Joseph Rogers & Jerry Dobek Astronomy Scholarship

The Dobek-Rogers Scholarship was created to serve the needs of students with a passion for astronomy. Ann Rogers established the scholarship to honor her late husband Joseph Rogers, a faculty member and Science Department Chair. When a large telescope was donated to NMC there was no place to use it. He and Art Monkhaus, another science instructor, acquired donated lands and materials to bring the present observatory to fruition. The observatory has brought national recognition to NMC. Also recognized through this scholarship is Jerry Dobek, who was one of their students at the time and helped in the construction of the observatory. Dobek went on to continue his education obtaining a doctorate in astrophysics, became a full-time faculty member at NMC, and has taught here for over thirty years. He has curated the observatory since completion to date.