Whitman Student Consulting Corps
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Started in August 2019, the Whitman Student Consulting Corps is a three-year pilot program funded by a Core Grant from the Sherwood Trust that brings benefits to both local nonprofits and Whitman students. The basic goal of the corps is to provide high-level, broad-based management consulting to nonprofit organizations in the Walla Walla area.
Mission Statement:
Connecting Whitman College students and the local community, the Whitman Student Consulting Corps provides individualized, free of charge management consulting to the non-profit organizations of the Walla Walla Valley.
What is the Whitman Student Consulting Corps?
Established in 2019, the Whitman College Student Consulting Corps is a program operating through Whitman’s Career and Community Engagement Center. The Consulting Corps, generously funded by the Sherwood Trust, creates paid Student Consultant positions which give current Whitman students real-life experience in the growing field of management consulting while benefiting nonprofits of the Walla Walla community.
Each Student Consultant belongs to a consulting team along with our Community Consulting Specialist, Shelly Rasmussen, that works with a nonprofit organization. The local organizations represent sectors in the community ranging from healthcare to education to the arts. The WSCC partnered with the Seattle based nonprofit consulting firm, 501 Commons, to receive training in facilitating the 501Commons Pathways Program, which is a self-assessment based management consulting program. Each Consulting team analyzes an organization’s responses to the self assessment, discovers organizational priorities that the group would like to receive help with, and researches and offers recommendations for those areas. At the end of the process, the Consulting teams will present the recommendations and resources to the organization’s lead and key stakeholders.
501 Commons and the Pathways Program
501 Commons is a Seattle based consulting firm founded in 1989 that works with nonprofits primarily in the Pacific Northwest. Each year they work with over 1000 non-profits, offering a wide range of services to strengthen these non-profits and the communities they work in. In partnering with 501 Commons, the Consulting Corps has learned how to administer one such service, the Pathways Program.
In the words of 501 Commons:
“Pathways is like a personal trainer for your organization. You will receive guidance on what you’re doing well, what you need to improve on, and what practical steps can be taken to advance your ability to serve your mission. Pathways provides a short consultation - with consultants that have nonprofit expertise - to help you capture the benefits of using our Five Elements of a Healthy Nonprofit Self-Assessment.”— 501 Commons Website
How to contact us:
Shelly Rasmussen, Community Consulting Specialist
Email: rasmussa@whitman.edu or studentconsulting@whitman.edu
Phone: 509-527-4791