Peer Wellness Specialist Training

Cascadia Health offers an OHA-approved, 80-hour training program to certify people as Peer Wellness Specialists.

Do you have lived experience of mental health challenges, substance use, or other addictions? Do you want to support others in finding a path of recovery, change, and empowerment? Consider becoming a Peer Wellness Specialist and encourage others on their journey.

November 9-20, 2026 | Monday-Friday | 9:30am-5:30pm 

APPLICATIONS ARE NO LONGER BEING ACCEPTED FOR THIS SESSION. We will notify people about decisions by October 19. Thanks for your patience. 

This training session meets five days a week for two weeks. Attendance to all sessions is required, and the training will be held in-person at Cascadia's Plaza Health Center, 2415 SE 43rd Avenue, Portland, OR. 

Upcoming Dates in 2027 

More information will be posted by the end of 2026. 

  • April 5 – 16, 2027, Monday through Friday for two weeks. 
  • June 2 – July 1, 2027, Wednesdays and Thursdays for five weeks. 
  • September 2 – October 1, 2027, Thursdays and Fridays for five weeks 
  • October 18 – 29, 2027, Monday through Friday for two weeks. 

Cascadia Health's Peer Wellness Specialist training plans to launch a virtual version of our 80-hour training in 2027. 

Do you have personal experiences with mental health challenges, substance use issues, and/or other addictions? Have you been able to find ways to cope and create a life that you choose? Peer Providers use our lived experiences to create connections with others who are struggling, and to offer nonjudgmental space, support, and encouragement so that they can also choose the life they want. If this sounds like satisfying work to you, you may want to consider becoming a Peer Provider.

As people who have “been there,” Peer Providers possess a personal understanding of the recovery journey and have a commitment to our own wellness and self-care. From this starting point, our Peer Wellness Specialist training will provide you with frameworks, skills, and practices that you will use on the job to help others create pathways for their own recovery journey.

PWS training FAQ

Click here to get notified when we announce more details about our training dates and locations for 2027. You can also hear when application windows open for our Peer Wellness Specialist Training. 

Continuing Education for Peer Providers

Peer Support Strategies for Negotiating Realities and Intense States 

*CANCELLED – WILL RESCHEDULE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE*

Tuesday October 20,1:00-5:00pm 

Garlington Health Center, Education Room

3036 NE Martin Luther King Jr Blvd, Portland OR

Instructors: Beethoven Thornton and Rhea Wolf 

4 CEUs for all peer worker types through the THW commission

“Lived experience” can mean so many different things to peer providers and the people we support. From depression, anxiety, or mood fluctuations; to seeing/hearing things others do not hear or see; or believing things that seem to be at odds with everyone else’s version of reality. How can we ensure we are providing person-centered, empowering, and nonjudgmental support for people across the spectrum of experiences? This training will go over peer strategies for supporting those who are experiencing more intense states and/or non-consensus realities. Taught by instructors who have experienced these states, training participants will have opportunities to learn nonclinical frameworks, deep discussions, and supportive space to practice together.

Click here to register!

These courses are offered at no cost, thanks to funding from a Legacy Health Community Health Benefits grant.

Click here and sign up to get notified about training opportunities for peers.

Questions?

Email peer.trainings@cascadiahealth.org for more information. Please read our FAQs first. We will announce the training dates once confirmed.