BUILD Oakland Celebrates 3rd Youth Business Plan Competition

Nation’s Largest Entrepreneurship-Focused College Access Program Celebrates Its Annual Youth Business Plan Competition with Twenty-two Ninth-Grade Student Business Teams from Oakland

OAKLAND, CA (May 12, 2009) – BUILD Oakland is proud to present its 3rd class of youth entrepreneurs at their Annual Youth Business Plan Competition held at UC Berkeley Haas School of Business, from 12:30pm to 4:00pm.

This celebration culminates a year’s worth of achievements by BUILD’s young entrepreneurs from under-resourced areas of Oakland. Teams will be judged by a panel of local executives from the education and business communities, including Jim Bradley of Primatics, Margrit Schurman of Papyrus, Vaughn Mootoo of Chevron and Ray Leon of Councilmember Reid’s office.

“We are always excited and amazed by the progress our students demonstrate at the Youth Business Plan Competition,” says Laura Congdon, BUILD Oakland Site Director. “This year will prove no different. Twenty-two student teams will be presenting their unique business plans, with ideas ranging from sticker post cards to dishwashing gloves, to customizable picture frames and shoelaces.”

WHAT: 3rd Annual BUILD Peninsula Youth Business Plan Competition
WHERE: UC Berkeley Haas School of Business, Arthur Andersen Auditorium, 2220 Piedmont Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94720
WHEN: Saturday, May 30, 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.

BUILD’s 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. To date, 100% of BUILD’s students have graduated from high school and enrolled in college from communities where the high-school drop-out rate is as high as 70%.

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.