Austin Community College District (ACC) is a regional community college district with eight campuses located in and around the city of Austin, Texas, United States. The ACC district is the eighth largest college district in the U.S. ACC opened its doors on September 17, 1973. It is now the second largest institution of higher learning in Central Texas (The University of Texas at Austin is the largest) with a service area that stretches over eight counties and 7,000 square miles (18,000 km). As of Spring 2011, ACC has 4,500 faculty and staff, 45,056 credit students, 15,000 non-credit students and over 235 associate degree and certificate programs. As defined by the Texas Legislature, the official service area of Austin Community College is the following: Austin Community College includes eight campuses plus additional classrooms and headquarters at its Highland Business Center in Austin. Austin Community College campuses include: Residents within ACC's tax-district enjoy significantly lower tuition rates than those out of district. As of Spring 2012, in-district residents pay $57 per credit hour, while out-of-district residents pay $199 per credit hour.