Cass County is a vastly rural region in the southwest corner of Michigan along the Indiana state line. Comprising 20 local municipalities, the county covers 490 square miles and has a population of 51,787 (Kids Count, 2019). Some of the county’s most defining features include its abundant agriculture and other open spaces, including woodlands and wetlands, its more than 165 lakes, and its handful of small incorporated communities that offer a “town and country” feel to this day. The county could be described as a lake and agriculturally-based bedroom community, with comparatively small scattered settlement areas offering more urban lifestyles and support services.

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Cass County ranks 74 out of 83 in the state in size (U.S. Census, 2020). The county is home to one city (Dowagiac) and four villages (Cassopolis, Edwardsburg, Marcellus and Vandalia). It borders Berrien, Van Buren, Kalamazoo, and St. Joseph counties in Michigan, and St. Joseph and Elkhart counties in Indiana. Cass is considered part of a Metropolitan Statistical Area that includes the South Bend and Mishawaka area in Indiana, called “Michiana” (U.S. Census, 2020). Cass County has close proximity to the Chicago metropolitan areas at 100 miles.

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