"We are delighted that students in record numbers continue to choose HACC," said HACC Vice President of student services and enrollment management, Alterman "Chip" Jackson. "Our research shows that HACC degrees and training elevate salaries and earning power, and that the great majority of HACC graduates remain in this region. There may be a "brain drain" in parts of Pennsylvania, but HACC is fueling a "brain gain," said Jackson.
More students also are taking a combination of in-class and on-line courses, and HACC this fall has a new Virtual Campus with its own dean. Enrollment figures for on-line students are being pulled from campus enrollment numbers for the first time.
The Harrisburg Campus of HACC has the first new construction underway in many years, and the $12 million Select Medical Health Education Pavilion will be completed by fall 2005.
The Harrisburg Campus continues to be the largest campus, with enrollments of nearly 8900 students this fall.
HACC's most dramatic growth can be witnessed at its Lancaster Campus where a new building more than doubles the size of that campus. The campus expects roughly 4,000 students starting classes Aug. 23, an increase of more than 8 percent over last year.
The new building contains an allied health suite including radiology technology room with a darkroom for the new radiology program, two biology labs and a microbiology lab, and 28 general purpose classrooms all with Internet access.
Lancaster students have access to four new computer labs, including one equipped with Microsoft A+ certification technology. A workforce and economic development suite offers an on-site area for executive training.
A new lecture hall/multipurpose room is equipped with an electronic folding stage and seating for 140. The art classroom features public areas for displaying artwork. The new building also houses a soundproof music room, language lab and study areas.
More than 1200 students are registered for the fall semester at the Gettysburg Campus of HACC, which required the addition of 89 new parking spaces created between the Adams County National Bank and the campus. That campus already had expanded in recent years to accommodate its growing nursing program.
The Lebanon Campus is expected to maintain its enrollment numbers, having enrolled more than 1,000 students for the first time last fall.
Additionally, there's a strong core of 600 students taking classes at HACC'sYork Center, which is fast becoming HACC's fifth campus, according to Jackson.
As HACC enters its 40th anniversary year, it is recognized as one of the nation's premier community colleges, as well as Pennsylvania's first.
In addition to its four campus locations and York Center, HACC offers classes at the Community Center for Technology and the Arts in downtown Harrisburg, HACC Penn Center in uptown Harrisburg and many locations around the region, including high schools, Fort Indiantown Gap, the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle and others.
HACC offers more than 120 different certificate, diploma and associate degree options and serves 50,000 non-credit students from HACC's 10-county service areas and beyond. Its open enrollment policy ensures that any student with a high school diploma or GED can enroll in classes.