Before joining BUILD, Tony was the Development Officer at the University of Maryland and previously served as the Leadership Annual Giving Officer at San Jose State University. In these roles, he secured several impactful gifts supporting campus-wide initiatives. Prior to working in higher education, Tony was a Youth Advocate for Community Works West-Project WHAT! (a leadership development program for children of incarcerated parents.) As an alumnus of BUILD (Class of 2010), Tony is excited to come full circle and credits the program for giving him the confidence to believe in his abilities. Tony is the author of two books: Is Your Dream Really Worth It? and Here I Stand: From Childhood Rejection to Adult Resilience. Tony holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology from California State University, East Bay.