BUILD's Teacher Referral Program
11/17/2025 Update
To support you during the busy holiday season, we’re extending the deadline for the BUILD Teacher Referral Program to December 15, 2025 and shifting the process to an honor system.
Here’s how it will work:
- Submit your referrals of five educator emails by December 15 using the Educator Referral Form.
- If you enter your referrals by the deadline, you will receive your $100 DonorsChoose gift card by December 20 (while supplies last). Gift cards must be used by December 31.
- We are moving to an honor system: you and the educators you refer will complete one of BUILD’s digital products by March 1, 2026.
Refer 5 educators, get $100. It’s that easy.
Why This Change?
We know the holiday season brings shifting schedules and competing priorities. Extending the deadline and moving to an honor system keeps things simple while helping more teachers and students access BUILD’s free entrepreneurship programs.
BUILD's Teacher Referral Program
At BUILD, we know how powerful great teachers can be.
Every time you share a resource or opportunity, you expand the impact for your students and your peers.
That’s why we’re excited to launch the BUILD Teacher Referral Program—a new way to grow your network, spread access to free entrepreneurship programs, and earn classroom resources along the way.
Introducing the BUILD Teacher Referral Program
BUILD’s free digital programs are designed to help students develop entrepreneurial mindsets and essential career skills through engaging, project-based learning.
Now, we’re inviting teachers like you to help us bring these experiences to even more classrooms across the country.
Note: Only 200 gift cards are available and will be distributed on a rolling basis, so we encourage you to start referring early.
To participate, simply share the links below with your educator friends. Fill out the Educator Referral Form above with the email addresses of the educators you’ve referred.
Let’s go, BUILD Ambassadors—help us bring entrepreneurial learning to more classrooms across the country!
BUILD’s Free Digital Programs
If you haven’t yet explored BUILD’s programs, here’s what you—and your fellow educators—can expect.
BUILD's Design Challenge
Empower Students to Think Like Innovators
The BUILD Design Challenge is a 10-hour, project-based learning experience that helps students apply Human-Centered Design principles to solve real community challenges.
Students work in teams to research problems, brainstorm creative solutions, and prototype their ideas—all while practicing skills like empathy, critical thinking, and collaboration.
Each classroom is guided step-by-step through a fully digital platform that includes client profiles, facilitator guides, reflection prompts, and pitch templates. Teachers can integrate the program into existing coursework, enrichment activities, or advisory periods.
By the end of the Design Challenge, students see themselves as capable innovators who can design for impact, not just in theory but in practice.
It’s a flexible and engaging way to bring creativity and purpose into your classroom.
BUILD's FamBiz CEO Simulation
Lead, Learn, and Build Confidence
The FamBiz CEO Simulation turns students into the CEOs of their own cookie companies—challenging them to make decisions that balance profit, purpose, and teamwork.
In this three-hour interactive experience, students explore key aspects of entrepreneurship and leadership, including:
Product development and marketing strategy
Consumer research and brand positioning
Team dynamics and social-emotional decision-making
Community engagement and social impact
FamBiz is accessible, fast-paced, and easy to implement.
It’s an ideal introduction to business fundamentals and career readiness that teachers can complete in one class period or spread out over several sessions.
Most importantly, it helps students see themselves as problem-solvers and leaders capable of shaping their own futures.
