ACC Board approves special annexation election for Lockhart ISD territory

Austin Community College

Voters living in the Lockhart Independent School District (LISD) territory will decide whether to join the Austin Community College District (ACC) during the November election. The Board of Trustees unanimously approved calling for a special annexation election for the LISD territory.

Timeline

In May 2024, the Board of Trustees unanimously certified a petition from residents within the Lockhart ISD territory seeking to include ACC annexation on the general election ballot this November. More than 1,000 Lockhart residents signed the petition.

The following month, in June, the board was joined by the College administration for a public hearing in Lockhart. Members of the Lockhart community addressed the board to learn more and ask questions about entering the college’s taxing district.

The decision is now in the hands of the voters. The last day to register to vote is Monday, Oct. 7.

Early voting runs from Monday, October 21, to Friday, November 1. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 5.

More about the service plan

If Lockhart area voters approve the measure in the upcoming November election, the Lockhart ISD territory will join the ACC district, granting residents access to all in-district benefits. That includes the Free Tuition pilot program for the Class of 2024. It includes free tuition and general fees for high school seniors, including public, private, charter, and homeschoolers and GED completers, in the ACC service area for the next five years.

The service plan includes three distinct phases of potential facility development in the community.

Phase 1: ACC will work with LISD to provide services on LISD property during evenings and

weekends when it is not otherwise in use. The College will offer expanded career and technical

workforce offerings and collaborate with the school district on the implementation of an Early

College High School.

Phase 2: ACC will work with the local community to develop and occupy a 15,000-square-foot

to 20,000-square-foot workforce and general education space near Lockhart High School.

Phase 3: ACC will purchase land and develop a permanent facility in the territory to be annexed

after consultation with local community, economic, and educational leadership to ensure that the permanent facility meets the emerging and projected needs of the region.

For more information, visit austincc.edu/lockhart.

Also on the November ballot for the ACC District, are three seats on the ACC Board of Trustees. Board members serve six-year terms, which expire this year for Trustees in Places 7, 8, and 9. Residents who live in-district are eligible to run for and vote in the Board election. The candidate filing period for these seats ends on Aug.19.