As my time
as director of the MRED Program draws to a close, I want to thank the faculty,
staff, students, alumni, and advisory board members for their support over the
last three years. Countless individuals stepped up to assist me during my
tenure, and for that I am sincerely grateful. I hope I leave the program at
least as strong as I found it, and well positioned for growth under the
guidance of the incoming leadership team.
One of the
things I am most excited about as I take the next step in my professional
journey is continuing to watch graduates of the MRED program advance in their
careers. Many have already made great strides since completing their graduate
studies and I could not be prouder of their accomplishments to date. I have no
doubt notable achievements are yet to come.
I also look forward to collaborating with the MRED program’s faculty and staff in the future. Ms. Amy Herrick, Dr. Robert Benedict, Dr. Stephen Buckman, and all the adjunct faculty members who teach in the program have taught me a great deal about scholarly excellence. I plan to continue looking to them for guidance throughout the remainder of my academic career.
Further, I
am excited to remain in contact with the MRED program’s alumni and advisory
board members since we share a common goal of promoting excellence in real
estate education. I know I will reach out to representatives of these groups
for advice, and I hope they will do the same.
In
closing, it has been a pleasure and a privilege to serve as director of Clemson
University’s MRED program. I wish its stakeholders much success in all their
endeavors.
I am pleased to report that our program had another excellent year. After receiving approval from Clemson University’s Board of Trustees, we kicked off the Fall 2023 semester with a major curriculum revision designed to strengthen our core courses and accelerate our students’ time-to-degree. Full-time students can now complete their graduate studies in as little as one year and part-time students in as little as two years, all while participating in trade organization meetings, market tours and a host of other extracurricular activities. We sincerely believe the curriculum revision preserves the best aspects of our program, while making it accessible to a greater number of aspirant real estate developers.
As our program evolves, the one thing that stays the same is
the quality of our students. Beau Good, Zion Kaauwai and Jordan Smith set an
impressive example for their peers graduating in Summer 2024 by being selected
as finalists in the Colvin Case Study Competition hosted by the University of
Maryland. Arden Hamilton and Baker Reese experienced similar success by
receiving industry-sponsored scholarships to attend the SIOR World Conference
in Amelia Island, FL. These are but a few of the things our students have
achieved in the past twelve months.
Another notable change to our program came in the form of the Clemson University Real Estate Summit, which was launched in the Spring 2024 semester to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas among members of the real estate development industry. The inaugural event attracted an audience of well over 250 people and included an economic forecast, panel discussion, and networking reception. We plan to hold the summit on an annual basis long into the future and reach a larger audience each year.
Heading into the summer, we would like to thank all our
stakeholders for their ongoing support. Without it, our program would simply
not be what it is today.
Sincerely, Dustin C. Read, Ph.D., J.D. Professor and Director
The Master of Real Estate Development (MRED) program recently hosted the inaugural Clemson University Real Estate Summit in partnership with Choate Construction as the presenting sponsor. Launched to strengthen ties between the academy and industry, the event attracted an audience of nearly 300 community leaders, faculty, students, and industry professionals to downtown Greenville on April 18, 2024.
Conway is the founding principal and owner of
KC-nomics, LLC, an independent and privately owned economic forecasting and
research firm. Known as the “Original Red-Shoe Economist,” he previously
co-founded Red Shoe Economics, LLC, and served as Chief Economist for the CCIM
Institute. Conway has more than three decades of experience as an economist,
teacher, lender, appraiser and credit officer.
KC Conway speaks at the inaugural Clemson University Real Estate Summit on April 18, 2024.
Economist K.C. Conway’s
keynote presentation focused on the state of the national and regional economy,
along with the implications for the real estate development industry at large.
He offered insights into capital market trends, demographic shifts and supply
chain issues effecting demand for various real estate product types across the
United States.
A panel discussion
followed the keynote presentation. Nate Sittema, a member of CBRE’s debt and
structured finance team, moderated a lively conversation examining the rapid
evolution of the build-to-rent (BTR) and single-family rental (SFR) segments of
the U.S. housing market. The nationally recognized panel of experts included
Russ Davis with Homes Urban LLC, Shannon Lavrin with the City of Greenville, Joe
Parsons with Greystar, and Ryan Bowes with First Key Homes, LLC.
“The real estate development community really stepped up to make the Summit a success” said Dustin Read, director of Clemson University’s MRED program. “Both industry sponsorships and attendance exceeded our expectations for an inaugural event and showed us just how much demand there is for a forum to exchange ideas in the Upstate of South Carolina. We look forward to collaborating with our industry partners to host many more summits in the future.”
The inaugural Clemson
University Real Estate Summit was supported by presenting sponsor Choate
Construction; featured sponsors CF Evans Construction and SouthCoast; table
sponsors Burr & Forman, Homes Urban LLC and Metromont; orange sponsors
CBRE, Graycliff Capital, Greystar, LS3P, Orange Capital Advisors, Pintail,
SeamonWhiteside, Truliant Federal Credit Union and United Community Bank; and
in-kind sponsors CREW-UPSTATE, Greenville Commercial GGAR, SIOR®-CCIM and
ULI-SC.
2025
Clemson University Real Estate Summit plans are in process and additional
information on next year’s event and topics will be announced later this year.
For questions about current MRED Program’s initiatives and/or ways to get involved or support future Real Estate Summit events, please contact program director, Dustin Read.
The Master of Real Estate Development (MRED) Program and Choate Construction are pleased to host the inaugural Clemson University Real Estate Summit. To strengthen ties between the academy and industry, the event will bring together over 200 real estate practitioners, community leaders, researchers, and students in downtown Greenville to discuss market trends and emerging issues. The itinerary includes an economic forecast presented by nationally recognized speaker, KC Conway, and a moderated panel discussion on this year’s topic of interest: build-to-rent housing development.
The Real Estate Summit will be held on Thursday, April 18 at the Huguenot Loft, 101 W. Broad Street, Greenville, SC 29601.
Two
Master of Real Estate Development (MRED) students have been awarded scholarships
to attend the SIOR Spring World Conference in Amelia
Island, FL, May 6-9, 2024.
Arden
Hamilton and Baker Reese were selected as finalists from the Carolinas to
participate in the SIOR Foundation Student Real Estate Experience Program
Scholarship for spring 2024. Each will
be assigned a sponsoring SIOR mentor for the world conference.
The
SIOR scholarships assist with conference expenses, including registration,
hotel, and travel. Applications were accepted from UNC Charlotte, Clemson
University, Coastal Carolina, and the College of Charleston. Each university
was able to nominate two students for award consideration.
Arden Hamilton
Arden Hamilton joined the real estate development program
from Ontario, Canada after completing a bachelor’s degree in architecture from
Carleton University in 2023. She plans to combine her development,
architecture, and design interest in the industrial and office sectors. Prior
to graduate school, Hamilton interned for Ware Malcomb, an industrial
architecture firm in Ontario.
“My journey with the MRED program at Clemson University
has been transformative, fueled by the invaluable experiences and connections I’ve
fostered along the way, said Hamilton. “Extremely honored to have been selected
as one of the recipients to attend SIOR world conference this spring
and looking forward to embarking on this fabulous learning
opportunity.”
“Arden has represented the
MRED program extraordinarily well during her time at Clemson University,” said
Dustin Read, MRED Program Director. She is doing everything she can to make the
most of graduate school, including building her professional network through
collaboration with prominent trade organizations such as SIOR.”
Baker Reese
Baker Reese, from Sullivan’s Island, SC, received an undergraduate
degree in financial management from Clemson University in 2023 prior to beginning
the real estate development program. After graduation, Reese is interested in industrial and
office brokerage in the southeast and desires to
leverage a background in finance and underwriting for multi-use and industrial
projects for real estate development and investment.
“I am extremely grateful for Clemson and SIOR to have the opportunity to attend an event like this,” said Reese. “I am most looking forward to shaking as many hands as possible and representing myself and Clemson to the best of my ability. I view relationships as being the cornerstone of real estate and see this opportunity as a great kick-starter to my career after graduation. I am excited for an eventful week and thank you to everyone who made this possible.”
“I’m very pleased Baker has an opportunity to participate in the SIOR Spring World Conference,” said Read. “It will provide him with additional exposure to the commercial real estate brokerage industry that is likely to prove very beneficial as he starts his career in the field. I’m sure he will make the most of the event.”
“The Carolinas Chapter of SIOR has once again demonstrated its commitment to developing the next generation of commercial real estate professionals by providing Arden and Baker financial support to attend the Spring World Conference. We can’t thank them enough for everything they do for Clemson University’s MRED program, and other real estate programs throughout the Carolinas.”
The Clemson
MRED Program is a long-standing partner of SIOR and the SIOR Foundation. The SIOR Foundation supports programs for
students interested in pursuing careers in commercial real estate, including
global and chapter-level scholarships, educational programming, and mentoring.
The
Society of Industrial and Office Realtors is the leading global professional
office and industrial real estate association. With more than 3,900 members in
49 countries, SIOR represents today’s most knowledgeable, experienced, and
successful commercial real estate brokerage specialists.
