AACC Foundation to Gift Clauson Center to College, Recognize Donors and Partners

Dec. 7, 2021

The AACC Foundation will gift and dedicate the Clauson Center for Innovation and Skilled Trades to Anne Arundel Community College at an event on Thursday, Dec. 16, at 11:30 a.m. The event will include a ribbon cutting and gifting of the building to the college from the foundation, in addition to recognizing and thanking donors, board members, business and community leaders, AACC faculty and staff, and our partners for their support in making the new facility a reality.  

The 11,300-square-foot Clauson Center was built “by the community, for the community,” as AACC’s first building to be funded solely through philanthropy. The building will open to students studying electrical work, forklift operations, HVAC, plumbing, welding, framing and finish carpentry, general contracting and more in January 2022, helping meet the community’s growing demand of skilled trades workers. Skilled trade positions have been identified as the most difficult positions for employers to fill in the United States, according to recent research.  

“By expanding our workforce development programs, we can support the needs of our employers and our local economy while helping people start and maintain successful careers,” said Dr. Dawn Lindsay, president of AACC.  

The building will be the home of dynamic skilled trades programming that will adapt to job market demands. The Clauson Center will offer new technologies and facilities needed to equip students for a changing job market through hands-on learning in state-of-the-art labs, fast-track training that targets shortages in key skilled trades, as well as apprenticeships and coaching to transition students successfully into jobs with local employers.  

Through the generosity of approximately 200 donors, the AACC Foundation secured over $4.25 million in private contributions to construct the building, including a lead donation made by Janet and James Clauson, for whom the building was named. The Clausons are longtime AACC Foundation donors who are committed to the value the Clauson Center will bring to local employers and people who seek to establish themselves on a skilled trades career path.  

“We are very grateful for Jim and Janet’s generosity and leadership,” Lindsay said. “They share our belief that as we help businesses and people achieve their potential, our community is stronger.”  

The AACC Foundation is a 501 (c)(3) charitable organization that partners with donors and the college to increase access to higher education in our community through student scholarships and strategic initiatives that would otherwise not be possible.