A state university system in the United States is a group of public universities supported by an individual state, or a similar entity such as the District of Columbia. These systems constitute the majority of public-funded universities in the country. Each state supports at least one such system.

Federal funded colleges and universities are limited to military personnel and government employees. Members of foreign militaries and governments also attend some schools. These schools include the United States military academies, Naval Postgraduate School, and military staff colleges.

A state university system normally means a single legal entity and administration, but may consist of several institutions, each with its own identity as a university. Some states—such as California and Texas—support more than one such system.

State universities get subsidies from their states. The amount of the subsidy varies from university to university and state to state, but the effect is to lower tuition costs below that of private universities. As more and more Americans attend college, and private tuition rates increase well beyond the rate of inflation, admission to state universities is becoming more and more competitive.

Grand Valley State University (GVSU) is a public liberal arts university located in Allendale, Michigan, United States. The university was established in 1960, and its main campus is situated on 1,270 acres (5.1 km²) approximately 12 miles (19 km) west of Grand Rapids. Classes are also offered at the university's growing Pew Campus in Downtown Grand Rapids, Meijer Campus in Holland, and through centers at Muskegon and Traverse City established in cooperation with local community colleges.

GVSU is a comprehensive coeducational university serving more than 24,662 students as of fall 2011, from all 83 Michigan counties and dozens of other states and foreign countries. It is one of America's 100 largest universities in terms of enrollment and employs more than 1,985 people with about 837 regular full-time faculty and 1,148 support staff. The university currently has alumni residing in all 50 U.S. states, Canada, and many countries around the world. For the 2010-2011 academic year, GVSU was recognized as a top producer of Fulbright Scholars for Master's institutions by the Chronicle of Higher Education. GVSU has also been noted for its sustainability efforts, ranking as high as 16th in the world for environment-friendly university management by GreenMetric World University Ranking in 2011.