ACC trustees approve $2.2 million contract for AI program space

Alamance Community College trustees voted unanimously during a special Monday-night Zoom meeting to award a $2.2 million contract to Lomax Construction of Guilford County to complete the third-floor fit-out of the Biotechnology Center of Excellence for the college’s Artificial Intelligence and Business Data Analytics programs.

The vacant 7,139-square-foot third floor will house classroom and lab space designed last year by ThoughtCraft Architects of Durham. Trustee Bill Gomory told the board that, “The third-floor upfit is being funded by a grant through the State Capital Infrastructure Fund (SCIF) that the General Assembly previously allocated to the community college.” Trustees had budgeted $2.5 million for the project; the construction contract approved was for $2.2 million. The materials supplied by the college do not specify how the remaining $300,000 will be allocated.

College officials said the work is targeted for completion late this summer so the space can be available for the 2026-27 academic year. While the fit-out is underway, Artificial Intelligence and Business Data Analytics courses will continue to be taught elsewhere on the Graham campus and online, according to the meeting record.

The special meeting was convened solely to consider the third-floor contract. Because the session was held over Zoom, trustees conducted a roll call vote with each name called aloud. The meeting adjourned after 12 minutes. Trustees recorded as voting in favor include Julie Scott Emmons, chairman; Ken Walker, vice chairman; Grant Brooks; Jim Butler; Steve Carter; Dr. Roslyn Crisp; Pete Glidewell; Bill Gomory; Tammy Karnes; Sylvia Munoz; and Gen. Blake Williams. Trustee Walter Britt did not participate in the Zoom meeting; the record does not state why.

For Graham campus students and Alamance County employers, the fit-out represents a concrete investment in locally delivered training in computing and analytics. Centralized classroom and lab space can make program scheduling and hands-on instruction easier to coordinate than the current arrangement of scattered campus rooms and online sections. The project also aligns with broader postsecondary efforts to expand computing and data programs, though institutional plans and outcomes vary.

Several procedural and budgetary questions remain open. The college has not provided a precise construction start date, a detailed breakdown of the $2.5 million budget versus the $2.2 million contract, or an explanation for Trustee Walter Britt’s nonparticipation. As the project moves forward, those details will determine timing, equipment procurement, and when students will be able to use the new facilities.

If the schedule holds, Alamance Community College’s new AI and Business Data Analytics home should be ready for the fall 2026 term, giving local students a dedicated space for instruction and potentially strengthening ties between the college and area employers seeking analytics skills.