Mount St. Helens Institute

What Mount St. Helens Institute does

Mount St. Helens Institute (MSHI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1992 and headquartered in Amboy, Washington, that connects people to the Mount St. Helens volcanic landscape through science education, outdoor school programming, and guided exploration. Its core offerings include Volcano Outdoor School (multi-day immersive overnight experiences for K-12 students), GeoGirls (a girls-in-science field program), Guided Adventures for adult participants, Community Education events, volunteer stewardship programs, and a Volcano Cam providing live monitoring footage. The organization operates primarily from the Science and Learning Center at Coldwater, a facility leased from the U.S. Forest Service under a 30-year special use permit that grants unique on-mountain access within the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument.

The Institute's business model is a multi-channel nonprofit revenue structure combining individual donations, corporate sponsorships, program fees from schools and guided adventure participants, foundation grants, and Washington State specialty license plate proceeds (launched August 2025). Strategic partnerships with the U.S. Forest Service, the Cowlitz Indian Tribe, the U.S. Geological Survey, and regional Educational Service Districts provide programmatic reach and scientific credibility. The organization engages approximately 30,000 cumulative participants since 2000 and employs between 1 and 10 staff, with Co-Executive Directors Abi Groskopf and Alyssa Hoyt leading the organization as of 2025 and Board Chair Hector Hinojosa overseeing governance.

In 2025, MSHI launched Phase 1 of a Coldwater Campus expansion project intended to scale overnight outdoor school participation from approximately 500 to 6,000 participants annually, alongside new digital engagement channels (Volcano Cam, Views and Brews virtual events) and an Educational Service District 112 partnership targeting institutionalized K-12 district contracts. The combination of on-mountain programmatic exclusivity under federal lease, diversified nonprofit revenue mechanics, and active organizational scaling positions the Institute as a distinctive educational asset in the Pacific Northwest environmental nonprofit sector, though the absence of disclosed audited financials limits quantitative verification of scale.

Name

Mount St. Helens Institute

Legal name

Mount St. Helens Institute

Website

https://mshinstitute.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1992

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Mount St. Helens Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers volcano-focused outdoor education, guided adventures, and K-12 science programs from a U.S. Forest Service-leased facility at Mount St. Helens in Washington State, funded by donations, program fees, sponsorships, and grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Outdoor and Environmental Education

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Nature Parks and Other Similar Institutions (712190), Sports and Recreation Instruction (611620)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Outdoor & Wilderness Education Schools (Field-Based Learning) (THAAAOAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Earth Science & Geoscience Programs (EDAMABAI), Education & Community Programs (Junior Ranger, Citizen Science, School Programs) (THAAAGAK)

Keywords

• Outdoor education
• Environmental education
• Guided volcano climbs
• Youth STEM programs
• Volunteer stewardship

Headquarters

HQ city

Amboy

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Contributions: Individual and corporate donations fuel MSHI's operations, youth education programs, and Coldwater Campus expansion project.
2. Program Fees: Fees for guided adventures, summit climbs, field trips, youth education programs (Volcano Outdoor School, GeoGirls), and facility rentals.
3. Corporate Sponsorships: Corporate sponsors support MSHI's work with benefits including logo placement and event recognition.
4. License Plate Program: Washington state specialty license plate generates revenue supporting MSHI's mission and work at Mount St. Helens.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Mount St. Helens Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers hands-on science education, guided outdoor adventures, and youth field-trip programs at Mount St. Helens. Its core offerings include the Volcano Outdoor School (overnight and day field trips for K-12 students), GeoGirls youth science program, guided summit climbs and exploration adventures for individuals, community stewardship days and snowshoeing, family campouts, the Artist in Residence program, and the Science and Learning Center facility. Programs are delivered on-site at Coldwater under a special-use permit from the Gifford Pinchot National Forest.

Product overview

Mount St. Helens Institute operates as a unified educational organization offering a portfolio of programs centered on connecting people to Mount St. Helens volcano through science, education, and exploration. The core offerings include the Volcano Cam live streaming service, Volcano Outdoor School for youth field trips and overnight experiences, guided summit climbs and exploration adventures, community education programs including stewardship days and snowshoeing, volunteer opportunities, and the Science and Learning Center as the primary facility. Additional programs include community campouts, GeoGirls youth science camp, Artist in Residence, and the Coldwater Campus expansion project. MSHI also offers virtual programming through Views and Brews online events. These offerings work together as an integrated ecosystem designed to advance understanding and stewardship of volcanic landscapes across diverse audiences and experience types.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Volcano Cam

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Cowlitz Indian TribecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndigenous partnership honoring Traditional Cultural Property; MSHI operates on ancestral and present-day lands of the Cowlitz Indian Tribe and Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation.
• Gifford Pinchot National ForestcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUSFS granted 30-year lease permit for MSHI to manage the Science and Learning Center. MSHI operates under special use permit from the Forest Service.
• US Geological SurveycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on volcanic monitoring, research, and educational programming related to Mount St. Helens activity.
• Washington State ParksminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on recreation management and visitor services in the Mount St. Helens area.
• Pacific Northwest Research StationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partnership supporting scientific study and education at Mount St. Helens.
• Washington Trails AssociationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTrail maintenance and stewardship collaboration, supporting volunteer trail work programs.
• Educational Service District 112coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional educational partnership facilitating school district access to MSHI programs across Cowlitz, Clark, and Lewis counties.
• GB Manchester (Camera Sponsor)minorOthersVolcano cam equipment sponsor providing camera technology for live streaming from Science and Learning Center.
• Hanwha Vision (Camera Sponsor)minorOthersVolcano cam equipment sponsor providing vision technology for live streaming from Science and Learning Center.
• Welch CabinminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAdventure Partner sponsor supporting MSHI's work at Mount St. Helens; promoted on conditions and events pages.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Pacific Education Institute: Pacific Northwest STEM education nonprofit serving K-12 students in nature-based and field research programs—an education-focused peer overlapping with MSHI's GeoGirls and Volcano Outdoor School offerings.
• Outward Bound Pacific Northwest: Field-based outdoor and adventure education provider in the Pacific Northwest offering youth and family programming—comparable on outdoor skill development and experiential learning, though less volcano-specific.

Broad incumbents

• Student Conservation Association: National youth conservation and outdoor education nonprofit placing students on stewardship and science projects in parks and forests—highly comparable service model and youth demographic to MSHI programs.
• National Park Trust: National nonprofit focused on preserving parks and connecting youth to places through field trips and education grants—broader portfolio but overlapping youth outdoor education mission with MSHI.

Direct peers

• Yellowstone Forever: Official nonprofit education and fundraising partner of Yellowstone National Park, operating youth and field-based science programs at a volcanic site—offering scaled validation of the education-partnership model MSHI operates.
• Cascade Forest Conservancy: Pacific Northwest forest conservation nonprofit engaged in education and stewardship across Gifford Pinchot and adjacent national forests—directly neighboring MSHI's footprint and overlapping in mission and donor base.
• Crater Lake National Park Trust: Official nonprofit partner of Crater Lake National Park, funding education, research, and visitor programs in a volcanic landscape, with similar structure to MSHI's role at the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument.
• Mount Rainier National Park Conservancy: A 501(c)(3) nonprofit partner of Mount Rainier National Park delivering field-based science education, youth programming, and volunteer stewardship—closely mirroring MSHI's Mount St. Helens model and Pacific Northwest donor audience.
• Discover Your Forest: A nonprofit partner of the Mt. Hood and Willamette National Forests delivering outdoor education, stewardship, and visitor programs in a Pacific Northwest volcanic and forest setting—comparable to MSHI's USFS-anchored mission.
• Olympic National Park Foundation: Supports education, conservation, and visitor engagement at Olympic National Park in Washington State, sharing the regional Pacific Northwest donor base and the model of a park-affiliated education nonprofit.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@MshinstituteOrg
• Facebookfacebook.com/mshinstitute
• Instagraminstagram.com/mshinstitute
• Xx.com/mshinstitute
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mount-st-helens-institute

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Mount St. Helens Institute