University Center opens in Fredericksburg

Faculty and donors celebrated the opening of the Hill Country University Center (HCUC) on Sep. 23 in Fredericksburg.

The HCUC program began at Fredericksburg high school in 2003 in portable trailers. Since then, the program has expanded due to the support of HEB, Texas Tech, Austin Community College, Concordia, and Angelo State.

The center was founded by the Hill Country Foundation in 2003 to cater to the needs of traditional, non-traditional, and economically challenged students who might not be able to afford to go study elsewhere at a four year institution.

"Students from different socioeconomic backgrounds can come to the University Center and have access to the same education they would receive at a regular four-year University at a much lower price without having to leave home," according to Jimmy Sparks, executive director of the HCUC foundation.

Stationed on a 68 acre campus on the outskirts of Fredericksburg, the facility features six classrooms, two lecture halls, a science lab, a computer lab, bookstore, and support space for both students and the nine staff members that are currently employed in the Hill Country. The academic structure of the HCUC is a noncompetitive course schedule, meaning that no institution offers the same major.

Students who do not have transferable credit may begin by taking ACC core curriculum classes that are applicable to the 4 year university of their choice, and when the prerequisite classes for transfer are complete, they can be advised on a transfer. After the process of advising, students have an opportunity to choose a major. The end goal is to attain a four year university diploma in a smaller, community oriented environment.

Elizabeth Olvera, a business major at the HCUC, grew up in a small town 15 miles outside of Fredericksburg. She graduated from a class of 37 students and attended University of Texas at San Antonio for her first year of college, but said that because of the class size she felt like she didn't even want to go to class.

"I was not used to the class size and it was intimidating," Olvera said. After hearing about the HCUC facility, she immediately enrolled because it reminded her of her home environment. "By going to HCUC I can stay in the town that I feel comfortable in meanwhile getting the same education that I would anywhere else."

Plans for expansion are a topic of discussion for the HCUC board and with a 68 acre campus, there is lots of room for potential advancement, according to ACC Executive Vice President Mary Hensley. Students have received their degrees and have become first generation college graduates through the programs offered by HCUC.

Dr. Julie Martenson, the Texas Tech Director of Off-Campus-Sites summarized the goal of the multi-institution program, "At HCUC, you can take a dusty old transcript, or no degree at all, and hone current job skills or begin anew- gaining a competitive edge in an ever developing and challenging job market."