For Our Local Community
For Our Local Community
As your community college, Lake Michigan College is the region’s leader in higher education, training, and serves as a cultural hub for all of Southwest Michigan. LMC is on a mission for academic excellence, student success, the best employee experience, and impacts the community through long lasting partnerships. For over 75 years, LMC has served to improve the quality of life through civic, social, and economic opportunities.
Lake Michigan College is one of the founders of the Berrien Talent Collaborative, the first county-wide youth apprenticeship program in Michigan. LMC, along with the Berrien Regional Education Service Agency, the Southwest Michigan Regional Chamber of Commerce, and the Greater Niles Chamber of Commerce provide students with a cost-effective high-quality set of skills to ensure lifelong success. This employer-led initiative merges our area’s education and job development resources to create a supply chain of talent to grow our community’s workforce. For more information, visit BerrienTalent.org.
LMC strengthens our local businesses and organizations with customized training options, short term certificates, assistance with employee and intern recruitment, and access to the region’s only convention-like facilities. The Michigan New Jobs Tax Credit is an economic development tool that provides free training for employers who are expanding their footprint. The Going PRO Talent Fund, in cooperation with Michigan Works! allows companies to upskill their talent. Going PRO is a competitive state program awarded twice a year.
The Extended Education Department at Lake Michigan College provides innovative and relevant lifelong learning opportunities to community members of all ages. These non-credit classes emphasize personal enrichment, professional development, and community outreach. Courses have included Wines of the World, chocolate making, welding and laser engraving, a one-day professional skills bootcamp, and many more. Click here to learn more.
The Fab Lab at the Hanson Technology Center is an open-access fabrication studio and collaborative workshop. The Fab Lab is where your creative juices are turned into everything from video games, kayaks, holiday ornaments, costumes, even ukulele. Equipment available includes laser cutters, 3-D printers, vinyl cutters, woodshop, CNC router, hand tools, Adobe Creative Suite software, a sewing machine, embroidery machine, and more. No experience necessary, just bring your imagination. Think it and make it at the Fab Lab. Click here to learn more.
There is no fee for the LMC Nature Trail. Click here to learn more.
Lake Michigan Vintners is the Midwest’s only commercial teaching winery. Located on the north campus off Empire Avenue, this modern $7 million winery, laboratory, tasting room, and classroom offers weekend wine tastings and provides hands-on experiences to students in the LMC Wine and Viticulture program. (link) Students learn every aspect of winemaking from vineyard management to production to serving. The Welch Center is available to rent for events and hosts several special wine-tasting events throughout the year. Click here for Lake Michigan Vintners.
The Lake Michigan College Mendel Center, which includes the 1,500 seat Jenkins Theatre, Grand Upton Hall convention center, Hanson Theatre and Deckman Dance Studio is one of the entertainment and culture hubs of Southwest Michigan. More than 100,000 people attend events on the Main Campus for performances, conferences, personal, or business events. Recent performances have included Earvin “Magic” Johnson, Dave Ramsey, along with community events like the Southwest Michigan Symphony and more.
The LMC Performing Arts program is housed at the Mendel Center, with more than twenty annual productions. Students learn in the Mendel classrooms, rehearse on its stages, learn from masters of the craft, and inspire others through the arts.
Click here to buy tickets and learn more about the Mendel Center.