Amarillo College’s students and dual-credit students both competed in a state-wide contest at SkillsUSA Texas earlier this month in Corpus Christi. Together the group earned three first place finishes and those students qualified to compete in the national SkillsUSA competitions.“This was the first year that secondary and post-secondary students competed at the same location at the same time,” said Ernie Sheets, AC’s Manufacturing Education Center (MEC) department chair. “I feel this enhanced the experience for all post-secondary students in attendance. High school students are now able to see colleges competing which in turn developed a vision for continued education pathways.”

Amarillo College students and members of the Future Billionaires Club have created the first “Innovate U” event for AC students and employees to showcase their businesses set for 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, April 23 at the Oeschger Family Mall at AC’s Washington Street campus. “We wanted to showcase our club by working with student and staff businesses,” said Christian Flores, a biology major and one of the event organizers. “There are so many talented students who work and/or have own their own business in addition to taking classes. Anyone is welcome to come check out these businesses.” 

Those who enjoy reading and watching romance will not want to miss the screening of the first episode of a new Netflix series “A Ransom Canyon” at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 22 at Amarillo College’s Innovation Outpost at 1220 S. Polk Street in Amarillo. Attendees will also have the chance to meet the author who inspired the series, Jodi Thomas. Thomas, a fifth generation Texan, began authoring novels as a teacher at Amarillo High School. Thomas's first novel, “Beneath the Texas Sky,” met with critical success. It won a Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Award for Best Western Romance and was designated a National Press Women Novel of the Year. 

The Amarillo College Cyber Challenge 2025 is a one-day cyber security challenge set for Friday, April 25 at AC’s Innovation Outpost at 1220 S. Polk Street in Amarillo. The competition is hosted on the CyberQ platform and features team and solo Capture the Flag challenges suited for high school, college, and early career IT professionals. 

Amarillo College and West Texas A&M University will together celebrate AC graduates and their transfer to WT with a signing day at 11:45 a.m. Tuesday, April 15 at the Oeschger Family Mall at AC’s Washington Campus. Students who transferred this spring or plan to in the summer or fall are eligible to participate. All participants will be entered to win a scholarship and a WT swag giveaway.

Education Credit Union earned the prestigious Diamond Award from the Marketing, PR & Development Council’s annual competition for marketing excellence for the ECU Badger $mart Branch Grand Opening last year on Amarillo College’s campus. The event was the fruition of a partnership committed to establishing a student-run ECU branch at the College. The full-service retail branch provides the same financial services to ECU members that all branches offer, but outside of a few management-level ECU team members, all other employees at the Badger $mart Branch are AC students. The Aug. 15 event included a DJ, pizza and sodas, branded giveaways and a ceremonial ribbon-cutting.

Each spring, Amarillo College recognizes its most outstanding students at a formal and celebratory Honors Convocation, which this year will be at 2 p.m. Sunday, April 13 at the Amarillo Civic Center.The College commends and congratulates the following students for their significant academic achievements.

In celebration of their 45th anniversary, the Amarillo Master Chorale along with area vocalists and instrumentalists will stage G. F. Handel’s majestic "Messiah" at 7 p.m. Saturday, April 12 at the Globe-News Center for the Performing Arts. “Throughout its history, the Amarillo Master Chorale has been pursuing ‘harmony and beauty in voice’ while exploring the fascinating territory between arts-entertainment and spiritual formation,” said Dr. Nathaniel Fryml, AC’s director of Choral Activities and artistic director of the Master Chorale. “Handel’s complete 'Messiah' felt like a perfect fit for our anniversary season because it sits boldly in that indefinable space and provides such wonderful opportunities for community engagement and partnership.” 

Designed to bring critical public safety disciplines together under a single roof, Amarillo College’s First Responders Academy is inviting the public to an open house from 4-5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 10. Amarillo College’s First Responders Academy, which opened in 2024, serves as an essential hub for Emergency Medical Services (EMS), Criminal Justice, Law Enforcement, and Fire Protection Technology training.

Amarillo College’s Testing Services was recertified by the National College Testing Association (NCTA) last month through a rigorous and thorough process enabling the center to test hundreds of students on a myriad of career-centered tests. “It was a seven-month process to gather and report everything from room size and arrangement to procedures and confidentiality,” said Erin Frey, AC’s Testing Service coordinator, who took on the project just months into her position. “Together we demonstrated the professionalism and careful detail we take to ensure a first-rate Center.” 

Amarillo College is pleased to announce that its Communications and Marketing Department parlayed its “Your Future is Bright” promotional campaign into significant recognition at the 40th Annual Education Advertising Awards.An elite national organization known for recognizing excellence in higher education advertising, the Education Advertising Awards (EduAwards) presented 10 total accolades to Amarillo College. Two of the laurels are at the highest Gold level and are directly related to the “Bright” campaign.

On a day widely associated with tricks, The Keep Us Live! series will continue in earnest with the accomplished pianist John Bayless at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 1. “He will bring his improvisational style to a variety of feel-good genres, from opera to Broadway shows, music from the movies, and even the Beatles,” said Dr. Bruce Lin, director of piano at AC. 

With a renewed interest in Bob Dylan this year’s Amarillo College  Creative Mind Lecture Series will be three days and include music, a lecture, and rare film footage April 9-11 at AC’s Washington Street campus. The event will kick off with live musical tributes to Bob Dylan and food trucks at noon Wednesday, April 9 at the Oeschger Family Mall. AC’s FM-90 will host the two-hour event. 

A collaborative tradition of faculty- and artist-led workshops aimed at inspiring the next generation of creatives returns Friday, March 28 to Amarillo College, where 400 high school students will gather for the IGNITE High School Creative Arts Conference.For the fifth time Amarillo College and the Texas Panhandle Art Education Association (TPAEA) will co-present IGNITE, from 8 a.m.-2:30 p.m. on AC’s Washington Street Campus.

Amarillo College’s Dr. Dan Ferguson helped thousands of students write better with the creation of AC’s Writing Academic Success Center also known as the Writers' Corner. Ferguson along with Dr. Frank Sobey created AC’s Writers' Corner to help students in Composition 1 and 2. Proof is in the scores that raised success rates by 20-30% in those first semesters. 

Amarillo College is pleased to announce its upcoming Men in Healthcare career exploration event, which is from 8:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 26 in Building A, Room 109 at the West Campus, 6222 SW 9th Ave.This event is part of the College's ongoing effort to encourage and support men in pursuing non-traditional gender careers, particularly in the healthcare field.

Amarillo College will recognize staff and faculty for their length of service at the Legacies ceremony set for 9 a.m. Friday, March 21 at the Oak Room in the College Union Building, Washington Street Campus. “We like to take time each year to recognize these milestone markers of service to AC,” said Will Ratliff, director of organizational development. “We appreciate each of these 69 employees who will be recognized for their service.” 

More than 125 women who want to learn about technical-career opportunities long associated with the male gender will get that chance on Wednesday, March 19 when Amarillo College hosts “Women in Industry” on the East Campus.The event is from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., and participants will engage in career exploration and seminars relevant to the pursuit of technical careers. 

Amarillo College students earned top honors at the Amarillo chapter of the American Advertising Federation’s 2025 Advertising Awards last month. “The Current,” AC’s student-run magazine, won Best of Show and a gold Addy award for its 2024 spring edition. “I was incredibly honored to receive this prestigious award from the AAF,” Hayden Splawn, a graphic design major and co-art director of the magazine, said. “For all the countless hours of work we put in on top of our regular classes, it really shows how much a student-run team can accomplish when they have their priorities straight.”

Texas Mutual Insurance Company is awarding a $100,000 grant to Amarillo College (AC) to continue funding AC’s Safety and Environmental Technology program, which provides workplace safety and health courses for community employers, employees and the general public.This is the 10th consecutive year that Texas Mutual, the state’s leading provider of workers’ compensation insurance, has given a grant to the college to support its risk management program.