Lockhart ISD voters approve joining ACC taxing district. Here's what it means.

More than 61% of Lockhart Independent School District voters supported annexation into Austin Community College's taxing district, greenlighting a plan to provide residents with accessible and affordable higher education, in-district tuition and a path to a permanent ACC facility, according to the complete but unofficial election results.

In exchange for a property tax rate of $0.1012 per $100 valuation, residents within the Lockhart school district will officially be part of the Riverbat community, with access to all educational resources, including benefiting from ACC's free tuition pilot program. Once the election is certified, the college will launch classes tailored to Lockhart's workforce and education needs in January on school district properties outside of school hours.

"This vote signifies the growing economic power of Central Texas on a national and international stage," Chancellor Russell Lowery-Hart told the American-Statesman in an interview. "For Lockhart and ACC to lock arms will only grow our influence and importance together."

Before January, ACC will meet with Lockhart school officials, local businesses and elected officials to discuss workforce and education needs and move forward with selecting a permanent space in the community. Lowery-Hart said the three-pronged plan allows the college flexibility and time to determine how best to design a permanent facility.

In Phase one, ACC will also collaborate with the Lockhart school district to help develop an Early College High School with dual credit programs. Phase 2 has ACC opening a 15,000-20,000 square-foot facility near Lockhart High School, with the hope in Phase 3 of ACC building a permanent facility tailored to Lockhart's future workforce needs with input from local, economic and education leaders.

Nick Metzler, president of the Greater Lockhart for ACC PAC, which secured a vote for approval and service plan after years of advocacy, said annexation into ACC's taxing district will provide the necessary accessible and affordable educational infrastructure to support the growing workforce opportunities in the region, which include construction, skilled trades and health care. It will also help attract more businesses to Lockhart, increasing the economic strength of the city, he said.

"This partnership between Lockhart and ACC is a forward-thinking strategy that strengthens the community by enhancing educational access while fostering long-term economic resilience," Metzler said in a written statement. "It sets the stage for a more prosperous and connected future for Lockhart and the greater Central Texas region."

Before Tuesday's annexation vote, Lockhart was in ACC's service area with 18 other school districts, which spans 7,000 square miles and also provides education opportunities, but with an additional tuition cost.

In-district areas pay $85 per college credit hour without the $201 out-of-district fee, have greater access to ACC programs, vote for ACC's board members, and have access to ACC's free tuition pilot, which is currently available to recent high school graduates. The Austin, Del Valle, Elgin, Hays, Leander, Manor and Round Rock school districts are also in-district to ACC, as well as parts of the Eanes and Pflugerville districts.

The last ACC annexation vote — in Pflugerville — failed in 2018. The last approved annexation vote before that passed in 2010.

As per the annexation plan the college's board approved in May , ACC would start offering workforce training on Lockhart school district property in the evenings beginning in January. Lowery-Hart said beginning those conversations and finding a space are top of mind for officials right now.

Nicole Stephens, the vice president of the pro-annexation PAC who has lived in Lockhart for more than a decade, said residents currently have to travel out of the city to access post-secondary opportunities or access it online, which is a barrier to many learners. Now, with the passing of this vote, she looks to her two children under the age of 10 years old and feels so proud and hopeful about the opportunities ACC will provide them in their hometown.

"Their future and where this is going to go as far as the phased approach that has been proposed and discussed for so long now, it's very real for them in the coming years," she said. "We are so excited."

Stephens said she woke up Wednesday to text messages from community members asking "How soon?" or others saying they are already registered at ACC and can't wait to expand their education. The plan and the vote, she said, gives Lockhart "tangible" opportunities to develop careers.

"This is just the beginning," she said. "We have so much that we want to bring in and share."

Lowery-Hart said Lockhart is a proactive and thoughtful community which he is thrilled to welcome into the college's district. It is a place in which he feels "at home."

"I fell in love with the Lockhart community in getting to know them through this process," Lowery-Hart said. "How connected they are to each other, how deeply committed they are to making sure everyone has a path to success, and (I am) really grateful to continue to build this relationship."

The Lockhart Economic Development Corporation will partner with ACC as it developes a physical presence in the city, Steve Lewis, president of the development corporation, told the Statesman in a statement shared by a city spokesperson. He added that the annexation fits the corporation's strategic plan to expand vocational training, and the partnership will meet that "essential" need.

"The annexation comes at a pivotal moment as Lockhart begins to experience rapid growth," Lewis said. "Now, the real work begins."

ACC trustee races

Sherri Lynn Taylor secured the Place 7 seat on the ACC Board of Trustees, an office left vacant by Barbara Mink, a founding member of the district and current board chair, who is retiring after 24 years serving on the board, according to the unofficial voting results from eligible parts of the six counties who elect the at-large offices.

Taylor came out ahead with 57.55% of the vote against ACC alum Cole Wilson, who has campaigned since January and secured endorsements from the Travis County Democratic Party, multiple council members and state senators. Taylor does not have a searchable campaign website or campaign email.

In the race for Place 9, incumbent Julie Ann Nitsch, an ACC alum who has served on the board since 2016 and has pushed for holistic student support and resources, came out handily ahead of challenger Joseph Sefton, the newly retired ACC chief information officer who ran on a platform of adding a greater tech-focused perspective to the board. Nitsch secured 70.6% of the vote, according to the unofficial results.

"I'm beyond thrilled to have such overwhelming support from the community," Nitsch said. "I think it's a vote of confidence in what we've done."

For her next term, she hopes to put childcare at every campus, expand Capital Metro transportation resources between campuses, and expand the free tuition pilot program to all students, which she thinks could get done in the next six years.

Incumbent Place 8 board member Stephanie Gharakhanian, an attorney who has held the seat since 2018, ran unopposed.