User:Phcnw/Portland Habilitation Center Northwest

Portland Habilitation Center Northwest is a nonprofit organization that provides training and employment for people with disabilities.

Overview
Portland Habilitation Center Northwest (PHCNW) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in Portland, Oregon. Portland Habilitation Center has provided nearly 60 years of education, training and union jobs for thousands of people with developmental, physical and mental disabilities. PHCNW helps employees develop the technical skills required to earn a living wage, empowering them to pay taxes, raise families and live independently.

PHCNW is comprised of 5 different business enterprises: Manufacturing, Janitorial, Landscaping, Clerical/Administrative and Housing.

Its theme, “Beyond Limitations,” embodies not only assisting individuals to overcome societally imposed limitations, but also continuously improving work performance and delivering value to its customers. PHCNW provides on-going training, unsubsidized by the government and free to trainees.

History
The story of the PHCNW began in 1951 when a group of Portland families established Portland Children’s Center, an organization that offered educational opportunities for mentally disabled children who had been denied the opportunity to participate in special education.

In 1974, children with disabilities were integrated into the public school system. The Portland Children's Center was renamed Portland Habilitation Center (PHC) to reflect its new mission – vocational training and employment for adults with severe disabilities.

In 2008, PHCNW was rebranded as Portland Habilitation Center Northwest to more accurately convey its extent of services throughout the Pacific Northwest.

Sustainable initiatives
PHCNW currently hosts the largest single-roof array in the Pacific Northwest, an 858 kW solar array. Visible from the ground, the array is made of 4,830 panels covering 72,000 square feet of the host-facility roof. The array will annually reduce greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 640 tons. The emission reduction benefits and other renewable attributes of the PHCNW project are sold to Bonneville Environmental Foundation and the Energy Trust of Oregon.