News

SMC Hosts Second MiCareerQuest Cass County

On May 19 Heritage Southwest Intermediate School District’s Career and Technical Education (CTE) Department, in conjunction with Michigan Works! and Southwestern Michigan College, held the second annual MiCareerQuest Cass County.

SMC Hosts 221 Area High School Students for Junior Day

Southwestern Michigan College hosted 221 high school 11th graders from Lawton (50), Cassopolis Ross Beatty (62), Decatur (60), Covert (22), Edwardsburg Alternative Education (12) and Niles (15) on May 15. Participants visited SMC’s Dowagiac campus for nuts-and-bolts advice on the college admissions process.

Roadrunners in Ohio, Va., Pa., D.C., to Ring in Semiquincentennial

This year’s Southwestern Michigan College extended learning experience prepared history students for the Semiquincentennial, the 250th anniversary of America (1776-2026), by visiting Ohio, Virginia, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C.

$670,000 Designated for SMC Student Scholarships

At its regular meeting on May 13, Southwestern Michigan College’s Board of Trustees heard that the SMC Foundation’s financial aid for student scholarships is increasing for 2026-27. Chief Financial Officer Michelle Kite reported that the foundation contributed $500,000 last year and is boosting that to $590,000, plus $80,000 in lease income from the Edward Guse farm, for a total of $670,000. “The foundation does a lot of good for us,” Chairman Tom Jerdon said.

Revered Professor Taught 39 Years

Dr. Stephen E. Jess, Southwestern Michigan College social studies instructor, retired in 2016 after 39 years teaching an estimated 7,000 students. Before he joined the SMC history faculty in 1977, Dr. Jess, who died March 11 at 84, taught at the University of Nebraska, from which he earned his doctorate and master of arts degree in English history.

SMC's 59th Commencement Graduates 417

A future pediatrician and a business graduate spoke on behalf of Southwestern Michigan College’s Class of 2026 on May 9 at the 59th Commencement ceremonies outdoors in Alumni Plaza on the Dowagiac campus. Chloe Itimu addressed the School of Arts, Science and Business and School of Advanced Technology Saturday morning. Kaylee Bradshaw spoke to the School of Arts, Science and Business and School of Nursing and Health Services Saturday afternoon.

SMC Graduates 13-Member Nursing Class

Southwestern Michigan College May 6 welcomed 13 new nurses to America’s largest health care profession with more than 4.3 million registered nurses (RNs) nationwide. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a need for more than 200,000 new RNs each year to meet demand and replace retiring nurses. SMC’s spring class received associate degrees in nursing (ADN) in a pinning ceremony in the theatre of the Dale A. Lyons Building on the Dowagiac campus.

17 PTK Inductees Hear Coach Nate

Southwestern Michigan College Head Women’s Volleyball Coach Jenny Nate shared her success secrets, such as eating frogs, with 17 Sigma Psi Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) inductees May 1. In four seasons since intercollegiate athletics returned to SMC after a 25-year hiatus, Nate built winning teams that made the postseason every season and this year won the conference championship and Western Conference Coach of the Year.

SMC Art Award Winners Announced

Dr. Klint Pleasant revealed himself as a Pearl Jam fan in presenting his first President’s Choice to Eau Claire’s Arly Fitzgerald’s oil painting April 28 at the SMC Student Art Show Award Ceremony. Pleasant said the art and history galleries have quickly become his two favorite spaces on campus.

SMC Honors Outstanding Graduates

College stereotypically conjures images of 18-year-olds moving into dorms, traipsing huge campuses and “following a pretty straight line” to graduation. “But that’s not the only version of college. For many of us, that was never our version at all,” business major Cole Kilboy told SMC’s Outstanding Graduate Reception April 28 in the theatre of the Dale A. Lyons Building on the Dowagiac campus.