Following its acceptance of a bequest of $570,000 from Margaret Bock, the Cascadia College board of trustees recently voted to rename the school’s learning center.

The center is now called the John and Margaret Bock Learning Center, in honor of Bock and her late husband John’s generosity.

“This is the largest gift ever received by Cascadia College, and it presents a wonderful opportunity for students in our community,” said Mark Collins, assistant director of development at the Cascadia College Foundation, in a press release. “Since establishing the John and Margaret Bock Endowed Scholarship 10 years ago, we’ve awarded 15 Bock scholarships. With Margaret’s final gift, the Bocks’ endowment now exceeds $800,000, and we’ll be able to award 15 Bock scholarships each year — and for generations to come.”

John and Margaret Bock were Kirkland-area residents since 1949. John, a salesman and Margaret, a homemaker, spoke frequently of sharing their good fortune with students seeking a college education. Upon John’s death in the 1990s, Margaret Bock made a commitment to honor that vision.

In 2007, she established an endowment with the foundation. Her original gift of $107,000 has grown, and in combination with this bequest, will offer financial assistance to students seeking careers in math, the sciences and economics.

“We’re honored to accept this gift from Margaret Bock,” said Cascadia College president Dr. Eric Murray in the release. “The Bocks’ desire to help students learn and achieve their dreams is best acknowledged by the naming the college’s learning center in special recognition of these contributions.”

The learning center, regionally recognized for excellence, serves a central role in supporting student success at Cascadia, according to the release, ensuring students succeed in the classroom and are academically prepared to continue with their college pathways. The center offers one-on-one, in-class, and online tutoring services in math, the sciences, English and foreign languages. The center has served more than 1,300 unique student visitors who returned multiple times, resulting in more than 10,000 student contacts.