Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Comcast NBCUniversal and BUILD.org Release Free Digital Curriculum Designed to Spark Community Solutions
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Comcast NBCUniversal and BUILD.org Release Free Digital Curriculum Designed to Spark Community Solutions
Oct 21, 2021
New York, NY
BUILD.org and Comcast NBCUniversal have partnered to launch the next BUILD Design Challenge for youth and educators nationwide.
As a national nonprofit whose mission is to use entrepreneurship to ignite the power of youth to build career success, entrepreneurial mindsets, and opportunity, BUILD.org developed its Design Challenge as a free, project-based curriculum for educators to support them to facilitate a space for their students to have meaningful conversations about what it means to live in a thriving community.
The Challenge is introduced through a lens of culturally-relevant content, with strong narratives from unique individuals representing diverse communities. Using the five-step design process (empathize, define, ideate, prototype, and test), students will explore stories of people living in diverse communities and work collaboratively with peers to propose innovative products, solutions, or campaigns in response to the challenge question: “How might we build powerful, thriving communities where everyone enjoys safety, wellness, and economic freedom?”
BUILD.org and its Design Challenge meet innovation with proven success, and we’re thrilled to partner in this latest challenge launch. We look forward to seeing all that the students will bring to life in this year’s program, and to helping them realize their every dream and more.
The Challenge, which can be completed in as little as 10 hours, was designed for hybrid or blended learning contexts where students can enjoy the best of digitally enhanced content and the best of in-person instruction. In addition to the free curriculum, teachers and educators have the ability to register for professional development to better utilize this resource, expand their own entrepreneurial leadership skills, and connect with like-minded teachers across the nation dedicated to building the next generation of entrepreneurial leaders and changemakers.
“Today students and educators need digital skills and an entrepreneurial mindset to thrive in our rapidly changing workplace,” said BUILD’s CEO Ayele Shakur. “Entrepreneurship education provides young people with an immersive experience that mirrors what it’s like to collaborate with colleagues, solve problems, and create value in the world beyond high school.”
In the 2020-2021 school year, thousands of 7-12th grade students from across the country participated in the first BUILD challenge launched by BUILD.org and Comcast NBCUniversal, which was focused on creating solutions to improve mental and physical wellness in the midst of COVID-19.
“In preparing today’s students for tomorrow’s world, we must go beyond standard approaches and curricula, and provide the innovative resources that will help them excel and lead,” said Dalila Wilson-Scott, Executive Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer of Comcast Corporation. “BUILD.org and its Design Challenge meet innovation with proven success, and we’re thrilled to partner in this latest challenge launch. We look forward to seeing all that the students will bring to life in this year’s program, and to helping them realize their every dream and more.”
BUILD.org and Comcast NBCUniversal are committed to creating digital equity by offering free and engaging online content to teachers and students nationwide. The curriculum, educator guide, and other resources for the BUILD Design Challenge are available at BUILD.org.
