In February at NeighborWorks® America, the focus has been on capacity building. It’s not just because this month features the organization’s premier NeighborWorks Training Institute, held from Feb. 23-27 in Chicago, Illinois.
NeighborWorks is also focusing on the organization’s Learning Management System (LMS), which provides self-paced classes that community development practitioners can to get the hands-on training they need. At the same time, the organization is opening soon registration for a place-based training in Las Vegas April 13-17, with a focus on certifications in homebuyer education methods, housing counselor training certification and rental housing training certification. Join our waitlist! NeighborWorks has also announced the opening of registration for a new Digital Learning Institute in May, which allows community development practitioners to learn where they are, building the skills that will move them forward.
“The NeighborWorks Training Division builds capacity by investing in the professionals who drive affordable housing and community development forward, not just through training, but through systemic modernization of how professional learning is designed, delivered, and recognized,” said Hui Min, NeighborWorks’ vice president of Training and Digital Transformation.
She pointed to several practices her division has put in place over the past few years.
- Expanded access to professional training: Too often, the decisions on who gets to grow professionally is determined by where you live, your schedule or your organizations’ budget, she said. NeighborWorks is changing that by providing content both in-person and online. The goal is to make sure all practitioners have a chance to grow their skills, not just those who can make it to conferences.
- A seamless Learning Management System: The new system centers participants and creates a seamless experience, from the moment someone discovers a course to the moment they finish it.
- Investment in technology: NeighborWorks has modernized its technology so the organization’s teams can look at data and make smart decisions about what to offer and when to offer it.
- Credentials. Micro-credentials and badges will give practitioners a tangible way to show their growth. “They signal to the entire sector that we take professional standards seriously,” Min said.
- Active learning: NeighborWorks knows listening to someone lecture for eight hours doesn’t build capacity. That’s why the organization creates space for conversations, peer exchange and hands-on projects. “The relationships practitioners build in those rooms last for decades.”
It is active learning that NeighborWorks is focusing on this week at the training institute in Chicago, one of two yearly convenings that bring thousands of community development professionals training and networking as they build solutions.
“NeighborWorks America is committed to helping our network of approximately 250 affordable housing and community development organizations and the broader field recruit, train and retain the next generation of leaders for this work by providing the best possible professional learning experiences for board members, executive directors, leaders and managers, staff members and residents in the communities we serve,” said Douglas Sessions, senior vice president of Training. Like Min, he pointed to the organization’s multi-pronged initiative to provide valuable training across mediums and technologies. “Come join us or ask us to come to you!”
