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…