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BUILD Institute Welcomes New Alumni Coordinator

BUILD Institute, a program of Downtown Detroit Partnership, is proud to announce and welcome Nikki Pardo as alumni coordinator. Pardo will oversee the BUILD Next program, which is exclusively dedicated to BUILD graduates and provides support and resources they need to launch and grow. BUILD Next is a very important component to the success of the graduates as they continue to network, collaborate, learn, inspire and serve as catalysts to ensure their businesses flourish and thrive.

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“The BUILD community continues to grow with over 600 graduates in just 3 short years and we need to make sure our alumni feel supported and have the resources they need for success” says April Boyle Executive Director.

Pardo says, “As a BUILD graduate myself, I look forward to rolling up my sleeves to support and celebrate other alums, and let them know they are not alone out there!”

Pardo dedicated her professional career to the corporate, government, and higher education sectors, and is the founder of Global Alliance Solutions, a diversity training and consulting company. Pardo also earned a Master of Business Administration degree in Management/Leadership, a Master of Science in Administration degree with a concentration in International Administration, and a Bachelor of Science degree.

To the BUILD Institute Community,

On behalf of the BUILD Institute Board of Directors, we want to share that the Board has made the decision to pause operations at the end of 2025.

We recognize that we are living in a time of great uncertainty for small business support organizations across Michigan. This moment offers us an opportunity to reassess how BUILD delivers on its mission, retool our programming, and evaluate new partnership opportunities and our overall business model to ensure long-term sustainability and impact.

In the coming months, we will continue all scheduled programming through December to ensure that all commitments to entrepreneurs and partners are honored. During this time, we will also explore new ways to align our work with the evolving needs of our community, including our network of over 3,000 alums.

Please join us in showing appreciation for the team members and facilitators who have served Detroit’s entrepreneurs and supported BUILD’s mission since our founding in 2012.

If you have any questions about this decision or what it means in the near term, please email us at [email protected].

Thank you for your continued support and for being part of BUILD’s legacy of inclusive entrepreneurship.

With gratitude,
The BUILD Institute Board of Directors