Welcome to Central Carolina Technical College!
Central Carolina students have a wide array of programs and services from which to choose. Our online programming and cooperative agreements with other colleges and universities provide students with exceptional opportunities coupled with our more traditional learning opportunities. Communities and businesses count on our college for responsive, customized training and education. Still, we keep asking “what do you need?” and “how can we make it happen?”. As your regional resource for training and education, we’re committed to abundant learning, creativity, diversity, and global readiness.
Imagine being part of the big picture. Central Carolina can take you there. In accordance with our mission, the college is designed to ensure all interested students in the Sumter, Lee, Clarendon, and Kershaw areas are given the opportunity to experience higher education. Our vision and values emphasize excellence, integrity, and innovation. The history of the college is centered around the success of our students in conjunction with the growth of the communities we serve.
History of Central Carolina Technical College
In 1961, a local committee began studying the feasibility of establishing an “industrial training center” to serve Sumter county. When Clarendon, Kershaw and Lee Counties expressed interest in participating, the service area was broadened to include these counties. The committee’s work culminated in 1962 with the passage of the enabling legislation which created Sumter Area Technical Education Center.
in 1971, the institution changed its name to Sumter Area Technical College and in 1974 received initial accreditation by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools as a two-year college offering technical and vocational programs. In 1989 the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education authorized Sumter Area Technical College to begin offering the Associate in Arts and the Associate in Science degree programs designed specifically for transfer to four-year colleges and universities. With the addition of the transfer programs, Sumter Area Technical College achieved the status of a comprehensive community college. In the fall of 1992, the college changed its name to Central Carolina Technical College to better reflect its service area. In 1998, the college assumed operation at the F.E. DuBose Career Center located in Clarendon County. In 2001, Central Carolina established the Kershaw County Site in Camden. During the 2005-2006 academic year, a site was also added in Lee County. During 2010, the college expanded its presence in Kershaw County and in downtown Sumter by adding additional facilities to serve students’ needs with the addition of a state-of-the art Health Sciences Center and the Kershaw County Campus located at the intersection of Interstate 20 and Highway 521. In 2012, the college renovated a former federal building located in the same downtown Sumter area as the Health Sciences Center. This renovated facility serves as the Legal Studies Center where the Paralegal and Criminal Justice Associate Degree programs are located. in 2015, the College opened its Advanced Manufacturing Technology Training Center on Broad Street and relocated several Industrial and Engineering programs at this location.
More than 8,500 students each year are enrolled in a variety of associate degree, diploma, and certificate programs and non-credit continuing education activities.