[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 27 (Friday, February 14, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E215]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           HARRISBURG AREA COMMUNITY COLLEGE 50TH ANNIVERSARY

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. LOU BARLETTA

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, February 14, 2014

  Mr. BARLETTA. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor Harrisburg Area Community 
College (HACC) as they celebrate 50 years of providing educational 
opportunities to the people of Central Pennsylvania.
  HACC was established on February 14, 1964 as the first community 
college in Pennsylvania, with its inaugural class of 426 students 
matriculating on September 21st of that year. Originally housed at the 
former Harrisburg Academy site on Front Street, the College purchased a 
157-acre tract in Wildwood Park, and in April of 1966 broke ground on 
the $3.5 million building project, eventually moving to this new campus 
in 1967. As the student body grew, HACC continued to add buildings and 
gained the first accreditation for a Pennsylvania community college 
from the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools. Campuses 
opened and expanded in Gettysburg, Lancaster, Lebanon, and York, and 
off-site learning locations, as well as a robust Virtual Campus were 
established.
  Today, HACC is the largest community college in Pennsylvania, with 
almost 22,000 degree-seeking and thousands more non-degree seeking 
students enrolling each semester. The college offers nearly 200 
associate degree, certificate, and diploma programs. Approximately one 
third of students go on to continue their education and pursue a 
bachelor's degree at a four year college or university. The college 
also offers workforce development programs in fields such as allied 
health; law enforcement and security; and technology and trades, giving 
students the chance to receive affordable training for a specific 
career. As of 2011, the College had graduated more than 46,467 students 
in a variety of majors.
  Mr. Speaker, Harrisburg Area Community College is the sole 
institution of its kind serving the Central Pennsylvania region. 
Therefore, I commend all the students, teachers and other members of 
the HACC community who have helped this academic institution grow and 
flourish over the past 50 years.

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