Build UP
Project Title
For project support to expand to Selma, Alabama and Brownsville, Texas
Date
Dec. 11, 2025
Duration
24 months
Description
Build UP is an early-college, workforce development high school, established in 2017 in Birmingham, Alabama. They are dedicated to empowering youth from low-income, rural communities through a unique educational model that integrates career-connected education, workforce training, and affordable homeownership opportunities. Students at Build UP schools earn high school diplomas, industry-recognized credentials, and participate in paid internships and apprenticeships as core components of their schooling. The culmination of their education involves assisting students to purchase homes, thereby fostering generational wealth. This pathway empowers students to secure middle-class status, become financially stable homeowners, and contribute to their community’s revitalization. With Carnegie’s support, Build UP will scale their high school model to new communities in Selma, Alabama and Brownsville, Texas, reaching 500 students in the first year and 700 students in the second year.
Website
Project Title
For general support
Date
Mar. 07, 2024
Duration
24 months
Description
Build UP is the only early college workforce model currently providing low-income, primarily BIPOC youth career-ready skills through paid apprenticeships. Along with industry-aligned secondary and early postsecondary academic coursework, it leads youth to become educated, credentialed, and empowered future civic leaders, professionals, and homeowners. To date, over 600 students have been served by this program. Build UP’s student apprentices collaboratively rehab blighted, abandoned homes and lots and relocate donated homes that would otherwise end up in landfills, creating affordable and sustainable options for achieving like-new, multi-unit homeownership. They are working to enroll, support, and empower an additional 120+ new students and facilitate 200 new paid construction internships. With Corporation support Build UP will facilitate expansion of its model to new sites.
Website
Project Title
For project support to create and launch a national expansion support model
Date
Sep. 15, 2022
Duration
12 months
Description
Build UP is an early-college workforce development model that provides low-income youth career-ready skills through paid apprenticeships with industry-aligned secondary and early postsecondary academic coursework leading them to become educated, credentialed, and empowered civic leaders, professionals, homeowners, and landlords. Throughout the full-time, year-round program, youth split their time between academic and career development settings, gaining knowledge directly applicable to paid apprenticeships in high-demand fields. Build UP’s student apprentices collaboratively rehab blighted abandoned homes and lots and relocated donated homes that would otherwise end up in landfills, creating affordable and sustainable options for achieving like-new, multi-unit homeownership. Support from the Corporation will allow Build UP to continue to pursue a financially sustainable model expansion by ensuring funding streams are effectively braided from state, regional, and local sources, including public, private, and philanthropic, to fully leverage all relevant funding opportunities.
Website
Project Title
For the creation of a long-term sustainable, braided funding plan to build site-level fiscal sustainability
Date
Sep. 02, 2021
Duration
12 months
Description
Build UP is the nation’sfirst and only early-college workforce development modelthat provides low-income youth career-ready skills through paid apprenticeships with industry-aligned secondary and early postsecondary academic coursework, leading them to become educated, credentialed, and empowered civic leaders, professionals, homeowners and landlords. Throughout the full-time, year-round program, youth split their time between academic and career development settings, gaining knowledge that is directly applicable to paid apprenticeships in high-demand fields. Build UP’s student-apprentices collaboratively rehab blightedabandoned homes and lots, andrelocate donated homes that would otherwise end up in landfills, creating affordable and sustainable options for achieving like-new, multi-unit homeownership. Support from the Corporation will allow Build UP to pursue a financially sustainable model expansion by ensuring funding streams are effectively braided from state, regional, and local sources, includingpublic, private, and philanthropic, to fully leverage all relevant funding opportunities.