Bradshaw Makes the Most of Her Second Act at SMC

There seem to be two distinct Kaylee Bradshaws. Both hail from Hartford. One has a straight-A grade average and was selected to speak at Southwestern Michigan College’s 59th Commencement May 9.

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.

McCreary Wins Williams Scholarship

Southwestern Michigan College’s Math/Science Department April 27  paid tribute to Austin McCreary. McCreary received the Darrin Williams Memorial Scholarship in a presentation at the end of her Chemistry 102 class, sharing cupcakes with her classmates.

Community Welcomes Dr. Pleasant

Southwestern Michigan College’s ninth President Dr. Klint Pleasant was officially introduced to the community April 24 at a Greater Dowagiac Chamber of Commerce reception on the SMC campus in the Charles O. Zollar Building’s Student Activity Center. Pleasant brings 28 years of experience in higher education, including two decades in leadership roles. His background spans enrollment management, athletics, development, student retention, mentoring and community relations.Southwestern Michigan Coll

SMC Open Mic Night Showcases Communication

A spring deluge pelting Mathews Conference Center East couldn’t dampen the spirit inside for Southwestern Michigan College’s Open Mic Night April 21. “We always like to have one of these showcases toward the end of an academic semester,” said English Professor Hailey Sheets, mistress of ceremonies. “This is a time to celebrate our creativity and our community here.

SMC Math-Science Department Recognizes Rigozzi

A surprised Oakley Rigozzi accepted the Southwestern Michigan College Math/Science Department Appreciation Award April 23 during the Green Club’s Earth Day activities in the Student Activity Center. Rigozzi, Miss South Haven 2025, is majoring in environmental sciences to become a “traveling scientist.”

SMC Speaker Series Celebrates 250 Years of Military Women

Women’s patriotic desire to serve is as old as America itself, but it took decades for their service to gain official recognition. In 250 years from 1776 to 2026, women served in unofficial capacities during the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Mexican-American War, the Civil War and the Spanish-American War.

SMC Dedicates Wrestling Facility

Southwestern Michigan College celebrated completion of its new wrestling facility April 8, packing the 125-capacity bleachers festooned with balloons. Guest speaker Kayla Miracle, two-time Olympian (Tokyo 2020, Paris 2024) for Team USA from Culver Academy in Culver, Ind., who lives in Phoenix, Ariz., said, “A rising tide raises all boats. You guys are a rising tide for other programs and schools to follow. I’m really grateful to witness it. Go Roadrunners!”