October 11, 2007

In 1967, the Arkansas General Assembly passed legislation to create a two-year technical college in Camden (Ouachita County) called the Southwest Technical Institute. Now known as Southern Arkansas University Tech, the doors opened in 1968 with the institute’s first class of 144 students beginning study. In 1977, the operation of the school was transferred to Southern Arkansas University (SAU) in Magnolia. Since then, enrollment has steadily increased, topping 2,000 in 2007. Shown here is the school’s administration building.