Lake Michigan College Career Center Honored with Prestigious 2025 Handshake Career Spark Award

Benton Harbor, MI – Lake Michigan College has been recognized with a 2025 Handshake Career Spark Award, placing the institution among the top 2% of career centers nationwide. The award celebrates excellence in student engagement, employer engagement, and reporting and analytics.

Out of more than 1,500 educational institutions using Handshake, only 40 career centers received this distinguished honor. Lake Michigan College was selected as one of ten winners in its school category, demonstrating the career center's exceptional commitment to supporting students as they transition from college to their professional careers.

"This recognition reflects the dedication and hard work of our entire career services team," said Dr. Trevor Kubatzke, Lake Michigan College President. "We are proud to be acknowledged as a leader in connecting our students with meaningful career opportunities and providing them with the resources they need to succeed."

The Career Spark Awards evaluate career centers across three critical categories:

Student Engagement: Lake Michigan College demonstrated outstanding success in reaching its student population through career-related activities, including profile completion, event participation, appointments, and mobile app usage.

Employer Engagement and Curation: The college excelled in efficiently managing its employer approval process and creating curated job collections that help students discover unique opportunities aligned with their career goals.

Reporting, Analytics, and First Destination Survey: The career center showed exemplary use of data and analytics to track student activities and outcomes, ensuring the right resources reach the right students at the right time.

Handshake is the largest early talent network in the United States, connecting 75% of all U.S. college students with one million employers actively recruiting on the platform. The network includes 20 million students and young alumni from more than 1,500 educational institutions.

Since implementing Handshake in 2023, nearly 1,400 employers in Southwest Michigan have connected with Lake Michigan College students on the platform. Area employers interested in recruiting LMC students can connect with the college through Handshake at no cost. The platform allows businesses to post job opportunities and internships, making it easy to reach qualified local talent. 

“This award is an incredible honor,” said Casey Dubina, Director of Advising & Career Services. “It highlights the impact of our student-centered career development and our strong partnerships with the Southwest Michigan workforce. Much of our progress is thanks to Career Development Specialist Kathi Szabo, whose dedication and relationship-building have made Handshake central to how we connect students with meaningful opportunities.”

"This award validates our approach to career services and reinforces our commitment to being an invaluable resource for Lake Michigan College students," said Kubatzke. "We look forward to continuing to build on this success and expanding opportunities for our students."

For more information about Lake Michigan College's career services, visit lakemichigancollege.edu/career-center.

About Lake Michigan College

LMC is the region’s leader in high quality, affordable higher education, offering associate degrees, certificates, and transfer programs in more than 80 fields of study. LMC offers national-title-winning intercollegiate athletic teams, on-campus housing, and a wealth of extracurricular activities, clubs, and organizations to create an authentic college experience close to home. For more information, visit lakemichigancollege.edu.

About Handshake

Handshake's mission is to democratize access to opportunity, and Handshake is the best place to start or accelerate a career—no connections, experience, or luck required. Our community includes 20 million+ students and young alumni from 1,500+ educational institutions, including four-year colleges, community colleges, and 350+ minority-serving institutions. We connect emerging talent with 1 million employers—from Fortune 500 companies to thousands of public school districts, healthcare systems, nonprofits, and more. Handshake is headquartered in San Francisco with offices in New York, London, and Berlin and teammates working globally.