Our History
The program was started by Cristina Cismas Florea, a high school teacher who had the humble goal of bringing students together during lunch to learn mathematical applications in businesses settings. Growing up in Silicon Valley after moving from Romania at the age of eight without speaking a word of English and having to start a new life in a new country, Cristina learned the value of hard work and dedication, experienced the power of generosity and kindness, and gained an appreciation of the power of entrepreneurship and how a business can change the world and the lives of people. Her vision was also to provide her students a chance to give back and be of service to their community while applying their newly learned knowledge. Through the process, she wanted her students to realize both the expectations and their potential to succeed in today's business settings.
Our Impact
In just a few years, BEAM grew organically with nominal promotion from five high school students to a global sensation and has been featured in numerous press articles, including The Huffington Post and Palo Alto Pulse. Most recently, BEAM was named one of the best international practices in education by the Nuffic report in the Netherlands. With multiple locations around the world, BEAM has become an international social network of business education and business opportunities, as well as vehicle for worldwide collaboration between students, teachers, and businesses. Students from different nations are able to collaborate with one another, share, discuss, analyze and provide recommendation for each other’s projects. The program fosters innovative education and interconnectedness as a global community, while being free for the common good.