The Pinellas County School System enjoys the leadership role in the state of Florida in the area of technical training, has two elite area centers, located in Clearwater and St. Petersburg.

The campus located in Clearwater, formerly known as the Technical Education Center and Pinellas Vocational Technical Institute, was the first school in the state specifying in a postsecondary area technical center in 1965. The St. Petersburg campus, originally known as Manpower Development Training Center, was completed and named St. Petersburg Vocational Technical Institute in 1977.

Both campuses are full-service schools offering quality services to students and residents of the community. This endeavor provides positive partnership between Pinellas County residents and the academic and human services community.

The Pinellas Technical Education Centers and its Instructional Service Center (ISC) are committed to provide a wide range of technical programs and short-term training. Evaluating the changing needs of industry is a difficult and continuous process; so programs are established to satisfy industry's training requirements. The PTEC are legally authorized public educational establishments providing occupational educational opportunities beyond high school that will meet changing labor needs of business and industry.

Clearwater and St. Petersburg campuses are both leaders not only in state but also in national vocational student organization competition. Annually skill and leadership contests are held in the local level and continue as an international competition. The awards are the brilliant and obvious example of the excellent quality of education that students. PTEC graduates are in great demand in the job market because of the high quality of their technical skills.