Austin, TX – July 8, 2008 – The Austin Community College District Board of Trustees unanimously approved the college Master Plan and a balanced budget for the 2008/09 academic year during its regular meeting held Monday, July 7.

Each year the board reviews the long-range Master Plan, which aligns ACC’s Closing the Gaps enrollment targets with instructional capacity (facilities needs), staffing, and fiscal resources.

The approved budget includes a four percent cost of living adjustment for faculty and staff. Other budget highlights include adding 30 new full-time faculty and additional staff to address growth in enrollments throughout Central Texas, adding a fifth Weekend College (Cypress Creek Campus), and supporting expansion of high demand programs and services to meet the needs of residents and the business community.

ACC is the primary trainer and retrainer of the local workforce and the primary gateway to higher education in Central Texas enrolling nearly 34,000 students each semester.

Also, during the meeting, the board authorized the college staff to investigate the possibility of purchasing land in the Leander area, as part of its “land banking” strategy to acquire land in high growth areas of the ACC Service Area.

While there is no timeline or resources dedicated for a Leander campus at this time, the college is planning for the future.

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