Anne Arundel Community College

Anne Arundel Community College was founded as Anne Arundel Junior College on January 2, 1961, by the Anne Arundel County Board of Education. Classes commenced in September 1961 at Severna Park High School with 270 students enrolled. Dr. Andrew G. Truxal served as the first president during the school's transition to a 165-acre (0.67 km 2 ) campus in Arnold, Maryland , in September 1967. The school was awarded full accreditation by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) in 1968. [ 5 ] [ 11 ] [ 12 ] [ 13 ] In August 1968, Dr. Robert P. Ludlum was appointed AACC's second president. During his eight-year term, AACC began offering transfer, career and continuing education programs as well as tuition waivers and programs for senior citizens. Additionally, Dr. Ludlum attained voting representation for students serving on the AACC's board of trustees and founded the Servicemember's Opportunity College at Fort George G. Meade . [ 12 ] [ 14 ] Upon Dr. Ludlum's retirement in 1976, his successor, Dr. Justus D. Sundermann, served until 1979. He is credited with the establishment of AACC's Weekend College, cable television (media production) courses and contract education services. AACC's first off-site location in Glen Burnie and the Child Development Center in Arnold were opened during Dr. Sundermann's administration. Also under Dr. Sundermann, there were staff factions in contention with one another and enrollment was in decline. In 1978, some of AACC's female faculty members filed lawsuits against the community college and insurer Continental Casualty Company for alleged pay discrimination. The lawsuits were consolidated and received news coverage while Dr. Sundermann was president. The board subsequently voted against renewing his contract 1979. (The case was settled in 1989 in favor of the female faculty members, who were awarded $550,000 in retroactive pay.) [ 12 ] [ 14 ] [ 15 ] [ 16 ] [ 17 ] From 1979 until his retirement in 1994, Dr. Thomas E.

Florestano put AACC on a path to unprecedented growth as it fourth president. Within that period, Anne Arundel County developed, AACC's campus expanded to 230 acres (0.93 km 2 ) and the Glen Burnie Town Center location opened. To further AACC's mission, Dr. Florestano supported the active recruitment of students, administrators and faculty members through marketing at mall booths, increased mail correspondence, a streamlined registration process and higher faculty wages. As a result of his efforts—including student retention programs and curriculum expansion through eight-week minimesters and more off-site program offerings—the community college saw enrollment grow from 13,000 to approximately 36,000 and the annual budget from $9 million to $33 million. [ 12 ] [ 14 ] [ 16 ] [ 18 ] [ 19 ] On August 1, 1994, Dr. Martha A. Smith became AACC's fifth president and focused on evolving the community college into one that would serve its community economically via the integration of academic and vocational education. AACC's senior administration was reorganized and the previously separate offices of academic affairs and workforce development were combined. During her tenure, tuition was kept affordable, AACC's number of degree programs grew twofold and the graduating class of 2012 was nearly double the size of that of 1996. AACC was nationally recognized as a leader in cybersecurity education, workforce training and for student excellence. Dr. Smith garnered state and county funding for campus construction and renovation projects, which led to the opening of additional off-site locations: a Sales and Service Training Center; the Regional Higher Education Center; the Hotel, Culinary Arts and Tourism Institute building and a Center for Cyber and Professional Training. After 18 years of service, Dr. Smith retired on August 1, 2012. [ 12 ] [ 14 ] [ 20 ] [ 21 ] [ 22 ] [ 23 ] [ 24 ] Dr. Dawn Lindsay was appointed the sixth president of Anne Arundel Community College in 2012.

[ 14 ] [ 25 ] Accreditation AACC is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE). AACC's nursing programs have been accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing since 1970. The Maryland Board of Nursing awarded accreditation to the registered nursing program in 1966 and the practical nursing programs in 2006. The radiologic technology program has been nationally accredited by the Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology since 1993. AACC's physical therapist assistant program has been accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education since 1998. [ 13 ] In 2008, AACC's Department of Public Safety was nationally accredited through the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA) and became the first two-year institution in the United States to receive such an accreditation. The department was reaccredited in 2011 and 2014. [ 26 ] [ 27 ] [ 28 ]

The main campus is located in Arnold, Maryland, and spans 230 acres (0.93 km 2 ) , making it the largest single-campus community college in the state. There are 10 academic buildings, a library, gymnasium, student services center, student union, 389-seat performing arts center, the Earl S. Scott Nature Trail and a 3,000-seat athletic field. AACC has more than 100 off-site locations across Anne Arundel County, including Arundel Mills; Fort Meade Army Education Center; Glen Burnie Town Center; the hotel, Culinary Arts and Tourism Institute; and the Sales and Service Training Center. [ 2 ] [ 5 ] [ 29 ] [ 30 ] Anne Arundel Community College hosts Maryland's only statue of Martin Luther King Jr. , which was rededicated in 2019. [ 31 ] In 2019, the groundbreaking ceremony for the Anne Arundel Community College Health and Life Sciences Building was held. The three-story, 175,000-square foot building, which opened in fall 2021, houses 19 biology labs, 11 health science labs, a 160-seat lecture hall, greenhouse, classrooms, computer labs, study/meeting rooms, tutoring and advising, and faculty and deans’ offices. It is one of a series of projects within AACC's 10-year plan to expand and host new programs. [ 32 ] [ 33 ] In 2019, AACC received a $1 million donation to support the expansion of its skilled trades program. The newly constructed Clauson Center for Innovation and Skilled Trades opened on the Arnold campus in January 2022, offering six programs and pre-employment services. [ 34 ] [ 35 ] [ 36 ]