Compiled by SPEAKIN’ OUT NEWS
In Birmingham, a one-of-a-kind school is reshaping the future for teens like Simeon Franklin. At just 17, Franklin is already mastering the skills of a professional tradesman—measuring, cutting, and installing boards beneath a shed roof he’s helping to build from scratch.
He’s a student at Build Urban Prosperity (Build UP) Community School, where high schoolers earn diplomas and associate degrees while learning trades and actively rebuilding their neighborhoods.
“It makes me feel worthy, like I’m valuable,” Franklin told AL.com. “Just having the skills to know that I can do something that makes me happy… it’s reassuring, knowing that I have those skills in my tool belt.”
Founded in 2018, Build UP positions itself as the country’s first early-college workforce development high school. Students choose from fields such as construction, HVAC, electrical, and automotive repair, while participating in paid internships and hands-on community revitalization projects.
“We work at the intersection of education, workforce development, and affordable housing,” said Build UP CEO David Hardin in an interview with AL.com. “By having a through-line through each of these, we’re better able to tackle the issue of educational inequity, lack of career skills, and poverty.”
Classes are held in a newly relocated campus in Titusville, where students split time between the classroom and job sites. Instructors and local contractors teach practical trades while also instilling soft skills like financial literacy, time management, and teamwork. Students also open bank accounts and earn monthly stipends through internships.
Seventeen-year-old Joshua Rose said transferring to Build UP his sophomore year helped him find purpose. He’s now interning at New Metro Automotive, a local Black-owned shop. “I just really found myself,” he told AL.com. “With Build UP, there’s more opportunity. I’ve got a great connection with all my teachers and peers.”
The school has already graduated 42 students who helped restore more than 30 homes for low- to moderate-income families. In one instance, Build UP alumni helped transform a once-blighted stretch of Fourth Avenue South, where property values have since risen, according to the Jefferson County Property Tax Administration.
Torrey Washington, a member of Build UP’s first cohort, became the first graduate to own a home through the program. “We’re cracking down on that piece,” said Principal Brearn Wright, referencing the school’s promise of homeownership. “If we’re making this promise to students and families, we’ve got to uphold it.”
The program’s success extends beyond the trades. Career and Technical Education instructor Nathaniel McBride teaches students how to build everything from bed frames to meditation pods. “These kids have a great opportunity to learn skills that no one can ever take from them,” he told AL.com.
Build UP is expanding its reach with a new YouthBuild program for students ages 16 to 24 who left school without a diploma. It’s also preparing to open a third campus in Selma, where it aims to replicate its model of education-driven community development.
“We’re taking students and, through the power of education, real-world career skills, and affordable homeownership, we’re building generational wealth and community stewardship,” Hardin said.