Midlands Technical College, is a comprehensive, multi-campus, public, two-year college serving the primary region of Richland, Lexington and Fairfield counties of South Carolina. In 1947, the South Carolina Area Trade Schools (SCATS) Act established the South Carolina Area Trade SchoolColumbia Campus to provide skilled and educated workers to meet the expanding labor needs of the community. In 1969, the name was changed to Columbia Technical Education Center (TEC) and it became part of the State Committee for Technical Education, which was responsible for guiding the technical programs in the state. The site of the Columbia Technical Education Center is now the Airport Campus of Midlands Technical College.