TCAT’s new buildings are coming right along, Buildings A & B

TCAT’s Debbie Petree and Camilla Gambrel take us on a photo tour of Building A.

JACKSBORO, TN (WLAF)- The soon to be completed new TCAT buildings, A & B, could not be coming at a better time, because enrollment records continue to be broken. “We had an enrollment of about 150 students when I joined TCAT a few years ago. Around eight years ago, we had two or three dual enrollment students,” said Dr. Debbie Petree, President of the Jacksboro TCAT.

See the full photo gallery HERE from WLAF’s Charlie Hutson.

The student lounge is on the second floor overlooking the lobby with a large window view looking east toward Jacksboro.

Now days, TCAT’s enrollment is at 730 students, give or take. That number could eventually triple once new buildings A & B are completed, according to Petree.

Cosmetology’s portion of Building A is huge, three times the size of the current classroom, because Cosmetology students make up TCAT’s largest class, and Cosmetology has the longest waiting list.

Since TCAT Counselor Camilla Gambrel came onboard around 2018, the dual enrollment portion of TCAT’s enrollment has grown to 500 students. TCAT dual enrollment students come from Campbell, Anderson, Cumberland Gap, Jellico High Schools and home schools.

Mason Christopher Juarez pauses for a photo op as Robert Sharp, III, continues working. TCAT’s Camille Gambrel and Debbie Petree are standing on the landing at the west end stairwell.

The area behind the main lobby houses all the behind the scenes offices like business office, conference room, bookstore along with a copy/work area. Human Resources, records, in fireproof rooms, as well as student services.

This large meeting, multi-purpose room seats about a hundred and includes a kitchen, the staff lounge and media area. It also has a divider to split the room into two smaller rooms.

TCAT’s original 1967 facility is some 46,000 square feet in size. Buildings A & B are a combined 120,000 square feet, according to Petree.

The statewide network of Area Vocational-Technical Schools in Tennessee began to be established in the 1960s, driven by Governor Frank G. Clement and Commissioner of Education J. Howard Warf following the federal Vocational Education Act of 1963. This plaque was placed in the lobby of the original TCAT building when it opened as the area vocational-technical school in 1967.

“It’s really taking shape,” said Petree.

Here’s a look at Building B from the Caryville end of Building A. Building B is built at an angle because of the way the property lines run.

Building A houses everything except the shop classes. Health and Sciences classrooms along with observation rooms, two large Nursing classrooms, that seat 50. Also upstairs are two computer labs, plus computer information, to go with Tourism and Hospitality classrooms as well as Pharmacy/ET classrooms. A testing center will allow students to take all their tests on the Jacksboro campus and not having to drive to Knoxville for particular testing.

Each end of Building A features stairs to the second floor.
The elevator is part of the first floor lobby and is across from where the campus police office will be located.

After January’s rough winter weather snap, TCAT’s target date for completion is now November, maybe December. The demolition of TCAT’s original building begins in early 2027 to make room for parking. (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED-04/27/2026-6AM-PHOTOS COURTESY OF WLAF’S CHARLIE HUTSON)

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