ACC Chancellor Dr. Russell Lowery-Hart’s First 100 Days are nearly halfway through. Our new Chancellor continues to meet with students and employees throughout the district to listen and learn. Based on these conversations, he has started taking action.

Campus Conversations

To date, Dr. Lowery-Hart has hosted 10 Campus Conversations, most recently at South Austin, Cypress Creek, and Highland. More than 700 employees attended these last three conversations.

The schedule has been updated to add ACC’s Service Center and Highland Business Center. There are now three conversations left before his 100 days come to an end: 

  • Tuesday, November 28 | Rio Grande Campus
  • Tuesday, December 12 | Service Center
  • Wednesday, December 13 | Highland Business Center

Visit the Campus Conversations web page for more details and to watch recordings of previous conversations. 

Town Halls

Dr. Lowery-Hart hosted his first Student Virtual Town Hall on Thursday, November 10. About 60 participants logged on to hear from the chancellor and share their thoughts.

The second Employee Virtual Town Hall meeting was held on Friday, November 3. Approximately 475 employees tuned in to hear from Dr. Lowery-Hart and share their questions and comments.

The topics Dr. Lowery-Hart discussed in this one-hour Town Hall included enrollment data, his reflections from his first month, actions he is taking before the end of his First 100 Days, and the Thanksgiving holiday. He ended the session by taking questions from the chat to help address any rumors circulating. 

Taking Action

“I have been overwhelmed and emotional with how you’re receiving these convos with me, that you are finding hope for the first time, feeling seen and acknowledged, that you have hope we will actually do something about it,” said Dr. Lowery-Hart during the Employee Virtual Town Hall. “I’m worried that we won’t respond to these issues fast enough and that you’ll lose your hope in me. I wanted to take time to listen and learn but on some areas, I don’t think we can wait until the end of the 100 days.”

One of the actions Dr. Lowery-Hart is taking before the end of his first 100 days is having the students write the values for the college. He is doing this through a series of Student Focus Groups, asking students to define the perfect college and how they want to receive us and each other.

The other action Dr. Lowery-Hart is taking is calling for an external audit. The accounting and auditing firm of McConnell Jones has been hired to look at some of the processes that create problems daily. The initial processes to be audited includes:

  • Safety
  • Operations, including usage of spaces and resources
  • Business issues that cross divisions

“At end of my 100 days, you will know where we’re going, why we are going in that direction. You will have a voice in what that direction looks like, and you will have a role in it,” said Dr. Lowery-Hart.

Community Engagement

Dr. Lowery-Hart held a press conference to brief members of the media on his first month at ACC. Representatives from KUT-FM, Austin American-Statesman, Texas Tribune, and more attended to meet the Chancellor and learn more about his First 100 Day plan.

Up next, he will host a community reception to meet college partners across Central Texas. The event will be a casual meet-and-greet featuring an update from the Chancellor about his First 100 Days.

Student Engagement

Dr. Lowery-Hart attended a taping of an ACCTV Student Beat episode as the featured guest. He introduced himself and talked about his first 100 days plan and what he is excited about.

Child Care Work Session

At the direction of the Board of Trustees, the college has started looking at child care at ACC. Dr. Lowery-Hart attended the first of three child care work sessions with the board on Monday, November 6. Read more here.