Seattle - The new Center for Employment and Education at North Seattle Community College (NSCC) is designed to set a new standard in efficiency and service. It will be housed in a new building on campus and will serve the unemployed through five different community colleges, including North Seattle, Edmonds, Shoreline, Lake Washington Technical, and Seattle Central. Area employers will also be on site and participating.

Many executives and staff at the Department of Social and Health Services, Employment Security, WorkSource, the Workforce Development Council of Seattle-King County, and the state’s community and technical colleges, have long recognized the frustration of job seekers. And they have been fully supportive of taking a new approach, co-locating, finding ways to make it easier and quicker for the un- and under-employed to get the help they need.

Designed by Schacht Aslani Architects, the 46,000 sq ft facility not only brings the four agencies together, but also fosters collaboration between them through the absence of departmental boundaries.

The building features multiple sustainable strategies including a 7,000 sq ft green roof, maximum daylighting, energy savings and water use reduction. It is targeting LEED Gold certification, with an anticipated 26% energy savings and 46% reduction in water use.