ASU’s Thunderbird School of Global Management supported the U.S. Department of State’s Academy for Women Entrepreneurs (AWE), a program that promoted women’s economic opportunities and ensured that they have the capabilities and resources necessary for economic participation. 

AWE leveraged Thunderbird’s DreamBuilder, a free online training and certification program for aspiring women entrepreneurs that covered the foundational business knowledge needed to start and grow small businesses. As the central curriculum for AWE, Dreambuilder was implemented through U.S. embassies across the world, reaching women in more than 80 countries. 

Dreambuilder helped to drive AWE’s highly successful results: Among women who completed the AWE program, 74 percent increased their business earnings and 29 percent hired more staff. Independent of AWE, DreamBuilder has reached more than 100,000 women in 135 countries and provided a cumulative 1 million hours of training. DreamBuilder’s platform offered lessons in both English and Spanish and has been used worldwide not only by women, but also by men and children pursuing entrepreneurial goals. Building on seed funding provided by the Freeport-McMoRan Foundation, DreamBuilder’s content was leveraged by more than 100 organizations.