Fire academy spreads to Austin

The board of trustees has approved an interlocal agreement between the city of Austin and ACC regarding a proposed move of ACC's fire academy. The facility, currently in Taylor, will be moved to an Austin Fire Department training facility.

The Jan. 22nd, approval follows discussion earlier in the spring semester regarding a move of the facility effective fall 2007.

The ACC Fire Protection Advisory Committee recommended the move, citing the need for a facility close to the areas that produce the most cadets and the departments who will hire them.

The board cited numerous factors behind the move. Currently, the fire academy resides outside ACC's service area, which has complicated operations at the facility. With a move closer to other campuses, the board hopes to ease internet connections to the mainframe and enable quicker access to counselors, admissions, and records.

Since 2006, ACC has leased time at AFD's training facility for all live fire burns. With a move to the facility, it will no longer be necessary to maintain the increased cost of transporting the program's cadets, air packs, and fire hoses.

The school also plans to get out of the dormitory business by closing its Taylor dorms, which have been necessary due to the academy's remote location.

Starting with the program's inception in 1990, ACC's fire academy conducted live fire burns at the Taylor Fire Department facility. The academy was jointly run by the city and the school, and all funds except for payroll were handled by Taylor. In 1998, after severing ties with Taylor, ACC has maintained its own leases and collection of revenue.

The academy was developed in Taylor as a response to local requests, however by 2000 administrators began conducting its fire burns at a Pflugerville facility, and later in Austin, after the Taylor site "no longer met our instructional needs," according to a summary provided by the board.

Administrators hope that a move will expand the program through night classes, emergency medical technician courses and a subsequent increase in enrollment. Instructors should also have an easier time getting to class due to the new location's proximity to the I-35 corridor.

ACC currently leases a large storage facility and AFD's fire burn facility, and over 8000-sqare-feet of lecture, fitness, and reference rooms; and faculty offices.

The school plans to spend more than $500,000 from 2003 bond interest funds to construct a parking lot for cadets, and to relocate three portable buildings to the new facility.

"It is a state of the art structure," according to a statement provided by the board. "[It] meets all of the safety guidelines of the Texas Fire Commission."

With increased revenues for the program, expanded facilities, and quicker access for students, the fire academy is now finding its place in Austin.