Venture Commercial endows Undergraduate Real Estate Award at SMU Cox School of Business

DALLAS (SMU) – Venture Commercial Real Estate today announced it has endowed the creation of the Venture Commercial Undergraduate Real Estate Award through the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) Foundation to support Southern Methodist University undergraduate students at the Cox School of Business for at least the next 20 years. Each year, this endowed fund will award $2,000 to a deserving undergraduate student studying real estate or a related field.

In fall 2015, officials with the Folsom Institute for Real Estate in the SMU Cox School of Business will select the inaugural award recipient, based on overall academic and extracurricular involvement.

“We are thrilled by Venture Commercial’s gift to the ICSC Foundation that will support SMU Cox students interested in pursuing a career in real estate for years to come,” said Joseph Cahoon, Director of the Robert and Margaret Folsom Institute for Real Estate at SMU Cox.  “It is a pure example of how the generosity of others can have a direct impact on training the leaders of tomorrow in the commercial real estate industry.” 

“Many of D-FW’s top commercial real estate professionals attended SMU, and we have quite a few alumni here at Venture, including myself,” said Mike Geisler, co-founder and managing partner of Venture Commercial. “We are proud to partner with the ICSC Foundation to invest in young talent attending this nationally ranked university, as we strive to train, develop and equip them to excel in the field of real estate and in life.”

More details will be announced once the recipient of the 2015-2016 award is selected in the fall.

About SMU Cox

The Cox School of Business (cox.smu.edu), originally established in Dallas in 1920 on the campus of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, and was named in honor of benefactor Edwin L. Cox in 1978. SMU Cox offers a full range of highly-ranked undergraduate and graduate business education programs:  BBA, Full-Time MBA, Fast Track MBA, Professional MBA (PMBA), Executive MBA (EMBA), JD/MBA, MA/MBA, Master of Science (MS) in Accounting, MS in Business Analytics, MS in Finance, MS in Management, MS in Sport Management, as well as Executive Education and multiple certificate programs. The school also offers a number of unique resources and activities for students, including the Business Leadership Center (BLC); the Caruth Institute for Entrepreneurship; the Folsom Institute for Real Estate; the Maguire Energy Institute; the Global Leadership Program; and the Associate Board Executive Mentoring Program, as well as an international alumni network with chapters in more than 20 countries.

About The ICSC Foundation

The ICSC Foundation promotes and rewards community support efforts and provides undergraduate, graduate-level and retail real estate practitioners with educational scholarships.  The Community Support Award program is designed to promote and recognize exceptional contributions by shopping centers or shopping center companies to their communities.  Established in 1988, the ICSC Foundation is the non-profit public charity arm of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC).

Founded in 1957, ICSC is the premier global trade association of the shopping center industry. Its more than 70,000 members in over 100 countries include shopping center owners, developers, managers, marketing specialists, investors, retailers and brokers, as well as academic and public officials.

About Venture Commercial

Venture Commercial Real Estate, celebrating 15 years, is recognized as a leader in retail brokerage services throughout Texas for its dedication to each client’s success. The company’s full-service real estate platform includes landlord and tenant representation, property management, land sales, disposition and income property sales. Venture also provides strategic market planning and site selection for restaurant and entertainment clients through its Venturetainment team. Venture is the D-FW partner of X Team International, a network of retail real estate advisors with expertise across the U.S., Canada and Europe. For more information visit venturedfw.com.

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For more information contact:

Sherry Yeaman, for Venture Commercial
214-725-4315
sherry@my2hq.com

Anna Martinez, for SMU Cox School of Business
214-768-4474
annam@cox.smu.edu