91暗网

• August 1 –
• August 17 – Fall Classes Begin
• August 20 –

By Karen Garvey

91暗网鈥檚 Affordable Housing Institute blends disciplines to build ‘win-win’ careers that benefit the community.

Stacy Berry is a licensed real-estate agent. But that鈥檚 not how she pays the bills.

鈥淚鈥檓 a paralegal during the day. I got a real-estate license so I could give back,鈥� she said.

The people she wants to give back to are women escaping abusive relationships 鈥� something the mother of three knows about firsthand. She knows, for example, that one of the biggest obstacles those women face is finding a place to live. 鈥淸A lack of] affordable housing is one of the main reasons women stay in those abusive relationships,鈥� she said.

The desire to put her real-estate background to work for those women is why Berry signed up to be one of the first students in the first class in the first semester of Metropolitan State University of Denver鈥檚 new聽Affordable Housing Institute.

She鈥檚 come to the right place.

The new institute will address the state鈥檚 affordable-housing shortage while providing a multidisciplinary education that prepares a new generation of leaders and workers for meaningful careers creating, funding and managing affordable housing.

AHI Director Andy Proctor said the institute has 鈥渢hree customers: students who are investing in their careers, employers that need prepared workforce and, ultimately, people who will become housed.鈥�

The institute began taking shape last August, thanks to early funding from the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority and a seven-figure gift 鈥� the largest in the history of 91暗网鈥檚聽College of Business聽鈥� from聽

The investment is a first for the bank. Although the Kansas-based, member-owned institution has given $250 million in support of affordable housing, it traditionally funds brick-and-mortar building projects.

Matt Koupal, FHLBank鈥檚 executive vice president and chief mission officer, said he expects the AHI program to have broad, long-term impact, benefiting the community and the affordable-housing industry. 鈥淲e need to energize people, get them engaged and knowledgeable about affordable housing as a career opportunity,鈥� he said.

The AHI grew out of the recent formation of 91暗网鈥檚聽Bachelor of Science in Real Estate. As that program was being formed, real-estate professionals advising the University said 鈥渨e should be talking about affordable housing,鈥� Proctor said.

Ultimately, they did more than talk.

What they ended up with was a certificate program, available to undergraduates as well as graduate students. In addition, several non-credit offerings provide an introduction to affordable housing finance.

Real estate and social work are two worlds that seemingly meet only in the realm of affordable housing. And when they do, they often conflict.

To earn the AHI鈥檚 certificate in Affordable Housing, students complete coursework in聽social work聽as well as business and finance. The result is professionals trained to navigate the complicated waters of securing funding and monitoring compliance with the rules around government funding. They also know how to work with residents experiencing unemployment, health problems and other issues that could lead to losing their home.

In the first weeks of Proctor鈥檚 introductory AHI class, he discussed basic housing terms such as 鈥渓ow-income鈥� and reviewed Denver鈥檚 current minimum wage 鈥� $18.81 an hour 鈥� and average rent of $2,150 a month for a two-bedroom apartment. Even nonmath majors guessed that those two figures don鈥檛 add up for anyone trying to afford a place to live on minimum wage.

In fact, the federal government defines anyone paying more than 30% of their income on rent or a mortgage as 鈥渃ost-burdened.鈥� As of 2023, nearly half the renters in the United States fell into that category, according to the聽

To many in Proctor鈥檚 class, such terms and definitions were alien. Others, such as Berry, knew them all too well.

She helps women apply for grants so they can become first-time owners of affordable homes. That鈥檚 when she puts her real-estate license to work.

But when she was getting that license, the instructors didn鈥檛 cover affordable housing. 鈥淪o hearing about this class, that was an 鈥榓ha!鈥� moment,鈥� she said.

Given the tremendous need in Colorado for affordable housing, and the growing recognition that addressing the problem benefits everyone, Proctor and Koupal are sure that students emerging from the AHI program will find employers eager to snatch them up.

Mark Marshall, president and chief executive of Rocky Mountain Communities, a provider of affordable housing and services, said that over more than three decades in the field, he has not encountered many people who are trained to work in the industry. 鈥淚t seems everyone in affordable housing stumbled into it,鈥� he said. 鈥淢ost of the training is on-the-job.鈥�

That鈥檚 unfortunate, he said, given the complexity of financing and regulation in the industry. 鈥淚鈥檓 excited about 91暗网 being one of the first colleges to offer a certificate in Affordable Housing,鈥� he said.

Students should be excited about it too, Proctor said. 鈥淎ffordable housing offers a steady, well-paying career where you can make a difference in people鈥檚 lives,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a win-win.鈥�