Lake Michigan College History

1940s

1946 - Benton Harbor voters approve the plan to begin a junior college
1946 - Dr. Clarence G. Beckwith becomes the first president
1946 - Benton Harbor Junior College opens
1949 - LMC Indians men's basketball team, under Coach Gene Morgan, captures the state championship

1950s

1949-1950 - Basketball team is chosen to represent this area in the National Basketball tournament and the student newspaper is chosen as the best Junior College paper in the U.S.
1954 - Benton Harbor Junior College is redesigned into the Benton Harbor Community College and Technical Institute (CCTI)
1956 - Whirlpool joins with the College to establish the Whirlpool Foundation Technical Institute
1956-1958 - Britain Avenue campus is planned
1958 - Construction begins on the Business and Administration Building
1959 - Benton Harbor school district passes a $200,000 bond issue

1960s

1962 - Dr. Robert J. Lahti becomes the second president
1963 - County-wide vote affirms the plan to create a county college district, and up to one mill tax for operation and building needs and a six person board of trustees
1964 - CCTI is renamed Lake Michigan College and officially became an independent institution
1965 - Board of Trustees votes to purchase a 259-acre parcel in Benton Township
1966 - Dr. Robert H. Plummer becomes the third president
1967 - James L. Lehman becomes the fourth president
1968 - First phase of the Napier Avenue Campus is complete
1969 - Covert Township residents vote to join the Lake Michigan College district
1969 - Library is complete

1970s

1971 - Construction of phase two of the Napier Avenue Campus is complete
1971 - Construction of phase three of the Napier Avenue Campus begins
1976 - LMC receives the largest grant in its history, $218,366 through the federally funded Basic Educational Opportunity Grant Program
1977 - LMC receives an Offer of Grant from the Economic Development Administration
1977 - Groundbreaking for the $6 million Community Center
1978 - North Central Visitation Team grants LMC full accreditation for the next five years
1979 - Dr. Walter Browe becomes the fifth president

1980s

1980 - LMC board adopts a nearly $5 million budget
1983 - A linking agreement is formed with Siena Heights University
1985 - Dr. Anne E. Mulder becomes the sixth president
1985 - The Institute for Business and Industry is established
1987-88 - Voters' pass a millage issue
1988 - LMC receives its first 10-year accreditation from the North Central Association
1989 - LMC offers telecourses

1990s

1990 - The state of Michigan awarded LMC a $4.9 million grant for construction of the Community Center
1992 - Community Center was named The Mendel Center for Arts and Technology, in recognition of a $1 million gift from Herbert and Audre Mendel
1994 - Dr. Richard J. Pappas becomes the seventh president
1996 - LMC's first in perpetuity millage is passed to support technology and facilities
1998 - Bertrand Crossing Campus opens
1999 - $1.75 million Title III grant is awarded

2000s

2000 - M-TEC at Lake Michigan College opens
2000 - One Stop Student and Financial Services Center opens
2002 - South Haven School District residents vote to join the Lake Michigan College district
2002 - Western Michigan University opens a permanent campus on the Napier Avenue Campus
2002 - The Institute for Diversity and Leadership is created
2003 - South Haven Campus opens
2004 - 100% of LMC classrooms are equipped with multimedia instruction equipment
2004 - Fall enrollment reaches a record high in LMC's history
2006 - Dr. Randall R. Miller becomes the eighth president

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