SOWELA Technical Community College is a public
community college
A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an "open enrollment" for students who have graduated from high school (also known as senior sec ...
in
Lake Charles, Louisiana
Lake Charles (French: ''Lac Charles'') is the fifth-largest incorporated city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and the parish seat of Calcasieu Parish, located on Lake Charles, Prien Lake, and the Calcasieu River. Founded in 1861 in Calcasieu ...
, with an additional instruction site in
Jennings, Louisiana
Jennings is a city in, and the parish seat of, Jefferson Davis Parish, Louisiana, United States, near Lake Charles. The population was 10,383 at the 2010 census, a small decline from the 2000 tabulation. The city is 68 percent white.
Jennings is ...
and
Oakdale, Louisiana
Oakdale is a city in Allen Parish in south Louisiana, United States. The population was 7,780 at the 2010 census.
Oakdale was founded as "Dunnsville" by William T. Dunn. The history of Allen Parish is preserved at the Leatherwood Museum, w ...
. The school's mascot is the Flying Tigers, named for the World War II General Clair Chennault's 1st American Volunteer Group and their P-40 aircraft adorned with a shark-faced motif. SOWELA's Lake Charles campus was developed on property formerly used as
Chennault Air Force Base
Chennault International Airport (IATA: CWF, ICAO: KCWF, FAA LID: CWF) is a center of aerospace activity based in Lake Charles, Louisiana, serves the needs of civilian and military aircraft from around the world with world-class infrastructure, ...
.
Its service area includes
Allen Allen, Allen's or Allens may refer to:
Buildings
* Allen Arena, an indoor arena at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee
* Allen Center, a skyscraper complex in downtown Houston, Texas
* Allen Fieldhouse, an indoor sports arena on the Univer ...
,
Beauregard,
Calcasieu,
Cameron, and
Jefferson Davis
Jefferson F. Davis (June 3, 1808December 6, 1889) was an American politician who served as the president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865. He represented Mississippi in the United States Senate and the House of Representatives as a ...
parishes.
History
* In 1962, it was renamed as SOWELA (Southwest Louisiana) Technical Institute.
* In 1971, the institute received accreditation from the Commission on Occupational Education (COE) of the
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) is an educational accreditor recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. This agency accredits over 13,000 public and priv ...
.
* In January 1980, the institute moved to its present location near
Chennault International Airport
Chennault International Airport (IATA: CWF, ICAO: KCWF, FAA LID: CWF) is a center of aerospace activity based in Lake Charles, Louisiana, serves the needs of civilian and military aircraft from around the world with world-class infrastructur ...
on the east side of
Lake Charles, Louisiana
Lake Charles (French: ''Lac Charles'') is the fifth-largest incorporated city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and the parish seat of Calcasieu Parish, located on Lake Charles, Prien Lake, and the Calcasieu River. Founded in 1861 in Calcasieu ...
.
* In March 1990, the institute was renamed SOWELA Regional Technical Institute.
* On July 27, 1995, the institute was renamed to Louisiana Technical College – SOWELA Campus.
* In 2003, the
Louisiana Community and Technical College System
The Louisiana Community and Technical College System (LCTCS) manages thirteen public 2-year institutions in the state of Louisiana. It is headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge, and is located on the campus of Baton Rouge Community C ...
(LCTCS) Board of Supervisors changed the name and status of the institute – renaming it to SOWELA Technical Community College and giving it the status of a technical community college.
Following damage by
Hurricane Rita
Hurricane Rita was the most intense tropical cyclone on record in the Gulf of Mexico and the fourth-most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded. Part of the record-breaking 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, which included three of the top ten L ...
in 2005, the Lake Charles campus was repaired and added four new buildings – the Phillips 66 Process Technology building, Arts and Humanities building, Nursing and Allied Health building, and Regional Training Center. An $8 million Student Services building is to be completed on the Lake Charles campus by mid-2017. Replacing the Morgan Smith Instructional Site in Jennings, a $10 million facility will be built in 2017 adjacent to the Jennings High School in Jefferson Davis Parish.
Academics
The College offers
associate degree
An associate degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of qualification above a high school diploma, GED, or matriculation, and below a bachelor's degree.
The fi ...
s,
technical diplomas, or certificates in 23 different programs. In the summer of 2014, SOWELA introduced the 16-week Fast Track Process Technology (PTEC) program, which provides a compressed pathway to an
Associate of Applied Science
An associate degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of qualification above a high school diploma, GED, or matriculation, and below a bachelor's degree.
The fi ...
in
Process Technology
A process is a series or set of activities that interact to produce a result; it may occur once-only or be recurrent or periodic.
Things called a process include:
Business and management
*Business process, activities that produce a specific se ...
to qualified students who already hold an Associate or higher-level degree.
Notable alumni
*
E. Holman Jones, former member of the
Louisiana House of Representatives
The Louisiana House of Representatives (french: link=no, Chambre des Représentants de Louisiane) is the lower house in the Louisiana State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. This chamber is composed of 105 repr ...
from
Oakdale in
Allen Parish
Allen Parish (french: Paroisse d'Allen) is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2010 census, the population was 25,764. The parish seat is Oberlin and the largest city is Oakdale. Allen Parish is in southwestern Louisia ...
References
External links
Official website
{{authority control
Community colleges in Louisiana
Universities and colleges accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
Buildings and structures in Lake Charles, Louisiana
Education in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana
Educational institutions accredited by the Council on Occupational Education
Two-year colleges in the United States