AUSTIN, Texas — Many Central Texas school districts have recently increased wages for the 2024-2025 school year. This week, Austin Community College (ACC) joined them.
On Monday, ACC's Board of Trustees met and approved a new budget plan for the upcoming school season, complete with a 4.5% raise for all employees.
The new $543 million budget also boosts the school's minimum wage by $1, from $22 to $23 an hour, according to the school system's website.
This financial plan will help support ACC's new Free Tuition Pilot Program, Affordability Scholarship and potential Lockhart annexation, to name a few initiatives. It will also work to add more full-time faculty jobs, election options for multiple board seats and more.
The Free Tuition Pilot Program was approved by the board this spring, allowing covered tuition for Central Texas high school, homeschool, GED and charter school students who graduated in the class of 2024.
In an effort to support current students, ACC also recently introduced its new Affordability Scholarship, available for students who were enrolled in classes during spring 2024. Those students will have the chance for their final 15 credit hours to be covered by ACC if they receive the scholarship.
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Last month, the community college also held a public hearing to discuss a potential annexation of Lockhart to become part of the ACC district. A final decision has not yet been made, but the board could vote to add the annexation onto the ballot this November.
ACC's new budget was made possible by funding from property taxes, tuition and fees, as well as smaller revenue outlets.
The budget will officially go into effect on Sept. 1.