Austin–With its facilities already stretched to capacity and state reimbursement and property tax revenues lagging, Austin Community College is experiencing record enrollments. More than 30,000 students have registered for the fall 2002 semester, an 11 percent increase over two years ago and 6 percent increase over last fall.

“We are excited about reaching this registration milestone; however, it’s a double-edged sword,” said ACC President Richard Fonté. “We’re turning away approximately 3,000 students each semester due to lack of space.”

To balance its FY03 budget, ACC has been forced to make approximately $1.8 million in across-the-board cuts. In addition, budgets in travel, technology, staff development, and other areas have been reduced. A hiring freeze implemented in FY02 will also continue.

Despite these budget constraints, the College is committed to maintaining its current level of service to the community in response to student demand, Fonté said, while avoiding any additional financial burden for students.

“This fall we are running 3,615 sections,” he said, “and the average number of students per class has increased from 19.7 to 21.1. We want to assure our community that we are managing our resources efficiently.”

ACC’s Cypress Creek Campus, located in Williamson County, is the fastest growing campus, with an 11.3 percent enrollment increase. The Eastview Campus grew by 15.2 percent, health science programs experienced an 13.7 percent increase over last fall, and the College’s distance learning division grew by nearly 17 percent.

ACC saw an increase of 11.4 percent over the previous year in the number of students ages 31 to 35 who enrolled in classes. In their Closing the Gaps study, the Texas Association of Community Colleges noted that 50,573 more students enrolled in higher education institutions statewide than the previous year. One factor that may have contributed to the surge in enrollment growth was the slowing economy and limited job opportunities, the report stated. Texas’ public two-year institutions accounted for 60 percent of the state’s enrollment growth in fall 2001, the study showed.