Northwest Indian College

Quick Facts

Address: 2522 Kwina Road, Bellingham, WA 98226
Website: https://www.nwic.edu/
Founded: 1973
Students: 2,320 (2016)

About

Founded in 1973, Northwest Indian College is one of the largest tribal colleges in the US, enrolling more than 2,000 students annually. The main Northwest Indian College campus is located on the Lummi reservation, only 20 miles south of Canada. NWIC also serves students in the larger tri-state Washington, Idaho, and Oregon area through its campuses at Muckleshoot, Nez Perce, Port Gamble, Swinomish, and Tulalip.

The college in 1973 originated as the Lummi Indian School of Aquaculture, with the emphasis on education for Indian-owned and operated fish and shellfish hatchery technicians throughout the United States and Canada. Ten years later, the school transofrmed into the two-year Lummi Community College. On January 20, 1989, Lummi Community College changed its name to the Northwest Indian College. The name change signaled a desire to serve a larger Native population throughout the region. Northwest Indian College is accredited as a four-year baccalaureate college. There are more than 1,800 alumni who graduated from NWIC.

NWIC bases its operations on the foundation of tribal values and beliefs, and connects these directly to their educational mission. Students can earn bachelor’s (Native environmental science, tribal government and business management, and human services) and associate degrees (business and entrepreneurship, Native environmental science, life sciences, information technology, business entrepreneurship, public and tribal administration, and early childhood education), certificates (child development, construction technology, welding, professional baking, mathematics, and legal assistant), and awards of completion.