Morehouse Institute of Real Estate is Shaping Tomorrow’s Industry Leaders

This is the ninth in a series of profiles about the Nareit Foundation’s DTD 2025 grantees and grant program. The grant program falls under the Foundation’s DTD initiative, which focuses on increasing the visibility, awareness, and appeal of the REIT industry to more businesses, workforce talent, and communities. There are three priority areas: supporting pipeline/talent development, expanding procurement and business development, and helping everyday investors understand REITs and how to invest in them.

In 2025, The Nareit Foundation awarded grants to nine nonprofit organizations. This article spotlights the Morehouse Real Estate Institute (Institute) and how it supports the DTD initiative’s goal of helping REITs build and sustain a strong pipeline of talent. The Institute aims to introduce new individuals and leaders with fresh ideas, creativity, and innovation to commercial real estate (CRE) and REITs.

Creating Opportunity in Real Estate

Real estate is the world's largest asset class, playing a key role in building wealth and strengthening communities. However, Black men remain vastly underrepresented in the industry, particularly at the executive level. Less than 2% of CRE executives are Black males, with only 5% of brokers, and 10% of all real estate professionals identifying as Black, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Recognizing an opportunity to address this labor gap, Morehouse College in Southwest Atlanta—the nation’s only historically Black liberal arts college focused on educating and developing men—established the Morehouse Real Estate Institute in 2023. This new center of excellence is one of the cornerstones of the college’s $500 million “Making Men of Consequence” campaign. The comprehensive campaign’s mission is to expand scholarship opportunities, attract new faculty, fund research, build the Campus of the Future, and provide resources for the launch of creative hubs like the Institute. The Morehouse Real Estate Institute is dedicated to educating and inspiring rising Morehouse Men to become leaders in the sector.

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The program is also open to students from other colleges and universities within the Atlanta University Center, including Spelman College and Clark Atlanta University. Hodan Hassan, vice president of the Office of Institutional Advancement and chief advancement officer at Morehouse, emphasizes that funding this initiative is essential for rising Morehouse Men to break through systemic barriers, preparing them not only to access the real estate industry, but also to help shape its future.

“We are deeply grateful for Nareit’s generous grant, which is providing the critical resources our students need to gain early exposure to the commercial real estate industry,” Hassan says. “This support empowers Morehouse to cultivate a strong pipeline of exceptional leaders, entrepreneurs, and innovators who are dedicated to advancing diversity and equity in the field. Their influence will open doors to expanded employment opportunities for people of color—as agents, mortgage brokers, developers, and property owners—in a multibillion-dollar industry where representation truly matters.”

Making Real Estate a Real Career Option

Morehouse College’s Business and Economics Division has long been a proven pipeline to lucrative careers on Wall Street in the accounting, venture capital, banking and investment industries. Traditionally, real estate wasn’t considered as an entrepreneurial career path by many students. This view stemmed from not knowing many Black professionals working as agents and brokers in the field or in key management positions in the industry. Additionally, limited access to funding for real estate acquisitions and fewer recruitment opportunities available for real estate jobs in their communities made it even more challenging to enter the field.

Morehouse is committed to rewriting that story.

“With support from Nareit, the Morehouse Real Estate Institute becomes a catalyst for economic mobility. Our students will not merely study real estate, they will shape it,” explains SherRhonda R. Gibbs, dean of the Division of Business and Economics.

Through strong academic coursework, internships, mentors, and direct partnerships with industry leaders, the Morehouse Real Estate Institute is preparing students to become leaders in real estate who can bring job opportunities and commercial and residential development initiatives to their communities.

“This investment ensures our students are prepared to lead the commercial real estate sector with purpose, vision, and impact,” Gibbs adds. “They will develop the expertise to redevelop communities, build assets that endure, and drive inclusive prosperity. We are so very grateful to Nareit for this transformative gift.”

The Nareit Foundation’s Critical Role

Strong support from organizations like the Nareit Foundation, Prologis, Inc. (NYSE: PVD) and other REITs, affordable housing developer Dominium, and real estate groups, is essential to the program’s success. Hassan says the Nareit Foundation’s grant comes at a pivotal time, enabling Morehouse to further strengthen the Institute’s foundation.

The grant is designed to be flexible, allowing Morehouse to strategically use the funding to address emerging needs including infrastructure improvements, outreach seminars, and scholarships. This flexibility also means Morehouse can address immediate needs, such as hiring new faculty, including an endowed chair and an executive director with both academic and real estate expertise.

Recently, the Institute launched outreach seminars for students and the community to raise awareness about real estate education and career opportunities that they may not have known existed. The seminar series included Hines and the RMR Group, among others. In addition, the Institute created a new advisory board comprising business leaders and accomplished alumni in the real estate field. Hassan says this initiative will further strengthen the connection between academic instruction and the real estate industry.

The Power of Industry Collaboration

As this initiative gains momentum, Ayris T. Scales, Nareit’s senior vice president of social responsibility and global initiatives, highlights the broader significance of the partnership.

“This partnership is a powerful example of what happens when the industry comes together,” she says. “By pooling resources and vision, we’re not just funding education—we’re creating a collaborative investment in talent, leadership, and the long-term competitiveness of the real estate sector.”

Scales further emphasizes the importance of supporting the Institute.

“We’re not waiting for change—we’re creating it,” she points out. “When the industry invests collectively, we don’t just open doors, we build new ones. This partnership with Morehouse demonstrates what’s possible when vision meets action.”

Morehouse’s Hassan is grateful for the Nareit Foundation’s support. “We’re excited for the partnership and grant, and it couldn’t be more timely,” she says. “This partnership means more than just funding; it’s helping us build something lasting.”

Interest is High

In just the last two years, 162 students have participated in the program. “As it continues to expand and mature, I’m really looking forward to seeing how many more students we will reach and how their perspectives and career choices will evolve as a result,” says Hassan. What excites me most is the opportunity to introduce our students to the world of real estate, giving them the chance to learn and innovate in this sector.”

Hassan is continually inspired by the potential and drive of the program’s rising Morehouse Men, a name the College bestows on its students that connects them with Morehouse’s legacy of excellence in producing men of distinction and integrity who rise as leaders in every sector, from business and politics to entertainment.

“It’s really one of the main reasons why I joined Morehouse two years ago,” she explains. “There is academic excellence. The students are committed to service. They are proud young men.”

Hassan says top employers actively and consistently recruit Morehouse College graduates, noting that 83% of students secure employment before graduation. She says this is strong evidence of the talent and preparedness of Morehouse students, who are well-equipped to thrive across a range of professional fields including medicine, engineering, business, civil service, and now real estate.

For Hassan, the achievements of Morehouse alumni are a powerful testament to the College’s lasting influence. “When I see what our recent graduates have achieved in just over the past five or 10 years, it truly speaks to what Morehouse has been building for more than 158 years,” she adds.

Looking Ahead

The Institute’s goals for the coming few years are clear: boost student enrollment in real estate programs, expand its curriculum, increase internships and job placements, raise representation in leadership roles, lead research on diversity and inclusion, and strengthen alumni and community engagement. The Nareit Foundation, REITs, additional industry partners, and alumni are crucial for this vision.

“Support truly matters,” Hassan says. “Our students are talented, and they’re ready to lead.”