Meet Our 2025 Build Award Recipients

For our pilot year, we selected two award recipients from across the country who have ideas for transformational impact. Awardees are proximate to their communities as a part of our commitment to empowering those with firsthand understanding of the aspirations of and opportunities for children, parents, and families within their communities. Our inaugural cohort of award recipients also brings deep community connections, a strong equity focus, and an entrepreneurial mindset.  Their ventures demonstrate high impact potential, with committed teams and visions for sustainable growth.

BEE Collective

The Beloved Early Education and Care Collective / Tricounty Play Collaborative, led by Adrienne Troy-Frazier, Co-Founder & Director, operates three interconnected programs in South Carolina that provide free doula services to over 60 Black families annually, support a worker-owned cooperative for BIPOC doulas and educators, and run an Afrocentric Saturday school for young children. Together, these programs create a comprehensive support ecosystem for Black families through culturally responsive care, education, and cooperative economics.

📍South Carolina

Our House Baltimore is an intimate sliding-scale play space and cafe offering culturally affirming programming and open play for children and their caregivers. Owned by Maureen Nicol, Ed.D.–a mom who created the space she wanted her own child to enjoy–Our House serves as a safe haven where children engage in play-based learning while caregivers take time for themselves.

📍Maryland