Trident Technical College officially opens new facility

Trident Technical College is truly high-tech. On Tuesday, the college celebrated the opening of its Information Technology Center and the Culinary Institute of Charleston.

“You can see why we have described this as the icon, the signature building on the campus,” said TTC President Mary Thornley.

The 40,000-square-foot IT Center houses 16 computer labs and a data center. Students will be trained in a Digital Media Lab, a Cisco Certified Network Professional Lab and Information Systems iSeries Server Lab. More than 200 miles of Category 5e cable delivers data, voice and video in conjunction with electrical power to wireless access points and VOIP telephones.

The Culinary Institute can train up to 1,000 students for careers in the culinary, hospitality and tourism industry. The institute has state-of-the-art training kitchens, a dedicated computer lab and a hotel training suite.

A 60-seat dining room and kitchen gives students practice working in a restaurant, trying out every job from busboy to manager. The wait staff takes orders on handheld computers, sending them directly to the kitchen and to the front where the bill is created and processed.

In addition to this new facility, TTC is planning a $7 million renovation to the Palmer campus downtown to provide students with such specialty areas as advanced culinary certifications and master mixology courses.

Thornley recognized many of the people involved in the building of the new facility, including state and local politicians, the TTC Area Commission, the TTC Foundation and the eight-member chef’s council.

“A South Carolina technical college cannot pull off a $30 million renovation without a lot of help,” she said.