Led by Dr. Kerry Vandell and a high level group of volunteer supporters (the Center’s Board of Director’s), the CRE is an integral and indispensable component of the Program in Real Estate and Urban Development. It bridges the instructional, research, and outreach missions of the Program in the creation and dissemination of knowledge as it relates to our built environment.

The constituency of the Center is made up of an identifiable core of faculty, students, and professionals who share a common interest in furthering our understanding of the way in which we can harness the immense power of knowledge to create a sustainable urban future.

Hence, the Center focuses on the pursuit of emerging best practices in the real estate profession. It is concerned with the success of the enterprise and the industry as well as the “deal”. It considers the imperative to succeed and grow in a manner that is sustainable in the context of longer-run and broader societal objectives as well as short-term profitability goals. Finally, it incorporates the recognition that technology and innovation are important drivers of change in our dynamic world and must be central elements of decision making. These themes provide a philosophical reference point for all the Center’s initiatives.

The members of the Center Board also contribute to the educational mission of the real estate program by acting as Distinguished Professional Lecturers, admitting students to their annual Board retreats, serving as informal advisors to students, and participating in the Mentorship and Internship programs. Currently, there are 62 member companies and individual leaders involved closely with the Center. We are grateful to these professionals for their time and resources and we are pleased to note that several of our alumni are among these donor/volunteers.

Events and Programs

The outreach events sponsored by the Center have become much-anticipated annual events among the Orange County real estate community. The Breakfast Series is held three times per year. Each event features a prestigious panel of experts who are engaged to discuss and debate major issues of current interest to the real estate community.

Another popular event is the Annual Real Estate Gala Awards Banquet, which is held in the late spring and regularly attracts over 500 attendees. The banquet annually recognizes the recipient of the Real Estate Award and individual who has had the significant influence on development in Orange County and the region, as well as a “Young Leader.”

Additional events open to the public include guest speakers, policy forums, and other events that are scheduled occasionally as events dictate.

Why is the Center unique?

Many universities and colleges have real estate centers that differ broadly in their purpose, level of development, and nature of activities. The Real Estate Center and the Merage School of business will distinguish itself by the following core attributes, which together are shared by few other programs in the country:

• Its “home” will be within the Merage School of Business and its world-class MBA faculty and curriculum. Thus, the students will all have a rigorous foundation in the core business disciplines of finance, accounting, marketing, management, and operations management. Likewise, the real estate curriculum will be second to none in breadth and rigor.

• It will be a respected integral component of the broader academic mission of the University via the Academic Fellows program and cross-listed electives for students. This is in contrast to many other real estate centers -- whether they be housed in a business school, a school of architecture and planning, or other location -- which exist as “silos” in relative isolation from the rest of the campus community.

• Its academic curriculum will extend beyond the usual progression of lecture/textbook problem solving exercises on case studies and team projects focusing on individual projects (or “the deal”). It will not simply focus on what has been done in the past. Consistent with its theme of “sustainable growth through strategic innovation”, it will probe the route to creative solutions and “best practices”. Further, it will place “the deal” ultimately in the context of sustainable growth and management of the real estate enterprise.

• It will be known for its research product, which will be well-respected academically, yet often with important implications for public policy and/or private sector managerial decision making.

• Its outreach program will be second to none, in terms of level of quality and impact. This includes both the Advisory Board retreats, Board briefing sessions, the Breakfast Series, and the Annual Gala Awards Banquet, as well as our executive education and other programs. The focus will be on issues of high importance, and quality will be emphasized over quantity to maximize take-home value to participants.

Click here for a PDF on the Center For Real Estate Breakfast Series

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