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| 5/12/2008 11:59:00 PM | Email this article • Print this article | Round Rock casts a vote in favor of ACC
LAURI ZACHRY
Education Reporter
Proponents of higher education in Round Rock fulfilled their almost 20-year dream of bringing a community college to the city, with the Austin Community College annexation election passing by an overwhelming margin Saturday.
Of Round Rock voters, 3,040 people (64 percent) approved the annexation measure while 1,713 people (36 percent) voted against bringing the ACC taxing district into Round Rock. Early voting totals also mirrored the final vote count with 1,478 (62 percent) of Round Rock voters approving the measure while 938 (39 percent) voters opposed the measure.
"We know there is a great future for the city of Round Rock and ACC," said ACC president and CEO Stephen Kinslow. "Thousands will now benefit from ACC education programs and its workforce training. This process has set a new benchmark for future ACC annexations. This is a huge economic investment for Round Rock and Williamson County."
Since the annexation election passed, ACC will move forward with plans to create its largest campus to date, for approximately 12,000 students, in northeast Round Rock to house one of the college's nursing programs. The new Round Rock campus will help ACC double its two-year nursing program, making it the largest nursing program in the Round Rock area and the largest ACC campus overall by 2,000 students, Kinslow said.
ACC tuition will be cut by almost two-thirds for Round Rock residents as soon as the second summer session, which begins July 7, said ACC senior communications coordinator Dean Jones. Round Rock students who enrolled for the first summer session will also receive an out-of-district tuition refund for the first summer session, which begins May 27. In-district tuition rates are $39 per credit hour, compared to $118 for out-of-district tuition rates, Jones said. The tuition savings equals $237 for a single-hour course and a savings of $1,896 per year for a full-time student.
ACCtion for Education members, the community volunteer group in support of the annexation election, began collecting signatures for Saturday's election in July 2007. ACCtion for Education co-chair Raymond Hartfield was pleased with the election results.
"For a lot of students now their education options can all be met here now," Hartfield said. "We've completed the higher education piece of the puzzle."
Round Rock residents will not see a property tax rate increase for being a part of the ACC district until December 2009. At that time, Round Rock residents will pay approximately $168 a year in additional taxes based on an average assessed value of $185,000 for their home, Jones said.
The average senior citizen in Round Rock will pay an additional $96 a year in taxes. In the fall 2007, ACC raised its property tax exemptions for those age 65 and older to $85,000, in addition to the current $5,000 homestead exemption for those age 65 and older and/or with disabilities.
Annexation of the city of Round Rock into the ACC taxing district will also allow the city to have representation on the ACC Board of Trustees beginning in 2010.
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