As early as 1957, the State of North Carolina recognized the need to offer additional post-high school education and training for its residents. By 1962, the General Assembly approved the development of twenty industrial education centers. The next year, the Onslow County Board of Education and the Superintendent of Public Schools, Mr. J. Paul Tyndall, asked the Onslow County Commissioners to purchase forty acres on U.S. Highway 17 to establish an industrial education center as a satellite of the Lenoir County Technical Institute. Since 2007, the College has focused on enhancing the overall campus appearance in order to create a physical environment conducive to student engagement and learning.