Mentors + Volunteers | BUILD Greater Boston

Mentors + Volunteers

BUILD Mentors

BUILD is actively seeking professionals from diverse fields who want to help high school students excel through our unique college prep and entrepreneurship program. Founded in 1999, BUILD’s mission is to use entrepreneurship to excite and propel disengaged, low-income students through high school to college success.

As a BUILD Mentor, you will meet one afternoon or evening a week for 1.5 hours to help students develop their own business ideas, write business plans, pitch to funders, and launch real businesses. This real-world business experience makes school relevant and motivates them to succeed. To help them become college-eligible, BUILD students also receive tutoring, test prep, and advising for their school-work and college planning. Entrepreneurship is the hook—but college is the goal. Over the past eleven years, 100% of BUILD seniors have been accepted to college, with 91% accepted to 4 year colleges and universities.

BUILD Mentors work in pairs to facilitate teams of 4-6 students in their efforts to define a business idea, write a business plan, and create an accompanying slide presentation for the year-end business plan competition. BUILD Greater Boston has mentoring opportunities at these four partner high schools:

  • Charlestown High (Charlestown), Wednesdays, 2:30-4:00pm
  • Another Course to College (Brighton), Wednesdays, 3:00-4:30pm
  • Community Academy of Science and Health (Dorchester), Thursdays, 3:00-4:30pm
  • Jeremiah E. Burke High (Dorchester), Thursdays, 3:30-5:00pm

BUILD Volunteers

In addition to mentoring, which is BUILD’s greatest need, we offer a wide range of volunteer opportunities to fit your schedule. You can:

  • Help students design their logo or webpage
  • Consult on their written business plan
  • Dole out advice as a Venture Capital Advisor
  • Host a group of students at the workplace during a career field trip or job shadow day
  • Serve as a judge at our Showcases or annual Youth Business Plan Competition

“This is a wonderful experience for both the students and the mentors. When you show up and show that you care about a student and believe in them, this in turn helps students believe in themselves… You can genuinely change a student’s life for the better!”—BUILD Volunteer

About BUILD

BUILD is a nonprofit organization headquartered in the Bay Area of California with programs in East Palo Alto, Oakland, and Washington DC. The new Boston office launches in September 2011! For more information on the National organization visit www.build.org.

Mentor Application Forms

Thank you for your interest in applying to become a BUILD Greater Boston mentor. Please fill out the Mentor Application and Cori Request Form and then e-mail to Ryan Oliver at roliver@build.org.

mentor_application

Learn More

To learn more contact BUILD Greater Boston Site Director, Ryan Oliver, at roliver@build.org.

Partner Schools

When & Where (4 different schools, all accessible by public transportation):

Another Course to College
20 Warren Street,
Brighton, MA 02135
Wednesdays 3:00 – 4:40pm

Community Academy of Science and Health
Fields Corner
Dorchester, MA 02122
Wednesdays 3:00 – 4:30pm

Charlestown High School
Medford Street,
Charlestown, MA 02129
Thursdays 2:30 – 4:00pm

Jeremiah E. Burke
High School
60 Washington Street, Dorchester, MA 02121
Thursdays 3:00 – 4:30pm

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