Sponsors and Partners

The Northwest Training Institute's founding partners are Northwest Youth Services and the Opportunity Council of Bellingham.

We also partner with United Way of Whatcom County and Woodring College of Education at Western Washington University.

In Snohomish County, the Training Institute works in partnership with the United Way of Snohomish County and Everett Community College.

The Northwest Training Institute was created in fall of 2003 as a direct response to an increasing need in the non-profit community in Northwestern Washington for a local source of quality, experientially based technical assistance and professional development for people in all facets of nonprofit governance, management and practice. The consequences associated with better-educated and qualified social service workers and board members translate into better quality care for children, youth, families and our environment - and ultimately a better quality of life in Washington.

The Training Institute was launched as a collaborative venture between Northwest Youth Services, and Opportunity Council - both headquartered in Bellingham, WA, and is being shaped based on information received during consultation with a number of local organization, foundation and community leaders leading up to its launch. Market research and general needs assessment information was garnered from organizations including Brigid Collins, YWCA, YMCA, Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Services, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, Interfaith Clinic, Volunteer Center, United Way of Whatcom County, and others. Additionally, consultation was sought from Western Washington University, Whatcom Community College and Bellingham Technical College as well as a similar institute at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, from which much of the design is being replicated. The extensive preliminary discussions and inquiries were conducted in order to honor the need for inclusivity in the process of building community capacity.

The nonprofit sector is an important contributor to the overall quality of life in this country, and this work is arguably among the most rewarding of professions. Many practitioners in the field believe the work they do is their calling, and in many cases they are hired into their positions because of this passion. Often times, little emphasis is placed on applicable academic or training experience. Passion alone, however, is not enough for maximizing potential for success. Numerous studies have been conducted investigating the efficacy and success of the nonprofit, social service field. This work addresses the problems involved in structuring such an organization so that it becomes able to achieve improved performance and client outcomes, oftentimes borrowing from traditional business models. In the field of organizational development for instance, there has been significant work calling for a practical and theoretical foundation for transforming organizations into places that create ideas and knowledge that are readily and effectively used in practice. In short, practitioners need to develop and articulate their own effective practice. In order to do this, they need to become engaged in a learning process that allows them to develop their own beliefs, skills and knowledge that is significant and meaningful to them. However, many barriers exist, including limited educational opportunities that offer contextualized, applicable, skill-based learning.

There has also been an extensive amount of work conducted on the nonprofit sector's workforce, including capacity and ability to do the job effectively. Included in the findings are such organizational distractions as higher than average turnover rates (roughly 40% nationally) and an inability to meet the ever-changing needs of clients or constituents. Results consistently show both a higher retention rate and a greater likelihood for successful outcomes for workers who receive education and training specific to their jobs. Yet, despite this knowledge, all too many nonprofit social service providers are unable to provide or to seek out relevant training opportunities. Locally, common noted causes for the inability to send staff to continuing education and professional development are cost of the training and time away from work - due in large part to long commutes to training locations outside of the area. The Training Institute is working to eliminate these obstacles by providing high quality, applicable training that can be conducted in various organization's own community. The Training Institute is committed to offering the professional and organizational development services consistently found to be necessary for optimal success to the social service community.