New England College has named its science building the Austin and Betty Ann Kovacs Science Center in honor of what it calls “of the couple’s extraordinary commitment to advancing science, technology and mathematics education at NEC.”
The dedication ceremony was held on Oct. 3 during the College’s Fall Festival weekend. The Kovacses have made an initial $1 million gift to the College as well as a $10 million planned gift, the largest in NEC’s history.
Austin Kovacs, a 1960 civil engineering graduate of NEC, had a distinguished career as a senior research civil engineer at the U.S. Army Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory in Hanover. He became nationally and internationally recognized for his expertise; holds two patents on specialized auguring, coring, drilling and testing devices that he developed; has traveled to both the North and South Poles; and has an Antarctic glacier named after him.
The Kovacs Science Center now anchors NEC’s broader strategic vision to expand and strengthen STEM programs with improvements to labs and classrooms already enhancing student-faculty research, healthcare education and career preparation.