Since 2023, Build a Biz Kids has experienced rapid growth following the successful launch of our new Community Partner Network.

Prior to 2020, we were running our in-person programs by ourselves. Families would pay for their children’s enrolment in the program, and we tried to subsidize the cost for the ones who couldn’t. It worked, but this made the accessibility of our programs limited in terms of geographical and financial restraints. 

Then 2020 came along and changed everything at Build a Biz Kids. The pandemic gave us time to reflect on, and understand our strengths when it came to program education and supporting educators – we knew there was still room for improvement. We were able to reach a significant amount of students when we shifted our programs online, but that was only the start!

After being funded by the Canadian Red Cross, we did a speaking tour across Canada for educators. We wanted to help them learn how to build trust and connection with their students online when schools had shifted to remote teaching.

This helped us realize that, not only could we support students, but we could also provide support to the educators who always have childrens’ well-being in mind. This led us towards the growth and expansion of our program through partnerships in communities, where our programs are now being led by educators in their communities. 

We are thrilled that in only the first 4 months of launching this new program:

• We were projected to reach over 678% more kids than in the entire year prior to the pandemic.
• The costs and logistics of outreach and expansion went down by over 50%. 
• The majority of BizKids Programs have become completely free for kids.
• We have specialized educators who are able to ensure accessibility to support kids with different learning abilities.
• We expanded beyond BC and our programs were offered in Alberta and Manitoba for the first time

After a successful pilot, we knew that this new Network of Community Partners program was going to be an enormous success. Since then, we:

• Are projected to reach over 2800 kids and growing before June 2024.
• Have entered 32 more communities across British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia.

We are rapidly growing and changing, and are showing no signs of stopping!

Help continue the growth of our programs by making a charitable donation towards Build a Biz Kids http://qpj.051.myftpupload.com/donate/.

Your gift allows us to provide all of the necessary digital and physical tools, resources, and support to our Community Partners for free.

Written By: Hillary Lee