BuildStrong Foundation

Today, a few of our BUILD CO Scholars got to meet with Denver Mayor Mike Johnston at a community event they supported. These interns are part of the incredible 18-person cohort currently working all across Colorado on all things community development and affordable housing. Mayor Mike Johnston

Momentum builds as Colorado Housing Consortium convenes at Gary Community Ventures to move affordable housing plan into action!

This week, we welcomed 18 extraordinary young leaders from across Colorado into our most ambitious summer yet. Over the past few days, these scholars dove headfirst into an immersive opening retreat in Denver, touring the State Capitol, meeting with the Mayor’s Office, visiting Urban Peak, exploring modular housing innovation at Vederra, and engaging directly with state leaders, including Attorney General Phil Weiser.

This isn’t just another internship.

The BUILD CO Scholars program is a transformative leadership accelerator designed to cultivate the next generation of affordable housing and community development leaders. Through hands-on projects, deep stakeholder engagement, powerful mentorship, and real-world advocacy, these scholars aren’t just learning about housing: they’re actively engaging urban and rural communities across our state to foster meaningful partnerships and collaboration.

We are incredibly proud of this cohort and deeply grateful to our mentors, partners, and the entire BUILD CO community for pouring into these young leaders. The future of housing in Colorado looks brighter because of them.

Here’s to an impactful summer of growth, connection, and real change.

The next generation isn’t just coming, they’re already leading.

Today at his State of the State address, Governor Polis discussed the importance of building more housing across Colorado and mentioned the important work of the Housing Consortium that the BuildStrong Foundation launched this year: “Under Maria De Cambra’s leadership in partnership with the Housing Consortium, we launched the innovative Housing Hub to make it easier to apply for affordable rental housing tax credits.” -

Thank you Governor Polis & Maria De Cambra for your leadership! We are just getting started!

Thank you Governor Polis & Maria De Cambra for your leadership! We are just getting started!

“Under Maria De Cambra’s leadership in partnership with the Housing Consortium, we launched the innovative Housing Hub to make it easier to apply for affordable rental housing tax credits. “ -

Thank you Governor Polis & Maria De Cambra for your leadership! We are just getting started!