BUILD Messaging.

BUILD Messaging.

The reference guide page on BUILD language for programs, data, etc for all BUILD staff!

About BUILD

Offerings And Programs

Events

Other Information

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The Purpose Of This Page

BUILD.org/Messaging is a webpage for staff to use as a reference point for learning about the culturally responsive and universally shared language at BUILD. Categories will include BUILD’s mission, vision, programs, impact/data, and much more. It is not meant to be a deep dive into the language but serve as a guiding point. Feel free to copy and paste from this webpage!

Furthermore, this page is not meant to be shared with external parties. If you have any ideas or suggestions for this page, please contact the National Communications Team (Julie, Lisa, and Alicia).

About BUILD

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Students Served

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Mentors And Volunteers

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Teachers Trained

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School And CBO Partners

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Students Served

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Mentors And Volunteers

1

Teachers Trained

1

School And CBO Partners

This data is from FY22 (Last School Year). Data Sources: Student Data, Mentor Data, Teacher Data, Partner Data.

Ignite the power of youth in under-resourced communities to build Career success, Entrepreneurial mindsets, and Opportunity. We help students become the CEO of their own lives!

A world where all students—regardless of race, socioeconomic status, or neighborhood— develop the skills and connections needed to achieve economic power and freedom.

We help students become the CEO of their own lives.

Founded in 1999, BUILD is a national nonprofit organization whose mission is to ignite the power of youth in under-resourced communities to build Career success, Entrepreneurial mindsets, and Opportunity. We help students become the CEO of their own lives. BUILD offers youth entrepreneurship programs in 53 cities across the country, has trained nearly 400 educators, and over 8,600 youths have been reached through BUILD’s digital challenges and in-school entrepreneurship programming. For more information, visit www.BUILD.org. 

I (work for, mentor for, on the board of) BUILD.org, the top youth entrepreneurship program for communities that are under-resourced. It’s like “Shark Tank” for high school students.

BUILD bridges the gap between school and the real world, giving students the confidence, skills, and entrepreneurial mindset they need to succeed in the world of work and beyond.

We offer teacher training, a curriculum that’s easy to follow, and corporate coaches to support students along the way.

By BUILDing Generation E – a national movement to bring entrepreneurship education to every high school student in America as a vehicle for economic mobility and life success. Together with a powerful ecosystem of business leaders, educators, entrepreneurs, parents and other nonprofits, we’re building a diverse new generation of entrepreneurial leaders and changemakers with the mindsets and skills needed to thrive in a rapidly changing world.

BUILD's Offerings And Programs

The BUILD Design Challenge (BDC) is a curriculum that provides 10 hours of free, engaging, culturally responsive, project-based digital content that inspires entrepreneurial innovation. Included with the BDC are free, comprehensive, pre-made lesson plans, educator guidebook, and student workbook. There are six steps involved: Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, Test, Pitch.

The BDC is avaliable to any Community-Based Organizations and schools, and is meant for Grades 8th – 12th.  Educators will use   BUILDuniversity.org to do the BDC,.

The BUILD Program is divided up into three segments: BUILD Your Business, BUILD Your Voice, and BUILD Your Future. 

BUILD Your Business: Intended for 8-12th grades, this is a flexible 6-unit program integrated into core classes, CTE classes, or as a standalone elective. The lesson plans can be taught in a semester, year-long, or after school. It teaches the following: Entrepreneurial Mindset: SEL Foundations, Design Thinking, Production, Marketing, Finance, Pitch || Post-Secondary Skills: Entrepreneurial Mindset, Leadership Development.

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BUILD Your Voice: Intended for grades 10th or 11th grade, this product/offering is intended to build off the skills learned in BUILD Your Business. as a curriculum. It teaches the following: Entrepreneurship for Impact: Branding, Digital Marketing & Sales with a focus on Impact & Equity ||  Post-Secondary Skills: Identity & Career Exploration, Goal Setting, Interviewing, and Resumes.

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BUILD Your Future: Intended for grades 11th or 12th. This product/offering is a set of themed lessons that can build off of either BUILD Your Business and or BUILD Your Voice. It teaches the following: Entrepreneurship for Life: Advanced Design Thinking, Storytelling, Personal Branding & Marketing || Post-Secondary Skills: Financial well-being & Economic Mobility, Pathway Persistence, Navigational Capital. 


For more information on any of these, please visit this presentation deck here or this canva comparison chart here. 

Live Virtual Professional Development Training with seasoned facilitators and a community of fellow educators. Certificate awarded at the end of the PD. 

This is a three Unit Program that is designed to be a foundation class in Entrepreneurship. It includes FamBiz (a gamified business simulation), a Community-Based Challenge, and an Idea Pitch event. It is intended for grades 8th – 12th with 30 hours of lesson plans. 

 

To learn more, please click here or message Brian Costanzo.

A digital product/offering that consists of six short lessons that teach the cycle of entrepreneurship. Class Business is just 1 unit of the Freshman (E1) curriculum. Real-time assessments are available so teachers/staff can see where students are excelling and struggling with content

FamBiz is a gamified entrepreneurship stimulation that immerses youth in a self-directed learning adventure with regular opportunities for reflection and discussion. As CEOs of a struggling family businesses, they make real-life decisions while learning three of BUILD’s six Spark Skills and the basics of entrepreneurship. These are explored more deeply and applied to the design of real-world solutions throughout BUILD’s dynamic experiential curriculum.

Social-Emotional Learning is at the heart of BUILD’s model. As youth navigate the simulation, they learn that cultivating personal/mental health, team health, and community health is the foundation for a successful business and a successful life.

To learn more, click here or talk to Mo Foster (they/them).

BUILD’s Business Incubator program is an online after-school program meant to take young entrepreneurs to the next level of their entrepreneurial journey. Participants will start their own business or expand an existing business, learn new business skills, pitch their business idea in a business pitch competition, and compete for startup funding.

Once a week, all participants meet together on zoom to learn new business concepts and skills. In addition, all participants will have a business consultant available for individual or team meetings. 

To learn more, please contact Ofri Brener or visit BUILD.org/Business-Incubator. 

BUILD Events

As of 2023, BUILDFest is the umbrella term for all major BUILD events. They generally are held by each region in the spring and early summer. BUILDFests typically feature student teams who will pitch their businesses or product idea to a panel of judges. The guest attendees can then vote for their favorite team!

The Southwestern PA Youth Pitch (SWPA) is when youth business teams from schools and community-based organizations across Greater Pittsburgh will compete in BUILD’s Design Challenge to create a product, service, or campaign to support a thriving community. This entrepreneurship competition highlights BUILD’s mission to arm youth with real-world experiences and skills. Each youth team will create a pitch, alongside an educator sponsor, and submit a video to enter the competition. 

 

To learn more, click here. 

Huddle Up is an exclusive experience that will bring together Current and Former Professional Athletes, Collegiate Student-Athletes, Founders, VCs, and the BUILD students we serve!

With the guidance of BUILD students who will play the roles of coaches and judges, professionals like you will create a competitive marketing campaign based on a given product and pitch the product to a panel of judges. This event usually takes place in the Bay Area community. 

For more information, please contact Rodrigo Alfaro. 

BUILD’s Youth Business Plan Competition (BPC) is an opportunity for Y1 students to showcase their businesses and what they’ve learned over the course of the year. It is also an opportunity for program teams to determine which student teams will move forward with the showcase and competition for BUILDfest.

To learn more, visit this link here. 

Terminology And Other Information

Deficit-based language is when you frame someone or a community based on their disparities, inequalities, and other negative traits or situations. An example would be saying “homeless person.” Deficit-based language poses a risk of reinforcing negative stereotypes and perceptions of the particular person or community in question. It also removes dignity and autonomy from the person or community in being able to define themselves.

To combat this, the best practice would be to deploy asset-based language or to rephrase your language so that the subject is before the adjectives. An example would be saying “someone who is experiencing homelessness.” 


In the context of 

Creative Assets

BUILD Brand Guide
2020-2021 Annual Report

Download a Sample of Our Curriculum

Fill out this form to receive a free sample of our curriculum and to receive occasional email updates on how to bring BUILD to your community.

VIDEO PREPARATION GUIDELINES

HOW TO RECORD

1. iPhone, iPad, Zoom and Loom are all choices of recording tools for their video presentation 
2. Record with both students and their presentation in view
3. Record horizontally for the best view of the students and their presentation
4. Follow Presentation Diagram to the Right

PRESENTATION TIPS.

- Make eye contact with the camera
- Notecards may be used as cue cards
•Pro Tip: Notecards should avoid having a full script
- Even when you are not speaking, don’t forget the camera is still recording!
•Be aware of your body language while you and your business partners are speaking
- Everyone has an opportunity to speak
- Professional dress is encouraged
- Practice makes perfect
•Practice how you will transition from each speaker
•Project your voice when you speak​

Follow positioning format Above

Download a Sample of Our Curriculum

Fill out this form to receive a free sample of our curriculum and to receive occasional email updates on how to bring BUILD to your community.