Access our student homelessness trainings.

Building Changes is pleased to offer virtual trainings for homeless student liaisons, school building staff, and community-based organizations in Washington State to help them better support students and families experiencing homelessness.

Upcoming Trainings in 2026:

• Understanding the State Budget with Washington Budget & Policy Center
  Tuesday, February 10 | 5:30pm-7:00pm Pacific Time
  Join us for a free virtual training to understand how the Washington state budget works, in an effort to better inform our collective advocacy efforts. This is a collaboration between Supporting Parents in Education and Beyond, Southeast Seattle Education Coalition, Statewide Poverty Action Network, South King County Discipline Coalition, and Building Changes.
  Register here
• Understanding the State Budget with Washington Budget & Policy Center with Mary Fertakis
  Wednesday, February 25 | 10:00am – 12:00pm Pacific Time
  Come learn about how the state education budget works, and learn how to take action together for a more equitable funding formula! Mary Fertakis has decades of experience advocating for an equitable education funding model in WA. She served on the Tukwila School Board from 1995-2017, and is a consultant specializing in equity issues across the P-12 education system. 
  Register here
• Rent Smart: Learning the Basics
  Tuesday, March 31 | 10:00am-11:30am Pacific Time
  Are you a renter in Washington state and want to know more about your rights, general procedures, landlord and tenant responsibilities, making a repair request, or even what to do if you decide you need to break your lease legally? Join us to learn from Solid Ground’s tenant counselors about landlord duties under the Residential Landlord-Tenant Act, tenant responsibilities while living in a residential rental, repair issues and process for requesting repairs, and how to break or end your lease under Washington state laws. 
  Register here
• Rent Smart: Repair Issues & Landlord Duties
  Tuesday, May 19 | 10:00am-11:30am Pacific Time
  Do you need repairs done in your rental home and don’t know if you or your landlord is responsible for fixing them? Are you having a hard time getting your landlord to make repairs? And what exactly are your rights as a tenant? Join us to learn from Solid Ground’s tenant counselors about how to make a formal request for rental repairs, your options if your landlord doesn’t respond to your request, what the Residential Landlord-Tenant Act (RLTA) in Washington state says about mold, and landlords’ repair responsibilities under the RLTA.
  Register here
• Rent Smart: Options for When You Can’t Pay Rent
  Tuesday, September 15 | 10:00am-11:30am Pacific Time
  Has your landlord increased your rent? Are you unable to make your rent this month? Will you be evicted – and if so, how does that work? Do you think you should move out to protect yourself? Join us to learn from Solid Ground’s tenant counselors about current laws on rent increase and housing stabilization, an overview of the legal eviction process, and information on the moving out process and getting your deposit back.
  Register here
• Rent Smart: Mold & Your Rights as a Tenant
  Tuesday, November 17 | 10:00am-11:30am Pacific Time
  Mold is a serious problem in the Pacific Northwest. It poses serious health risks to people who live in rentals with mold – and many tenants don’t know their rights or understand Washington state’s Residential Landlord-Tenant Act (RLTA) laws on dealing with mold. Join us to learn from Solid Ground’s tenant counselors about how to recognize when a house has a mold problem, what the RLTA states about mold and tenants’ rights, landlords’ responsibilities to solve mold and repair problems, and what you should and can do as a tenant if mold problems are not remedied.
  Register here

To find recordings of our past trainings, see 2021-2023 Response to Student Homelessness Training Series