Indiana Business This Week begins in partnership with WRTV and WFYI.

Kelley becomes the first top-ranked school to offer online education with launch of the Kelley Direct Online MBA Program.

The Master of Science in Information Systems program launched in Bloomington.

William J. Godfrey Graduate and Executive Education Center opens.

The Kelley School of Business Living Learning Center, an academically focused residence hall, opens.

Executive Degree Programs (now Kelley Executive Education Programs) begins.

Kelley School's undergraduate building is renamed Hodge Hall Undergraduate Center, honoring James R. Hodge, BS'74.

Business of Medicine Physician MBA launched.

Hodge Hall Undergraduate Center expansion and renovation completed.

Conrad Prebys Career Services Center dedicated.

Jellison Living Learning Center dedicated.

Kelley School of Business celebrates 100-year anniversary.