Career technical education trains the next generation of skilled workers

By Soncirey Mitchell
Reader Staff

Community members flooded Sandpoint High School Sept. 15 to celebrate the grand opening of Lake Pend Oreille School District’s new Career and Technical Education Center, located in the school’s expanded south wing.

The extensive classroom space gives all North Idaho high schoolers — regardless of enrollment in the district — the opportunity to learn real-world skills and earn accreditations that prepare them to enter the workforce directly out of high school.

“We want the students to know that when you start with CTE, and you start with a pathway in CTE, you can do anything,” said Superintendent Becky Meyer at the opening ceremony. “You graduate with real-world, industry skills, and we wanted them to feel valued. We wanted them to know they’re important.”

The building expands access to education in business, natural resource management, medicine, construction, architecture, information technology, hospitality, automotive repair and more, realizing a vision that began in the early ’90s with former-Vocational Director for Bonner County Schools Byron Lewis. Meyer and LPOSD staff spent countless hours attempting to secure funding, writing grant requests for $7 million, $5 million and $4.7 million, before finally securing an Idaho Career Ready Students grant for $3.5 million. 

With the help of Idaho Forest Group, which donated the majority of the lumber for the structure, as well as donations of funds and equipment from Panhandle Alliance for Education, Litehouse Foods, Sandpoint Rotary, Sandpoint Kiwanis and Gription Tire Pros, the district was able to build and outfit CTEC for the start of the 2026-’27 school year.

“My high school CTE experience gave me confidence to help me discover what I was capable of, and it helped put me on a path of lifelong learning,” said CTE Director Alex Gray, who also teaches computer network support classes. “That’s what excites me most about CTEC and what we’ve created for students. This building gives students a place to discover their own paths, and we have amazing people who make that possible.”

Classes are currently available in all programs besides automotive repair and culinary arts and hospitality, which will begin in the spring of 2027. The district is still outfitting the culinary arts classroom with a professional teaching kitchen, commercial-grade equipment and necessary supplies, and is looking for donations from area businesses and community members. Litehouse will match all donations up to $500,000 and, with a $250,000 grant from PAFE, the district is three-quarters of the way toward its goal. 

To donate or learn more, visit ctec.lposd.org/support-culinary-arts-hospitality.