Morehouse College, the nation’s only historically Black liberal arts institution dedicated to educating and developing men, has received a $3 million gift from Prologis, the global leader in logistics real estate, to create an endowed fund that will expand opportunities for students of color to study real estate and prepare for lucrative careers with top firms in the industry. The Prologis Endowment will help to support academic programs and research launched by the new Morehouse Real Estate Institute.
The Institute was developed by the Morehouse Division of Business and Economics to prepare rising Morehouse Men and Atlanta University Center students to maximize their potential for growth, entrepreneurship, and financial prosperity in the $47 trillion U.S. housing market and the $21 trillion commercial real estate market. The Institute also aims to improve diversity within the ranks of management in the real estate industry, a sector in which racial representation for people of color has been lagging for decades.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 10 percent of real estate professionals are Black and 82 percent are White. For real estate brokers, who are typically higher paid and have other agents working under them, the gap widens to 5 percent for Black brokers. In commercial real estate management, less than 2 percent of C-level positions are held by Black males and 75 percent of executives in the industry are White men.
Prologis, which has a portfolio or more than 1.2 billion square feet of logistics real estate in 19 countries, is actively working to improve diversity within the industrial industry and its workforce. The firm’s corporate values and DEIB initiatives align with Morehouse’s mission and focus on excellence, leadership, service, and social justice. Through its Essentials platform, which includes energy, EV workforce and operations, Prologis is reshaping the conventional landscape of industrial real estate.
“We are excited to partner with Morehouse College in the creation of its Real Estate Institute,” said Hamid R. Moghadam, Prologis co-founder, chairman and CEO. “We take our leadership role in this industry seriously and believe that this collaboration will help cultivate a diverse pool of talent to the benefit of the entire commercial real estate industry.”
Morehouse, which educates more than 2,300 students annually, is one of the only HBCUs to have an accredited and nationally acclaimed business program. The College is a top-feeder school for Black men entering top-ranked MBA programs, as well as managerial and executive positions in business.
The Morehouse Real Estate Institute will expand access to career pathways within the Division of Business and Economics Division. The new real estate classes, which will be available in 2024, will be open to all Atlanta University Students, which includes underrepresented students of color at Morehouse, Spelman College, and Clark Atlanta University. The Institute’s students will study the fundamentals of real estate and learn about the benefits of investing in commercial and residential properties to build wealth. The Institute will also serve as a pipeline for internships, entrepreneurship, and social change in the industry.
Morehouse President David A. Thomas, Ph.D., said that Morehouse’s alliance with Prologis is a partnership of purpose that will positively impact the real estate industry.
"On behalf of Morehouse College and the Board of Trustees, I’d like to thank the Prologis Foundation for investing in the Morehouse Real Estate Institute and helping the college to expand its academic pathways into growth industries," Thomas said. "This partnership with Prologis is an important step toward improving diversity in commercial real estate ownership and leadership. The Morehouse Real Estate Institute will become a talent pipeline that will prepare rising Morehouse Men and Atlanta University Center students to compete for top jobs as future real estate agents, brokers, executives, and entrepreneurs."
As the national epicenter for thought leadership on social justice issues, Morehouse is committed to creating academic pathways that increase access to careers for students and diversify industries that have been impacted by institutional racism that has slowed progress for people of color.
“We are grateful to Prologis for its investment in the future of rising Morehouse Men,” adds Hodan Hassan, Vice President of Advancement at Morehouse College. “We are looking forward to creating a strong and long-term partnership that will help grow diversity in the real estate industry and increase equity within the ranks of management and ownership.”