What is WELA?

The Whatcom County Early Learning Alliance (WEC)A is all about making excellence in early learning achievable and sustainable for EVERY child in Whatcom County. WELA works to build a system of support for young children and their families, prenatally through age eight. 

WELA members strive to build an early learning system supporting families and children, prenatally through age 8.  It is our vision that all children in Whatcom County will thrive, today and tomorrow.

This year, WELA is focusing on two priority areas:

  1. Addressing the persistent opportunity gap young children experience, a gap that correlates with racial, ethnic, economic and community identities

  2. Connecting more families earlier with high quality parenting education and support.


Who is WELA?

WELA represents our entire early learning system. Our work is guided by a Steering Committee and accomplished through Project Teams.

Current Steering Committee members include:

  • Thom Barthelmess, Whatcom County Libraries

  • Wilanne Ollila-Perry, Opportunity Council

  • David Webster, Opportunity Council

  • Jen Knudsen, Bellingham Technical College

  • Nahrin Aziz, Northwest Indian College

  • Kaye Marshall, Mt. Baker School District

  • Judy Ziels, Whatcom County Health Department. 

We are currently recruiting for our expanded Steering Committee from the following organizations or stakeholder groups: Parenting Coalitions, Bellingham Schools, Department of Children, Youth and Families, Childcare providers, and At-Large Representatives.

What is WELA’S current work?

We have three main projects, currently, as well as our ongoing efforts to build the infrastructure needed for a world-class early learning system. Our current projects are:

  1. Expanding the use of Vroom by local parents

  2. Implementing Help Me Grow in our local community

  3. Developing a local Parent Leadership Training Institute program

How did WELA start and what has it accomplished?

Started as a networking group of early learning professionals more than 30 years ago, we are now the local arm of our statewide early learning system. Generous seed funding from the Opportunity Council, the NWESD, Child Care Aware and the Foundation for Early Learning allowed WELA to develop infrastructure necessary to foster system-wide support for young children, families, and the professionals who serve them. 

Thanks to this infrastructure, WELA has been able to be instrumental in advancing early learning in our county.  A few of the immediate outcomes of our significant collaborative efforts include: 

  • Creation of early childhood specialist administrative positions in five of our seven K-12 school districts; 

  • Growth of local play and learn programming as a specific support for children pre-kindergarten who have never before experienced a formal preschool setting; 

  • Early literacy professional development shared between early learning professionals and kindergarten teachers resulting in smoother transition from PreK to Kindergarten; a uniform Transition Form provides a means for communication between preschool teachers and kindergarten teachers.