High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Illinois State University is a public university in Normal, Illinois, United States. Most commonly referred to as ISU, the school was founded in 1857 by Jesse W. Fell (1808-1887), making it Illinois's first public university; Abraham Lincoln drew up the legal documents to establish the university. The original name of the school was Illinois State Normal University, reflective of its primary mission as a teacher training institution (at that time called a normal school). In 1964, as the institution began expanding and moving toward a full liberal arts curriculum, its name was changed, first to Illinois State University at Normal, and then by 1968 to Illinois State University. The Town of Normal, originally named North Bloomington, took its name from the school. ISU is recognized in the U.S. News & World Report rankings as a "National University," that is, a university which grants a variety of doctoral degrees and strongly emphasizes research. Among public universities in Illinois awarding doctorate degrees, only the University of Illinois ranks higher.