Students from the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School Master of Science in Real Estate and Infrastructure degree program recently took first place in the annual NAIOP Maryland/D.C. Capital Challenge.
Teams from various universities in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area competed in the case competition to tackle "real life" real estate development or redevelopment projects. This year's challenge examined proposals to redevelop Pike 7 Plaza, a 164,000-square-foot shopping center on 12.8 acres adjacent to the Greensboro Metro Station in Tysons Corner, Va. Each team was asked to come up with an investment strategy and develop a comprehensive plan to maximize the potential of the property.
The competition was held March 30, and the final public presentation and awards took place April 17 in Washington.
The Johns Hopkins team included students from both the full-time and part-time programs in real estate and infrastructure. Participating in the competition were Colleen Callahan, Victoria Fitch, Kevin Kagan, Kyle Kendziuk, Max Kiejdan, Kimberly Kohlhepp, Zachary Linsky, Robbie Lynn, Tyler Mathews, Elizabeth Runge, Jonathan Ryan, Geoffrey Shudtz and Lu (Elaine) Tao.
The team also worked with consultants from WDG Architecture, Transwestern, VIKA, Davis Construction, Boston Properties, and U.S. Bank to develop the winning proposal.
The winners shared a $10,000 scholarship prize.
"I am very proud of our students. They did an excellent job in evaluating the case and making a strong presentation," said Daniel B. Kohlhepp, academic program director of the Edward St. John Real Estate Program at the Carey Business School. "The NAIOP challenge is a great opportunity for our students to interact with top professionals. It provides a real-world experience that makes our real estate students think critically, plan strategically, and perform under pressure. They beat some very good teams from the other real estate programs. It was an excellent competition."
The multidisciplinary curriculum of the Edward St. John Real Estate Program provides students with a foundation to thrive and survive in the broad range of real estate activities including development, finance, brokerage, investment, and portfolio management. NAIOP, the Commercial Real Estate Development Association, is the leading organization for developers, owners, and related professionals in office, industrial, retail, and mixed-use real estate.
Posted in Politics+Society
Tagged business, real estate
