A new 13,000-square-foot career technical education center opened at Analy High School in Sebastopol in August, built with $27 million from a voter-approved bond, as Sonoma County school districts head into the 2026-27 school year with a wave of fresh investment in hands-on job training. The facility houses industry-standard equipment for 10 career pathways spanning six industries, giving students at the 1908-founded campus a place to weld, build and experiment their way toward a trade or a degree.
The Analy center is the most visible piece of a broader shift happening across the county, one documented in a report from The Press Democrat. Jennie Bruneman, director of facilities for the West Sonoma County Union High School District, said the new building was designed with flexible spaces able to change as industry needs shift. The project came out of a $91 million bond voters approved in 2018 and followed nearly five years of planning, design, funding and construction, according to the West Sonoma County Union High School District, which confirmed the center opened to students on August 13.
A Record Year of Foundation Grants
Much of the momentum traces back to the Career Technical Education Foundation Sonoma County, a nonprofit that has served more than 29,000 students since 2012 and has now distributed close to $140,274 to 15 programs at 13 school sites for the 2026-27 school year. Eli Weinzveg, the foundation's executive director, said investing in a diverse set of county CTE programs helps students feel seen and that they belong, per the same account. The foundation focuses on sectors driving the local economy — agriculture, construction and health care among them — and scores school proposals using an equity index meant to prioritize schools and students furthest from opportunity.
Grants this cycle reached well beyond Analy. Elsie Allen High School's agriculture students received $7,500 to pour a concrete floor in their agriculture barn, Santa Rosa High School students got $6,000 to build a full-scale mobile bathroom module, and Santa Rosa City Schools received $15,000 to develop a student-led CTE ambassador program. Separately, Hanna Academy was awarded a $10,000 grant to strengthen its construction trades program, with most of that money helping a teacher earn a career technical education credential and the remainder funding a router and precision cutter for up to 15 students, according to sonomanews.com. That outlet also reported the foundation has awarded $5.8 million total through its Partnership Funding Opportunity program since 2013.
Welding, Farming and Finding a Path
Inside Analy's new building, the payoff is personal. Gracie Ascoop, a senior in the school's agriculture business pathway, takes ag government and economics alongside ag mechanics. Tyler Orlandi, a junior in the ag mechanics pathway, discovered he enjoys welding and working with metal, and said the community's investment in the new facilities gives students more opportunities for education and workforce or college preparation.
Analy Principal Chuck Wade said the school is aiming for a multi-year CTE pathway that leads to a meaningful credential, not just a one-off elective. The school already offers 10 CTE pathways across six industries and plans to add two introductory health care courses next year, including one designed for Spanish-speaking students, funded by a separate $25,000 grant from the CTE foundation. Analy's CTE programs are also developing student-run businesses meant to generate revenue that helps sustain the offerings long-term.
Construction Trades Face a Retirement Cliff
At Santa Rosa High School, Matthew O'Donnell's construction program has more students than ever this year and is turning some away for lack of space. O'Donnell, who measures success by whether students get jobs, said some of his students landed positions in the trades last year. Many of his students participate in the North Bay Construction Corps, a five-month program that has led several of them into jobs, and O'Donnell received a CTE foundation grant to develop his construction curriculum further.
The push into construction training comes against a stark backdrop: the regional construction industry has reported that for every five construction professionals retiring, just one new worker is entering the field, according to the CTE Foundation Sonoma County. The Construction Corps, a five-month career exploration and training program for high school seniors, culminates in an intensive two-week boot camp and offers college credit opportunities and a trade scholarship.
Dual Enrollment Expands
Heidi Mickelson, the West Sonoma County Union High School District's early college credit and CTE coordinator, had just 11 students in its dual enrollment work experience program back in 2021; the district finished the 2025-26 school year with more than 200 such students across fall and spring semesters and expects similar numbers again this year.
Internships in High Demand, Supply Lagging
Demand for hands-on experience is outpacing what's available. Weinzveg reported 340 students applied for his internship program this year, with 135 placements — and he attributed the gap to a shortage of placement opportunities rather than any shortfall in student ability. Sonoma County students received 731 enhanced career-connected learning experiences in the 2025-26 school year and 105 were placed in internships that same year, out of roughly 20,346 public high school students countywide.
A related program, Path to Purpose, was developed by the CTE Foundation and the Sonoma County Office of Education to let juniors and seniors explore careers while earning college credit. As pressdemocrat.com reported last fall, the program aims to partner with 42 organizations with more than 100 employees and offer as many as 86 internship spots, with each internship requiring a minimum of 40 hours to qualify for early college credit through Santa Rosa Junior College's Career Education Department.
Taken together, the investments reflect how county educators now talk about career technical education: not as an alternative to college, but as a complement to it. The CTE Foundation's broader catalog includes programs in manufacturing, sustainability services, hospitality and tourism, and agriculture — sectors district leaders say are shaping how the next generation of Sonoma County students will step into the workforce.
