Lewis M. Lively, a local businessman, established Lively Technical Center in 1937 with the hope that the vocational school would provide individuals with the education and training needed to obtain gainful employment and earn a living. The school opened with one full-time and one half-time instructor and 52 students.

Today, Lively serves thousands of students annually, with a faculty and staff of 78. While designated by the Florida State Board of Education to serve primarily Leon, Gadsden and Wakulla counties, Lively welcomes students from throughout North Florida, neighboring South Georgia & Alabama, and around the world, including the Americas, Africa, Asia, Australia, and Europe.

Located in Tallahassee, Lively occupies three sites, including the main campus and campuses at the Tallahassee Regional Airport and the Leon Detention Center. Lively also offers dual enrollment programs at Chiles High School, Rickards High School, Wakulla High School, Florida A&M University Developmental Research School, and Florida State University Developmental Research School. Part-time career enhancement courses for city, county, and state governmental agencies as well as private businesses are often held at the hosts’ own facilities.

Lively welcomes the opportunity to serve teens and adults. The faculty and staff are dedicated to serving their students and bring a diverse complement of educational degrees and work experiences to their students. This broad range of expertise insures Lively's ability to provide students with the career knowledge, on-the-job skills, positive work attitudes, and employability skills that lead to a successful career.

Lively utilizes a variety of educational delivery methods, including classroom lecture, computer-assisted instruction, audio-visual instruction, hands-on learning opportunities, one-on-one instruction, internships and externships, cooperative education/on-the-job train­ing and apprenticeship training. Some courses require students to achieve competency in skills within a specified timeframe, while many other course are individualized, self-paced programs that allow students to progress and achieve competency in skills according to their abilities.

Lively Technical Center, in partnership with employers, trains today’s students for tomorrow’s workforce.