Campus History
The State Area Vocational-Technical Schools were established as a statewide system by the 1963 Tennessee General Assembly in compliance with the Federal Vocational Act of 1963. The purpose of the schools was to better meet the occupational and training needs of citizens, employees, and businesses in the state. The intent of the legislation was to locate and construct each school to serve residents within a 50-mile radius.
On April 16, 1964, the bids were opened for the Athens State Area Vocational-Technical School. The school was the third of eighteen proposed Area Vo-Tech Schools. At a cost of $443,000, construction began in May 1964, with completion scheduled for January 1965.
The school opened in June 1965 with 25 students enrolled in three programs: Automotive Mechanics, Air Conditioning, and Machine Shop. In September 1965, Drafting, Electronics, and Industrial Chemistry classes were added.
In 1969, one shop was added to the original facility. Another two-shop addition was completed in March 1975. Located on a 15-acre site along Highway 11 bypass, the facility contained some 25,600 square feet of floor space on one level.
The Industrial Chemistry program was closed in 1967.
In 1989, the Auto Mechanics program received Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) certification, and the program name was changed to Automotive Technology. In July 1992, the Office Occupations program was renamed Business Systems Technology. The change was made to better reflect the technological advancements in that program.
In April 1993, a satellite program in Practical Nursing was begun at the Tellico Education Consortium in Vonore. In the fall of 1994, another satellite program in Practical Nursing was started in Copperhill.
In June 1997, the Drafting program name was changed to Drafting & CAD Technology.
In 1998, the school had nine full-time programs: Auto Body Repair, Automotive Technology, Business Systems Technology, Drafting and CAD Technology, Electronics, Industrial Maintenance, Machine Shop, Practical Nursing and Welding.
The school has over 200 full-time students. Specialized industry classes are designed and developed to meet the needs of local industries and businesses.
Robert E. Barnett was hired as the school's first superintendent and served until his retirement in 1989. The title of superintendent was changed to Director. Margaret Mahery served as Director from 1990 to 2002, and Stewart Smith has served as Director since 2002.
The school serves individuals from a broad geographic area comprising McMinn, Monroe, Bradley, Meigs and Polk counties. It is governed by the Tennessee Board of Regents, the largest system of higher education in Tennessee. The Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology is fully accredited by the Council on Occupational Education.
In 1994, the Tennessee General Assembly appropriated a $46 million bond issue for Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology to construct and renovate nine technology centers and to upgrade equipment at all 27 centers. TCAT Athens received $375, 900 for equipment upgrades.
In 1995, the General Assembly appropriated $37 million for construction and renovation for eleven (11) centers and equipment upgrades for all 27 centers.
Athens received $2,591,000 for construction/renovation and $137,182 for equipment upgrades. This brought the total for construction/renovation and equipment updates to $3,174,082 for Athens. In 2007, the General Assembly appropriated $525,200 to TCAT Athens for equipment upgrades.
TCAT Athens became the first postsecondary institution in the State of Tennessee to have a school-wide membership in SkillsUSA. The college joined SkillsUSA in November 2004 and received its charter on April 26, 2005.
In July 2013, the state’s workforce training schools, known as Tennessee Technology Centers, were renamed Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology.
In January 2014, the Business Systems Technology program was renamed Administrative Office Technology. The Electro-Mechanical Program began in September 2014.
The college worked with city, county and state governments, as well as industry and business leaders, to conceive and develop the Center for Advanced Manufacturing and Business Innovation (CAMBI).
In January 2015, TCAT Athens, in partnership with seven area county high schools from McMinn, Polk, Meigs and Bradley, was awarded nearly 1 million dollars from Governor Haslam’s LEAP Grant to implement a Mechatronics program in the high schools. In August, the program launched with over 250 students enrolled in classes that teach the fundamentals of manufacturing and electro-mechanical technology, allowing students to earn dual credit from Cleveland State Community College or dual enrollment with the TCAT Athens.
In 2020, a new Practical Nursing classroom was built to help increase enrollment in that program.
In 2021, the McMinn Higher Education Center was built, which houses TCAT Athens’ Mechanical Maintenance, Electrical and Instrumentation programs.