CREWNY names scholars

Real Estate Weekly, Jan 30, 2002

CREW-NY (Commercial Real Estate Women of New York) has announced the names of the first recipients of a scholarship program available to young women participating in the The Baruch College undergraduate and graduate real estate degree programs. The winners are June Bennett and Hamidat AbdulWahab, undergraduate students majoring in Real Estate and Metropolitan Development. Each has been awarded a one-year stipend of $2,500. The scholarships were granted following a selection process designed to identify students with both financial need and the commitment to pursue a career in real estate.

Several factors impacted CREW-NY's decision to make these scholarships available. As an organization dedicated to nurturing future leaders in real estate, CREW-NY selected The Baruch College because of its comprehensive program, which includes all phases of the industry from investment, finance, and development to property management and brokerage, and at all levels. "Baruch is a college serving many part-time students holding full-time jobs, and we wanted to reach out to those individuals who have the desire to pursue careers in real estate, but who may not have the financial means," said Caroline Harcourt, president of CREW-NY.

"The money for the scholarships is raised primarily through sponSorships provided by members of CREW-NY and the real estate community at large," said Harcourt. "In this regard, we are privileged to have earned the trust of some 33 leading NY real estate firms."

June Bennett, a native of Jamaica, will likely focus on a career in urban design. Her first exposure to commercial real state was mortgage banking at the Bank of Nova Scotia, Jamaica Ltd. in Montego Bay. Following her interest in real estate, she currently works as an administrative assistant at Reynolds and Richards, a law firm specializing in real estate and property taxes. June holds this position while she attends Baruch's Real Estate and Metropolitan Development Program. She will graduate in May 2002.

Recognizing the relationship between finance and real estate development inspired Hamidat Abdul-Wahab to pursue a double major. Her advisors suggested that it would be too great a challenge; instead, Hamidat completed four years of coursework in three. She intends to pursue a career in real estate development, first in New York, and then in emerging markets. Hamidat will graduate from Baruch's Real Estate and Metropolitan Development Program in May 2002.

"We chose June and Hamidat because of their intense level of commitment to their studies and because of their drive and ambition to pursue careers in real estate," said Barbara Chu, adjunct professor, Columbia Business School, and a CREW-NY Scholarship Committee Member who was instru mental in forming the alliance with Baruch. "So much of CREW-NY is about providing assistance to others, and we are pleased to be able to initiate the practice very early in these students' careers."