ACC faculty and staff prepare for new semester at Spring Development Day
Spring Development Day, held on Friday, January 17, welcomed ACC faculty and staff to a new semester with a full day of work sessions to enhance practices and processes, improve personal productivity, technical talents, teaching techniques, and interpersonal skills.

555 participants attended 44 different workshops organized in 6 themes — Accessibility, Equity, Teaching and Learning Strategies, ACC Resources, Technology, and Staff Development. 98 employees participated in equity-focused workshops.

ACC honors Black History Month with events and profiles
ACC commemorated Black History Month 2020 with a series of events districtwide, including a cultural heritage festival, a panel discussion on the well-being of black women, and an examination of the journey of the black population in Austin from the early settlement days until the present day. Read profiles of some of the college's accomplished faculty, staff, and students on the Black History Month webpage.

ACC Culinary Department "Takes the Cake"
ACC's Culinary Department participated in the 2020 That Takes the Cake Show, one of the largest sugar arts shows in the country. Many ACC students entered the competition and participated in various classes teaching advanced pastry decorating techniques. The ACC Culinary booth featured an action station, where visitors could practice icing a cake, and a pastry-themed trivia game.

Scholarship Stations help students find financial aid
Scholarship Stations continue at Highland, Round Rock, and San Gabriel ACCelerators. As of February 26, 66 students have taken advantage of the assistance The stations will remain active until April 1. More information can be found here.

Ascender hosts 5th annual Motivational Conference
More than 100 students and mentors attended Ascender's 5th annual Motivational Conference February 7 at Eastview Campus. A panel of community leaders discussed their college and life experiences and issues affecting Latinx students personally and professionally. Featured panelists were Dr. Richard Reddick, associate professor of Higher Education Leadership for the College of Education at the University of Texas; Sonia Dominguez, chief program officer at AVANCE; and Stephanie Bergara, lead singer of Selena tribute band Bidi Bidi Banda, an accomplished musician, entrepreneur, and public speaker. The event was recorded via livestream and can be accessed here.

ACC welcomes new TRHT director
ACC's new Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation Campus Center director, Khayree Williams, joined the college in January. Williams is responsible for relationship-building and facilitating ongoing conversations with internal and external stakeholders about changing the racial narrative both at ACC and in Central Texas. ACC is one of only 10 institutions nationwide selected to establish a Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT) Campus Center by the Association of American Colleges and Universities. Read more about his new role here.

February's Star Party focused on Orion Nebula
The Physics, Astronomy, and Engineering Department hosted its "Nebula Night" as part of its Star Party series on Friday, February 21, at Round Rock Campus. More than 100 people took part in ACChaos hands-on physics demonstrations and experiments, shows in the mobile planetarium, and two public talks about nebulae in space. To conclude the event, the crowd had the opportunity to visit the 4th floor observatory and view the Orion Nebula through the department's telescopes. The next Star Party will be held April 24 with a focus on Venus.

Health Sciences hosts annual open house spotlighting health careers
Nearly 800 potential students attended the Health Sciences open house on Saturday, February 22, at Eastview Campus. The annual event featured interactive demonstrations such as mock surgeries, lab tours, and talks with faculty and students about health careers in Central Texas. For the first time the Biotechnology program, one of the fastests growing career options in the region, was also part of the event.

Continuing Education celebrates graduating truck driver class
Continuing Education hosted a celebration for its February graduating truck driving class at Capital Wright Distributors on Thursday, February 20. These 14 graduates can now join the booming truck driving industry, which has almost 2 million jobs available in Texas. For the sixth time, a woman received the "Top Gun Award" for highest GPA in the class.

Rio Grande Campus topping out
Construction teams commemorated the topping-out of the Rio Grande Campus renovations on Wednesday, January 22. The event marked an important milestone for the historic renovation project. Crews completed welding of steel roof supports at both atriums and installed the remaining roof-level penthouse steel framing. View photos from the event here.

Texas A&M-Chevron Engineering Academy at ACC hosts info session for future engineers
The Texas A&M-Chevron Engineering Academy at ACC hosted its first information session of the year on Saturday, February 15, at Highland Campus. The co-enrollment program allows students to complete up to their first two years of an A&M Engineering degree at ACC before transitioning to College Station. Enrollment in the program is expected to double in fall 2020 and applications are now being accepted. More information at austincc.edu/tamuacademy.