The school's mascot is the Flying Tigers, named for World War II General Clair Chennault's 1st American Volunteer Group and their P-40 aircraft adorned with a shark-faced motif.
SOWELA's Lake Charles campus was developed on property formerly used as Chennault Air Force Base.
Its service area includes Allen, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, and Jefferson Davis parishes.
The College offers associate degrees, technical diplomas, or certificates in 23 different programs.
In the summer of 2014, SOWELA introduced the 16-week Fast Track Process Technology (PTEC) program, which provides a compressed pathway to an Associate of Applied Science in Process Technology to qualified students who already hold an Associate or higher-level degree.