BUILD Peninsula Celebrates 10th Annual Youth Business Plan Competition
Nation’s Largest Entrepreneurship-Focused College Access Program Highlights Achievements of Twenty Ninth-Grade Student Business Teams from the Sequoia Union High School District
MENLO PARK, CA (April 23, 2009) – BUILD Peninsula is proud to present its 10th class of youth entrepreneurs at its Annual Youth Business Plan Competition held at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business on May 9, 2009.
This celebration culminates a year’s worth of achievements by BUILD’s young entrepreneurs from under-resourced communities on the Peninsula. Teams will be judged by a panel of executives from the education and business communities.
“We are always excited and amazed by the progress our students demonstrate at the Youth Business Plan Competition,” says Rey Faustino, BUILD Peninsula Site Director. “This year will prove no different. Twenty student teams will be presenting their unique business plans, with ideas ranging from iPhone accessories to hip teen apparel, to disaster emergency kits.”
WHAT: 10th Annual BUILD Peninsula Youth Business Plan Competition
WHERE: Stanford Graduate School of Business, Bishop Auditorium, 518 Memorial Way , Stanford, CA 94305
WHEN: Saturday, May 9, 2009, 12:30PM – 4:00PM
BUILD currently operates two sites in California (East Palo Alto and Oakland), and one in Washington, DC, teaching entrepreneurial skills to over 500 students in thirteen public high schools in under-served communities. BUILD students may be losing interest in school, but see business as way to change the trajectory of their lives. BUILD understands that most savvy urban youth have real-world skills and experiences that are often not valued or used in a traditional school setting, so BUILD engages young professionals, venture capitalists and community volunteers to help students plan, launch and operate small businesses as a way to tap into their talents and re-engage them in the learning process.
About BUILD
BUILD is a four-year entrepreneurship-focused college preparation program whose mission is to provide real-world entrepreneurial experience that empowers youth from under-resourced communities to excel in education, lead in their communities, and succeed professionally. By helping students develop and run their own small businesses, BUILD supplements traditional school with real-world business experiences and critical skill-building for the future. To date, BUILD has served over 1,000 students directly, recruited over 350 mentors and other volunteers, and impacted thousands more indirectly. Our students are from East Palo Alto, CA; Oakland, CA; and Washington, DC. Most importantly, in communities with dropout rates of 50-70%, 100% of BUILD seniors graduate high school and are accepted into college. Established in 1999, BUILD is headquartered in Palo Alto, CA. BUILD currently runs two youth business incubators for students in nine schools in Oakland and Palo Alto, CA (the Palo Alto incubator is the largest in the United States). BUILD currently serves ninth-grade students at two campuses in Washington, DC and will open its third youth business incubator there in August 2009. More information about BUILD can be found online at www.build.org.