EA Sports asked college football fans to vote and determine which college mascot would have the honor of being on the cover of NCAA Football 09 for the Nintendo Wii. MSU's beloved Sparty came out victorious!

Frankenmuth's famous Bronner's Christmas Wonderland is said to be the largest Christmas store in the world. Open 361 days a year, Bronner's has become an attraction, welcoming over two million people annually, including 2,000 group tours.

The 2007 Orbitz Food & Wine Index highlighted the Kalamazoo area as one of the Top Ten Fastest Growing Wine Regions in America, based on hotel and package bookings on the popular travel site.

The 2008 Chevy Malibu was named Car of the Year at the North American International Auto Show. The current GM victory builds on their 2007 successes when the Chevrolet Silverado took top truck honors and the Saturn Aura was the top car selection.

Netlink, a leading information technology provider, opened a new global headquarters in Madison Heights in 2007. The company added 150 new jobs, primarily in the Detroit area, with plans to add 200 more in 2008.

Michigan is among the top five states in the production of over 30 different types of crops, and ranks first in the production of tart cherries, blueberries, navy beans, cranberry beans, and black turtle beans.

Google Ann Arbor is the headquarters for AdWords, the company's advertising system and its largest revenue source.

More than 75% of America's cherries are grown in Michigan, most in the northwest, earning Traverse City the nickname, Cherry Capital of the World.

Michigan's tourism website, www.michigan.org, is the most popular state tourism site in America, according to Hitwise, an online measurement company.

The Detroit and Grand Rapids areas have both been named among the best metro areas in America to relocate a family.

Mid-Michigan's Hemlock Semiconductor Corporation is the world's largest producer of hyper-pure polycrystalline, a silicon product used in the solar industry. Due to high demand, the company is in the process of a one billion dollar expansion.

In 2007, Michigan wineries won 2 Platinum, 108 Gold (or equivalent), 313 Silver, and 346 Bronze medals in national and international competitions.

General Dynamics, a Sterling Heights-based designer and builder of vehicles for the U.S. military, has announced a $10 million expansion project that is expected to create approximately 500 new engineering jobs.

Michigan breweries won 1 Gold, 5 Silver, and 3 Bronze medals at the 2007 Great American Beer Festival.

Benton Harbor's Whirlpool Corporation was named an Innovations 2008 Design and Engineering Award Honoree by the Consumer Electronics Association. The company's refrigerator with centralpark connection, an interchangeable plug-and-play platform, earned them the acclaim.

The U.S. Department of Commerce noted a $2.9 billion increase in exports from the Detroit area in 2006, ranking it 5th highest in the nation.

Eastern Michigan University recently received a $2.2 million dollar gift, the largest in its history, to create the Jean Noble Parsons Center for the study of art & science.

The Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, in Grand Rapids, features a replicated Oval Office and includes a dramatic narration detailing activities in America's best known room. Newsweek honored Bloomfield Hills' International Academy as the 7th best public high school in the country for 2007.

The Detroit Institute of Arts has just undergone a six-year, $150 million renovation, and has reopened to raves.

Northern Michigan University is the site of the United States Olympic Education Center (USOEC), one of only four Olympic training centers in the nation and the only one designated as an education center.

Both the 1961 Lincoln that President Kennedy was in when he was shot, and President Lincoln's last theater seat are exhibited at The Henry Ford in Dearborn.

2009 U.S. News and World Report annual survey ranked MSU's elementary and secondary education graduate programs as the best in the nation for the fourteenth consecutive year!

The Historical Society of Michigan is the state's oldest cultural institution. Founded in 1828, it provides an abundance of education to the public and support services to over 800 local historical organizations.

Since its inception in 1989, the Michigan Aids Fund has awarded nearly $12 million to a variety of innovative and often hard to fund programs, and is focused on ending the epidemic by preventing new HIV infections.

If you could hold a giant magnifying glass in space and focus all the sunlight shining toward Earth onto one grain of sand, that concentrated ray would approach the intensity of a new laser beam made in a University of Michigan laboratory.

The Volunteer Centers of Michigan is a statewide network of 27 operational, and 4 start-up, volunteer centers serving 60 Michigan counties. These volunteer centers mobilize people and resources to deliver creative solutions to community problems.

Kalamazoo College has been named to the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll with Distinction, for exemplary service efforts and service to disadvantaged youth. The Community Service Honor Roll is the highest federal recognition a school can achieve for its commitment to service-learning and civic engagement.

The Detroit Zoo was the first zoo in America to feature cageless, open-exhibits that allowed the animals more freedom to roam. Today the zoo continues to be a leader in the humane treatment of animals and is actively involved in conservation projects with both local and global impact.

The Council of Michigan Foundations offers staff and trustees of Michigan foundations and corporate giving programs more than 60 learning opportunities each year through on-site programs, teleconferences, publications, resources and their annual conference.