Student Success Stories

Khalilah on the far left with fellow scholarship recipients and sponors at the UM/ULI Real Estate Forum award ceremony.
Khalilah Burt, MUP'08: In November of 2007, the University of Michigan/Urban Land Institute Real Estate Forum awarded Khalilah a $2,000 scholarship funded by the Detroit chapter of Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW). CREW Detroit is a professional organization aimed at advancing the success of women in commercial real estate. In Khalilah's own words, "The opportunity to meet these women and form professional connections was invaluable as I begin the next phase of my career in Detroit."

Scott Curry, MUP'09: Though it was his first entry after years of involvement with the American Planning Association (APA) Scott was named winner of the APA Urban Design and Preservation Division's 2007 national writing contest. His essay, focused on elevating urban design in the field of planning, won him free airfare and accomodation to this year's APA national conference in Las Vegas. Scott has been subsequently invited by the Division Chair to act as student representative on their curriculum committee and has been able to exchange ideas with long standing professionals in the field. He looks forward to working with those he meets following his graduation with an MUP concentrated on Physical Planning and Design.

Michelle Elder, MUP'08: In early 2008, Michelle began work with the Multi-Housing Investment Properties group at CB Richard Ellis in Southfield, Michigan. As a commercial real estate broker, her main responsibilities include underwriting, overseeing market analysis, managing the due diligence process, and business development. Michelle was offered the position after her participation in a week long Spring Break Internship with the firm, arranged by the Urban and Regional Planning Program. Having earned both the MUP and the Real Estate Certificate at Michigan, Michelle hopes to use her interdisciplinary skill set to promote responsible real estate development in SE Michigan.

Monica during a mapping exercise of Medellin, Colombia and the greater metro-area.
Monica Guerra, MUP'08: During the summer of 2007, Monica received funding from the URP travel grant and the U-M International Institute Individual Fellowship for a summer internship. She worked as a research assistant with the Territorial Studies Group at the Universidad Pontificia Bolviariana (Medellin, Colombia) for three months. During winter 2008, Monica returned to Colombia with funding from the Rackham Graduate Student Research Group to complete research for her master's thesis.

A village railway station in Madagascar.
Melissa Munsell, MUP'09: Melissa will research the potential uses of bio-fuels in Madagascar with URP Faculty, Ph.D. students, and independant consultants during the summer of 2008. While there, the group will conduct research through surveys and observational appraisal, working with students in Madagascar to launch a pilot bio-fuel press. The research is being funded by the U-M International Institute and the Urban and Regional Planning Program. Melissa plans to continue investigating the potential use of bio-fuels as a sustainable crop and energy source in developing countries throughout her academic and professional careers. For more info see: sitemaker.umich.edu/madagascarbiofuel/home

Erin Schumacher, MUP'08: Erin won the 2007 CoreNet Michigan Chapter Scholarship: $2,000 awarded annually to support a student in full-time study of a real estate related discipline. In her innovative winning essay, Erin focused on the incorporation of sustainability in real estate through brownfield development. The award has given her not only a tangible sense of academic achievement, but also a number of invaluable contacts in the real estate profession to use after graduation.