He was born as the seventh boy in Abilene, Kansas, to Ida Elizabeth Stover (1862–1946) and David Jacob Eisenhower (1863–1942); the family was poor.

Eisenhower attended public schools and graduated from Kansas State University in 1924 with a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial journalism.

Eisenhower was opposed to the mass incarceration, and at initial meetings with pro-exclusion officials he suggested allowing women and children to remain on the West Coast, but the proposal was rejected.

In his position as WRA director, he attempted to mitigate the consequences of the "evacuation," establishing a Japanese American advisory council with Mike Masaoka, a work program that allowed some Japanese Americans to leave camp for employment on labor-starved farms, and a student leave program that allowed Nisei who had been enrolled in college to continue their education.

Neither the Army, nor the War Relocation Authority relish the idea of taking men, women and children from their homes, their shops and their farms.

[7] As head of the U.S. delegation to UNESCO, Eisenhower appealed to the people of the United States to "send aid at once to the refugees of the Palestine war in the Middle East."

Respected and admired by faculty and students alike, Eisenhower was arguably the most popular Hopkins president since Daniel Coit Gilman.

In March 1971, after Lincoln Gordon's abrupt resignation, the trustees asked Eisenhower to return until a permanent successor could be found.

His reputation for fairness helped greatly in that turbulent time, and, despite the budgetary problems, he was able to push forward with planning and design for a new student center.

[13] In 1964 Milton Eisenhower was lightly considered and named by brother Dwight as a potential candidate for President of the United States, opposing the forces behind eventual nominee Barry Goldwater.

[14] In 1980, Eisenhower appeared on the ballot in Texas as the running mate of Representative John B. Anderson, Independent candidate for U.S. President.