ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ

ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ Tech began in 1961 as ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ Area Vocational-Technical School. Two separate campuses were led by two directors, George Hardy and Raymond McKinley. In 1966 the school merged with Richmond Area Vocational School, and the name changed to ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ Area Technical School. Jack Patrick became president in 1977, and the school moved to its current location in 1981. By this time ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ Tech was offering more than thirty diploma programs. The school converted from local to state governance in 1987 and came under the direction of the newly formed Department of Technical and Adult Education (DTAE) in 1988, at which time its name changed to ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ Technical Institute.

In the 1990s, under the direction of Patrick and his successor, Terry D. Elam, ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ Tech expanded its programs by building a new health sciences building on its main campus; constructing two new campuses in neighboring Thomson, in McDuffie County, and Waynesboro, in Burke County; and assuming responsibility for ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ’s office of adult literacy. The Thomson campus opened in 1997 with 184 students in 10 credit programs. Terry Elam, the current president of ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ Tech, assumed the position in 1997. The Waynesboro campus opened in 2000. That same year, due to legislation (Georgia House Bill 1187) that allowed technical institutes offering associate degrees to be called colleges, ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ Technical Institute became ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ Technical College.

ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ Tech’s commitment to the technology industry is demonstrated by the college’s operation of the ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ–Richmond County Small Business Incubator. Opened near the ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ campus in 1999, this particular small business incubator was created to foster entrepreneurs and small businesses by providing managerial and technical assistance, low office rental rates, and shared access to office services and equipment. The program was originally envisioned as a high-tech incubator and continues to target high-tech organizations.

Expansion continued with the addition of a new student services and classroom building on the ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ campus in 2003. In September 2007 the college broke ground for a new campus in Columbia County, near Grovetown and opened in 2011. In 2018 in partnership with ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ University, the institution began offering information technology classes in the Georgia Cyber Center.

Koon, Mary. "ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ Technical College." New Georgia Encyclopedia, last modified Jul 13, 2022.