A Few of
Our Projects
Incorporating the values and vision of our clients, we offer inspiring and insightful solutions to support the growth of energized, self-reliant individuals, organizations, and communities.
Developing Successful Partnerships with Native Organizations Training
This training is designed to assist non-Native partners in thinking through, developing, and implementing potential partnerships. The course is based on the concept of mutually-beneficial partnerships, where all partners contribute, benefit, and learn from one another.
The course is interactive and participatory, using a variety of learning methods and techniques. We carry out small group exercises and large group activities, develop a historical timeline together, analyze an actual partnership described in a video, and use case studies to highlight strategies to create successful partnerships. We conclude the course by developing partnership plans tailored to participants’ specific situations.
Washington Coastal Tribal Housing Leaders’ Cohort Initiative
Working in partnership with HUD’s Northwest Office of Native American Programs
(NWONAP) and National American Indian Housing Council (NAIHC), Seven Sisters designed a leadership cohort for seven Northwest Coastal tribes. This initiative included organizational capacity building training, site visits to explore best practices, facilitated peer learning, and executive coaching.
Shoshone-Bannock Tribes Community & Housing Needs Assessment
Seven Sisters collaborated with Big Water Consulting to conduct a comprehensive
community and housing needs assessment for the five districts of the Shoshone-
Bannock Tribes. Over two years, this three-phase process included strengthening
community based partnerships (Phase I), conducting the needs assessment (Phase
II), and strategic and operational planning (Phase III).
South Dakota Native Homeownership Coalition
Since its first exploratory meeting in 2013, Seven Sisters has worked to support the efforts of
the South Dakota Native Homeownership Coalition. Comprised of a wide range of stakeholders, including representatives of tribal, federal, state agencies, Native and non-Native nonprofits, tribally designated housing entities (TDHEs), lenders, and community development financial institutions (CDFIs), the Coalition is working to promote Native homeownership in South Dakota. The Coalition’s accomplishments include piloting a construction internship, conducting training for homebuyer practitioners, planning an annual tribal tour/convening, developing a Native homeownership track for the state housing conference, and promoting policies to increase homeownership opportunities for Native families. Seven Sisters’ support for the Coalition includes committee facilitation, resource development, and training and event planning.
CDFI Fund’s Building Native CDFIs’ Sustainability and Impact Initiative
The Building Native CDFI Sustainability and Impact (BNCSI) training and technical assistance series offered through the CDFI Fund’s Capacity Building Initiative provided support to build the capacity of 57 Native community development financial institutions (CDFIs). NeigborWorks America partnered with Seven Sisters to carry out the BNCSI program under its management after the success of two previous Native CDFI Capacity Building Initiatives, The Leadership Journey I and The Leadership Journey II. All three of these programs combined customized training, opportunities to attend NeighborWorks Training Institutes, mobile learning labs, webinars, tailored technical assistance, and executive coaching to provide a holistic capacity building experience for participating organizations.
Rural IMPACT Demonstration
On behalf of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Seven Sisters provided organizational coaching to five of the ten rural and tribal communities participating in its Rural Impact Demonstration. The goal of the Demonstration was to help communities to adopt a two-generation approach to addressing the needs of both vulnerable children and their parents, with the goal of increasing parents’ employment and education and improving the health and well-being of their children and families.