Olin Hall exterior
  1. Life at Centre
  2. Campus and Community
  3. Academic Facilities
  4. Olin Hall

Olin Hall

Olin Hall is one of two campus buildings devoted to STEM disciplines and is home to chemistry, computer science, environmental studies, mathematics, physics, and data science. It houses classrooms, labs, collaborative spaces and faculty offices.

The Austin E. Knowlton Center for Science and Mathematics 

In March of 2019, The Austin E. Knowlton Foundation of Cincinnati, Ohio, awarded a $3 million grant to Centre to support the renovation and expansion of Olin Hall which increased the hall’s square footage by about one-third. The expansion included extended laboratory space for physics and computer science, a new lab for environmental science, and better designed labs for chemistry. 

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In addition to new classrooms, the current ones were renovated and received updated technology. Collaborative spaces and offices were added to enable more frequent collaboration between students and faculty in the various disciplines housed in the building. 

The Story Behind the Name

Olin Hall was originally built in 1988 thanks to a grant of $3.5 million from the F.W. Olin Foundation. It was the first construction grant from the foundation to a Kentucky college or university. The grant paid for the entire construction including a Foucault pendulum, that demonstrates the rotation of the earth, which is now publicly visible through a glass wall on the north side of the building. In a letter announcing the grant, the Olin foundation wrote, “We believe you have amply demonstrated not only the importance of this facility to the college, but also the importance of Centre to higher education. Centre is clearly an academic leader in its region, and its planning for the future is superb.”