See the celebration of the new building that will help the school provide 11 diverse career pathways to their students …
Guests check in at the January 23 fundraising dinner and preview for the David Douglas High School Career and Technical Education Center building.
Story and photos by David F. Ashton
At a fundraising dinner on January 23, and at the ribbon-cutting ceremony on January 26, supporters of the new David Douglas High School (DDHS) celebrated the launching their state-of-the-art Career and Technical Education (CTE).
The new building will provide modern educational space for their 11 comprehensive CTE Pathway programs including options like Auto, Business, and Culinary Arts. It also features an “Early Learning Lab”, where students operate a preschool lab.
Serving hors d’oeuvres at the dinner gala are DDHS students Felix, Saul, and Phoung.
“Beat” what this quartet call themselves – they’re all DDHS students – and they performed classical music throughout the evening.
January 23 fundraising dinner for new teaching equipment
On Friday evening, January 23, more than 150 guests attended a fundraising dinner in the DDHS South Campus Cafetorium.
“This is our kickoff for our yearlong campaign to raise funds for new equipment for our CTE programs,” explained David Douglas School District (DDSD) Director of Communications, Family Engagement, and Strategic Partnerships Aidé Juárez Valerio.
“In 2022 the community voted to pass the bond measure which helped build our new CTE building; the event tonight is the kickoff celebration,” Juárez Valerio told East Portland News.
Guests enjoy beverages and hors d’oeuvres, as they mingle before dinner is served at the event.
“The new facility features hands-on learning environments designed to prepare students for after-graduation high-demand careers and post-secondary education,” Juárez Valerio informed.
The CTE programs offered at DDHS are:
Automotive
Business
Career Computer Information Systems
Construction
Culinary Arts
Education
Engineering
Health Sciences
Metals and Manufacturing (including CAD and 3-D Printing)
Natural Resources
Technical Theater
Ribbon-cutting signals CTE Center opening
People gather for the grand opening of the DDHS CTE Center’s Grand Opening ceremony.
Then on the clear, but chilly, Monday morning of January 26, about 60 DDSD Board Members, school supporters, and staff members gathered to celebrate the building’s grand opening.
David Douglas School District Superintendent Ken Richardson talks with guests before the opening ceremony.
As people were gathering, David Douglas School District Superintendent Ken Richardson
shared his thoughts with East Portland News about the importance of the evening.
“It’s an exciting day, and an exciting opportunity for our community,” Richardson reflected. “And, it’s also a time of feeling tremendous gratitude for everyone who helped make this a reality. Together, we get to celebrate a new addition to our high school campus, and really, to our entire school community and our greater community.
“The dream of having a facility like this started with our DDSD Board of Directors and current leadership,” explained Richardson. “Back in 2022, when we brought a bond to our community about making a CTE center, and our community said ‘yes’.
The M.C. of the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony, DDSD Family Engagement Specialist Tyrek “TD” McCullum, asks guests to gather for the ceremony.
Why CTE is important
“Here’s why this is important: Ultimately, we know that the graduation rate for our students involved in CTE programs are over 99%, and we wanted to expand upon that and build upon that, and provide opportunities for our kids,” Richardson said.
The CTE programs at DDHS go far beyond old-fashioned woodworking and auto shop classes. “The focus here is on career and technical education,” Richardson clarified. “So yes, here we have a wood shop, but we take a wood shop and expand it into skills used in the building trade. Same thing for Automotive, and Health Sciences. It’s kids getting a head start on their futures, ultimately.”
-8 Members of the DDHS Cheer Team provide an enthusiastic greeting for guests.
A DDHS student and Student Indigenous Student Union member and his father, Native American Parent Advisory Committee Chair Josh Miller, provide an Indigenous American blessing to start the ceremony.
DDSD Superintendent Ken Richardson thanks all who helped support the CTE Center building project.
In his opening remarks, Superintendent Ken Richardson said that constructing the CTE Center is different from building a “retail box store”: “Education opens doors, education changes lives. I’m just so proud that we have partners that leaned into that, as they tried to do the best for us in our community in this building.
“Thank you for being here with us, and standing for our students; and thank you for being with us as we’ve navigated this bond project,” Richardson proclaimed.
DDHS Assistant Principal of CTE and the project’s planning and construction leader, Valoree Hill tells those assembled, “The Career Center is about forward thinking; it’s about having our kids truly prepared for their next step.”
After three DDHS students told how the CTE programs were meaningful to them, it was time to bring forward the ceremonial ribbon and giant scissors.
With a snip of scissors, the ribbon is cut, and the CTE Center is officially opened.
Touring the building, retired DDSD Board Member Frida Christopher stands at the entrance to the Auto Lab classroom that was named in her honor.
In the new CTE building, retired DDSD Board Member Frida Christopher looked at the classrooms, including the one named in recognition of her. “It’s quite an honor to see my name on a classroom,” Christopher told East Portland News. “When I retired from the Board – gosh, almost three years ago – they decided to honor me in some way because I have served 32 years on the Board which I believe makes me the longest-serving David Douglas Board Member.
“I always felt that as long as I could contribute, I’d keep doing it; I guided it as the Board started, but now it’s time to step down, and let other people take charge,” acknowledged Christopher.
Preparing for his first classes in the new facility, it’s DDHS CTE Computer Information Sciences instructor programming teacher Greg Lind.
Here’s a look into one of the new classrooms in the DDHS CTE Center.
The DDHS Career & Technical Education (CTE) Program Fundraising effort continues. Learn more, and consider giving a donation by visiting their webpage: CLICK HERE.
© 2026 David F. Ashton ~ East Portland News™
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