Brand Up Academy
Future-Proof Your Path: College, Career & Beyond
Brand Up Academy prepares tomorrow’s leaders with real-world skills to stand out and lead at every stage of their journey.

Signature Program for High School Students
Make Your Mark
Brand Up Academy's signature program, Make Your Mark, helps high school students tap into their full potential, make a bold impression, and stand out where it counts—whether it’s for college, scholarships, internships, or early career opportunities. Co-created by nationally recognized branding and education experts Stacey Ross Cohen and Jason Shaffer, this dynamic course includes 10 interactive online modules (that don’t feel like homework!). Students learn how to communicate their value, elevate their digital presence, and get noticed by the people who matter. Students who complete the course earn the Brand Up Distinction Certificate—a powerful credential that signals readiness, leadership, and future-forward skills.
Skills That Open Doors for Life
Feeling overwhelmed by the college and career maze? This self-paced e-course cuts through the noise with a step-by-step, interactive experience designed to help students:
- Discover who they are and answer the million-dollar question: Why Choose you?
- Communicate it with confidence
- Leave a lasting impression online and in person
In a world where average doesn’t get noticed, standing out is essential. Make your Mark gives students the edge with practical tools to:
- Craft a compelling personal narrative
- Strengthen their online and in-person presence
- Build future-ready skills like goal setting, networking, interviewing, entrepreneurship, empathy, and more
Coming January 2026: Brand Up 2.0: Propel Your Early Career Success – our next course for young professionals, coinciding with the latest book in the Brand Up series.
Program Highlight: The Best-Selling Book Behind the Course
At the core of Brand Up Academy is the best-selling guide that started it all: Brand Up: The Ultimate Playbook for College & Career Success in the Digital World.
This 190-page guide helps students stand out, get noticed, and take control of their success story. It includes:
• Step-by-step personal branding exercises
• Advice from 40+ college admissions officers and education experts
• Templates for networking, interviews, and thank-you notes that make an impact
• Social media tips to help students shine online

Download the BRAND UP Resources Guide: The Ultimate Playbook for College & Career Success in the Digital World
Our team

Stacey Ross Cohen is a best-selling author, TEDx speaker, and marketing professional, Stacey holds a BS in Human Development from Syracuse University, an MBA from Fordham University, and a certificate in Media, Entertainment, & Technology from NYU Leonard Stern School of Business. Stacey has traveled the country educating parents, teachers, and teens on personal branding, digital leadership, and communications.

Jason Shaffer is an innovative educator at Lake Highland Prep School, guiding middle schoolers in entrepreneurship for modern success. Formerly at North Broward Prep, he pioneered the Personal Branding and Digital Communications curriculum, now a national model. Jason's awards include North Broward's Soaring Eagle and Meritas Excellence in Teaching. He earned a BA in History from Florida Atlantic University.

Abby Pan is the Social Media Manager for Brand Up. Abby handles the creative copy and management for all of BrandUp's social media platforms. Her experience includes social media management and marketing, copywriting, email marketing, and more. She has a background as a journalist and magazine editor working for online and print publications.

Cecile Rothschild serves as the creative director for Brand Up. Cécile’s breadth of experience includes brand and visual identity, book design and illustrations, website development and design, eMarketing and social media campaigns, promotional programs, marketing and advertising campaigns and more. She also runs the branding, communications and design studio Create and Associates.

Craig is a seasoned international education leader and impact entrepreneur with extensive global experience in K-12 and higher education. Over nearly three decades, he has held diverse roles as a teacher, advisor, coach, counselor, and administrator in top international schools. For the past eight years, Craig has been a driving force in youth leadership, entrepreneurship, and sustainability education, working with leading schools, universities, non-profits, and businesses worldwide. He is a recognized advocate for impact innovation education and frequently presents at prominent global events, including Harvard’s Global Development Group’s Future of Learning Panel, SXSWedu, ChangeNow Summit, and the UN Festival of Action. In addition, Craig contributes to the OECD’s Education & Skills 2030 Global Forum and serves on the Global Advisory Board for the non-profit Education for Sharing. He holds a BA from Bowdoin College, an MA from Columbia University, and a PhD from the Centre des Études Diplomatiques et Stratégiques (Paris).
Partners
Brand Up has close affiliations with the organizations below, which prepare individuals for their academic and professional journeys with essential tools and resources to succeed.
LifeStream is an innovative content management platform that streamlines the application process. The platform allows students to store and showcase their best academic work, projects, community services, talents, employment history, and more. A personalized LifeStream portfolio can help enhance a college application.
Social Assurity Setting up social media profiles, especially on less youth-centered platforms like LinkedIn – can be a stumbling block. Based on the best practices of social media experts, Social Assurity helps students use social media to build distinctive digital portfolios of their lives and accomplishments for a competitive edge with their college admissions, scholarships, internships, and career applications.
College Money Matters is a 501c3 non-profit organization with a free website, collegemoneymatters.org, that helps college-bound students and their families learn about essential financial topics such as how loans work, keys to avoiding debt, paying for college, and ways to access scholarships and grants. The site features colorful videos, games, articles, and interactive exercises.