New York – October 28, 2026 -- The Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) and BUILD.org plan to merge into a nonprofit serving more than 350,000 students annually, with a projected operating budget of about $18 million. The deal is pending regulatory approval.
BUILD will become the first organization in NFTE's planned "family of brands," a longer-term strategy to consolidate mission-aligned entrepreneurship education groups. The two nonprofits have a combined 67 years of operating history.
Combined organization targets an $18 million annual operating budget
The merged entity will pair NFTE's national and global reach, educator training and research capabilities with BUILD's relationship-centered, experiential learning model. Both organizations rely on project-based learning, and the merger plan calls for combining NFTE's entrepreneurial mindset curriculum with BUILD's Spark Skills.
The organizations describe the structure as a new growth model for the entrepreneurship education nonprofit sector. They say it preserves each organization's distinct identity while delivering greater reach and efficiency than traditional expansion.
NFTE has reached nearly 2 million learners since 1987
Steve Mariotti founded NFTE in New York City in 1987. The group says it has reached nearly 2 million learners worldwide through school, community, out-of-school and digital programming.
BUILD was founded in 1999 in Silicon Valley and focuses on youth from under-resourced communities. It has served more than 400,000 students across 2,000+ communities nationwide.
Leaders target entrepreneurship as core curriculum, not elective
Thais Rezende, President and Interim CEO of BUILD, said the combined reach and capacity would help move entrepreneurship education "from an optional elective" toward a core part of how young people are prepared for their futures.
Dr. J.D. LaRock, President and CEO of NFTE, said the combination would let the groups reach more students and deliver more project-based experiences. The organizations say they will focus on helping students use AI and other emerging technologies for innovation, learning and economic opportunity.
Board leaders from Coursera and Cooley back the deal
Anthony Salcito, General Manager, Enterprise at Coursera, Inc. and Co-Chair of the NFTE Board of Directors, said the merger gives the organizations greater ability to shift education beyond preparing students for a first job. Patty Alper, President of the Teach to Work Foundation and the other NFTE Board Co-Chair, said mission-aligned organizations can build something larger than any one could achieve alone.
David Peinsipp, Partner and Co-chair of the global capital markets group at law firm Cooley and Chair of the BUILD Board of Directors, said the merger links New York's financial base with Silicon Valley's innovation base. Suzanne McKechnie Klahr, BUILD's founder, said the combination extends BUILD's approach to NFTE's global footprint.
NFTE describes the BUILD merger as the first chapter in a broader plan to bring together additional mission-aligned organizations.