Firms, schools, and nonprofits seek to introduce real estate industry to high school youth

Dixon visits high schools to talk to students about real estate careers. The Marshall Bennett Institute, which offers both undergraduate and graduate programs in real estate, has hosted the Real Estate Exchange (REEX) Summer Program, a two-week residential program for current high school juniors that exposes them to commercial real estate. Pangea Real Estate, a real estate investment and management company with 13,000-plus apartments and townhouses in Chicago, Indianapolis and Baltimore, hosts paid internships for high school juniors and seniors through its Foundations program. For six weeks during the summer, interns rotate between Pangea’s downtown headquarters, contract center and neighborhood offices picking up knowledge from various departments while also working on their life skills like interviewing, resumes and LinkedIn profiles. Pangea also partners with Chicago Hope Academy, on the Near West Side, to share information about real estate as a career and mentoring.