Nashville State
Technical Community College
Since it first opened in 1970, Nashville State Community College has been a vital part of Nashville. Initially named Nashville State Technical Institute, the college had 398 students, and offered only five associate's degrees. Graduation was held in the parking lot. White Bridge Road, where the main campus is still located, had only two lanes and very few businesses.

As the White Bridge Road area grew over the years, so did the college. In 1984, Nashville State joined the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) system of state universities and community colleges. In the spring of 2002, the decision to expand the mission of Nashville State Technical Institute to that of a community college was approved by the Tennessee General Assembly and the Tennessee State Governor. On July 1, 2002, it became official. As a community college, Nashville State continues to offer the Associate of Applied Science technical and career degrees. With the mission expansion, new degrees have been added for students planning to transfer their credits to universities: the Associate of Arts, the Associate of Science, and the Associate of Science in Teaching.

In order to better serve middle Tennessee, additional sites of learning have been established. In Waverly, the Humphreys County Center of Higher Education serves students in Stewart, Houston, and Humphreys counties. In Putnam County, the Cookeville campus of Nashville State is in the heart of the upper Cumberland region. In Nashville, the Southeast Center provides learning opportunities for all of southeast Davidson County. In Dickson, students can take classes at the Dickson County Higher Education Center.

Progress is currently underway on the main campus in constructing Nashville State's new student services facility. The two-story, 60,000 square foot building will be home to the admissions, financial aid, records and student life departments, as well as the bursar's office, testing center, and bookstore. There will also be a food court and student lounge. Additionally, the new building will include five new classrooms.

In the future, Nashville State will continue to build on its solid reputation as a technical college. It will stay in step with the educational needs and work force demands of Nashville and the surrounding middle Tennessee area.