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Over the past 25 years, Project REAP – the Real Estate Associate Program, has sought to increase diversity in the commercial real estate industry and encourage mid-career transitions for people of color in other fields.
A survey of the career academy’s alumni confirmed that many have secured jobs and achieved significant career advancement and pay raises after graduating.
“We are the place you go to find that top-tier talent of color,” said Manikka Bowman, Project REAP’s executive director.
In the first comprehensive assessment of the program’s impact, Boston-based Rivera Consulting recently surveyed 1,700 Project REAP graduates and received 270 responses.
Among the key takeaways: more than half reported significant career advancement after graduating, and 46 percent of those earning at least $100,000 reported significant salary increases. More than a third were promoted to senior or executive roles.
When Bowman was named REAP’s executive director in early 2022, she was given the assignment of adding a virtual component to its existing in-person programs that introduce professionals to careers in the industry.
That provided an opportunity to expand into Boston, where nine people have participated in a virtual program. Local REAP alumni include Milton Baptista, a vice president at Northmarq, and Taneishia Nash Laird, CEO of the Greater Roxbury Arts & Cultural Center.
Now consisting of a seven-week virtual course and three weeks of in-person programs, the career academy introduces participants to all phases of the industry, from property management and development to financing.
Many of the academy’s participants transition from residential real estate or professional sports backgrounds, Bowman said.
Locally, Boston’s commercial real estate industry has diversified as a result of minority- and women-owned business participation requirements in publicly-sponsored projects, prompting developers to include MBE’s in project teams, Bowman noted. But the industry still fails to reflect the diversity of the surrounding community, particularly in leadership roles.
“When you look at the companies in Boston, there’s not a ton of people of color at the intermediate levels or the C suites,” said Bowman, a former executive at the Urban Land Institute Boston/New England.
