HOLLAND — Hope College’s Boerigter Center for Calling and Career received an award last month from the National Career Development Association for its initiatives and innovations supporting career development.

Although accolades are given nationwide to recipients in many categories, Hope was honored in the education, government and business category. The award was presented at NCDA’s annual conference in Atlanta, which was June 18-20. Selection criteria include overall mission, services, partnership with students, local businesses and organizations, growth plans and navigating challenges.

The Boerigter Center, which opened in 2018, aids Hope students in recognizing their strengths, in addition to preparing them for and pursuing a career. All students receive guidance from the center throughout their time in college. First-year students take an assessment of their interests and are given information related to majors and careers. As they move along in their degree, the center helps students pursue internships, network, job search, prepare for interviews and research postgraduate education.

A major donation by George Boerigter, a 1961 Hope alum, and his wife Sibilla, led to the center’s creation. Boerigter is the founder and chairman of SoundOff Signal. The Hudsonville-based company engineers and manufactures lighting products for emergency vehicles and a range of teams worldwide.

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The Boerigter Center has been presented with numerous awards since its founding, including the 2022 National Association of Colleges and Employers’ Technology Excellence Award, which was received in tandem with Hope’s library, and the 2022 PeopleGrove Innovator’s Award. Hope computer science students also designed interactive technology showcasing nationwide jobs available through work with the center, which won NACE’s 2022 Technology Excellence Award in the college category.

— Contact ONN reporter Hailey Hentz at hhentz@ottawanewsnetwork.org.