News

SMC’s Student Art Show Returns

Southwestern Michigan College’s annual student art exhibition returned for the first time since 2019 April 18 with an awards ceremony in the Art Gallery of the Dale A. Lyons Building on the Dowagiac campus.

SMC inducts 18 into Phi Theta Kappa

“College doesn’t just change you quantitatively by how much you know, it changes who we are qualitatively,” Professor of Humanities and Social Sciences Dr. Jeffrey Dennis told 18 Sigma Psi Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa honor society inductees and their families on April 14 in Southwestern Michigan College’s Mathews Conference Center West.

Keith McKenzie Retires from SMC Board of Trustees

Southwestern Michigan College Trustees April 12 accepted with regret the retirement of Keith H. McKenzie, the longest-serving vice chairman since Dec. 2, 1991, and a board member for 36 years, since Jan. 6, 1987. He was the first board member for whom a residence hall was dedicated on Aug. 16, 2009. McKenzie was elected six times by voters, worked with four different college presidents and was involved throughout the largest growth period in SMC history.

Barber’s First Book Tested His Patience for 25 Years

Twenty-five years after shelving his first book, the “itch” to be an author never left Lennie Slack. Now that “Cats of Katlyn: The Tale of Tailey” has been published by Friesen Press of Canada, Slack is energized to finish the second and third volumes of his fantasy trilogy.

Journalism’s Collaborative Culture Forged Some Lifelong Friendships

Thirty years ago, when The Southwester was the campus newspaper instead of an alumni magazine, Jennifer (Wagonmaker) Dale and Jill Tiefel were key cogs on 1989-99 adviser Dr. Chris Robinson’s staff, tackling tasks in teams from their Dale A. Lyons Building room facing the theatre.

SMC Presents ‘The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee’ March 23-26

Southwestern Michigan College’s spring musical, “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” is a musical comedy with music and lyrics by William Finn. It centers on a fictional spelling bee at geographically ambiguous Putnam Valley Middle School. Six quirky adolescents compete in the bee, run by three equally quirky grown-ups.

’97 SMC Graduate Picks Dermatology Nurse Practitioner

Coming out of Elkhart Memorial High School, Jaimee Kamp, MSN, RN, FNP-C, attended Purdue University because she wanted to be a food scientist. But organic chemistry did not go well. She took a semester off and worked in food services and health care as a CNA, or certified nursing assistant. “Most people have several professions that fit their personality,” she said. “My testing only showed two: nursing and teaching."

"Music of the Spheres" Celebrated Natural World

Southwestern Michigan College Department of Fine and Performing Arts’ winter choral concert Feb. 24 featured “Music of the Spheres,” conducted by David Carew, Director of Choral Activities.

Trumpets Take Over SMC Spring Band Concert "Legend"

Trumpets took over “Legend,” Southwestern Michigan College’s spring band concert March 10. The concert originally scheduled Feb. 17, had been postponed by snow. The concert featured about 30 participants of the 2023 SMC Trumpet Clinic Day which began Friday morning, plus the SMC Symphonic Band, SMC Jazz Ensemble and SMC Jazz Combo, under the baton of Director of Bands Mark Hollandsworth.

SMC Career Fair offers perspectives on health pathways

A doctor, a speech-language pathologist and an MRI technician walk into Mathews Conference Center West during Southwestern Michigan College’s March 7 Career Fair. There’s no punch line, just three perspectives on specialized health care.