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A Plan for a New Super Department of Real Estate at Cornell UniversityExecutive SummaryTo be jointly administered between the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business (CSCJCB) and the Collegeof Architecture, Art, and Planning (AAP), the super department in Real Estate will develop visionary realestate leaders who will tackle the most pressing societal challenges facing the industry.Context and BackgroundThe proposal to establish a super department of Real Estate reflects the findings of a comprehensive2021 self-study and review. It builds on a 30-year legacy of real estate research and teaching,particularly around the Baker Program in Real Estate, managed presently through an outdatedmemorandum of understanding between the Nolan School of Hotel Administration (in CSCJCB) and theCollege of Architecture Art and Planning (AAP). Within AAP, the Department of City and RegionalPlanning is the unit which contributes to the Baker Program in Real Estate. In creating a coredepartment at the university level in which Real Estate is the primary focus and strength of thedepartmental research and teaching, the super department will address the broader intellectualdisciplinary domain of Real Estate professional education and scholarship. The super departmentstructure will also correct organizational misalignments, enabling a more coherent configuration andallowing Cornell to expand its pedagogical focus in ways that are urgent and possible. In itsreconfiguration, the super department will attract leading global scholars in real estate research and willstrengthen Cornell’s professional real estate master’s degree program - namely, the Baker Program inReal Estate, the anchor degree program in the new department. It will also broaden professional andresearch (MS/PhD) degree programs and enhance access to existing undergraduate minors.The Vision and OpportunityIn its positioning jointly in AAP and CSCJCB, the hallmark of a real estate education at Cornell will be anintegrative vision that weaves together finance, development, and the built environment in anunprecedented way. Real estate practice is necessarily a multi-disciplinary endeavor, bringing togetherthe talents of developers, designers, financial officers, analysts, asset managers, and many others. Askey figures in the creation of the built environment, real estate professionals have incredible power andunwavering responsibility to engage with urgent and significant national and global environmental,social, and governance (ESG) concerns. Forward-thinking real estate professionals must not only beskilled in the tools and techniques of current real estate practice, but they must also be able torecognize the opportunities, possibilities, and constraints affecting their practice. No other real estateprogram in the country formally combines these disciplines as we can do within a super department ofReal Estate at Cornell.Enhancing Cornell’s Real Estate Research and Teaching LegacyThe proposal for a super department in Real Estate is the product of a review of real estate education atCornell, culminating in the completion of the Real Estate self-study in 2021. It will integrate Real Estateeffectively at Cornell, building on the two colleges’ unique expertise and strengths. Capitalizing onCornell’s niche in this field, the new super department for Real Estate will be home to the BakerProgram in Real Estate. The department will: (a) ensure Cornell can provide the richest possible appliedinstruction and opportunities to our students; (b) offer expanded industry and alumni engagement; (c)incentivize innovative collaborations; and (d) advance the larger field and the future of real estateprograms and pursuits at Cornell.
A Plan for a New Super Department of Real Estate at Cornell UniversityThe proposed super department in Real Estate at Cornell University will develop visionary real estateleaders who will tackle the most pressing societal challenges facing the industry. It will be jointlyadministered between the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business (CSCJCB) and the College ofArchitecture, Art, and Planning (AAP).This memo outlines the proposal for a new super department of Real Estate, its joint management byCSCJCB and AAP, its vision, and its proposed structure, policies, and practices. The proposal is the productof a review of real estate education at Cornell, which culminated in the completion of the Real Estate selfstudy in 2021.Responding to a global imperative for real estate research and education, the new super department willbuild on and extend Cornell’s distinct strengths in professional education, engaged learning and impactfocused scholarship. The new super department will allow Cornell to bring together disciplines at the heartof Real Estate-focused research and teaching. The top priority of the new department will be to producerobust research and teaching relevant to society, to business, and to policy and government decisionmakers. The super department will provide a platform to bring together partners across academia,industry, finance, design, and planning.Simply put, the formation of a super department of Real Estate will allow Cornell University to create aplatform to become the global thought leaders in real estate education and research, combining cuttingedge capacity and capabilities in research, teaching, and industry engagement across two leading colleges.It will integrate Real Estate effectively at Cornell, building on the two colleges’ unique expertise andstrengths. Capitalizing on Cornell’s niche in this field, the new super department for Real Estate will behome to the Baker Program in Real Estate. The department will: (a) ensure Cornell can provide the richestpossible applied instruction and opportunities to our students; (b) offer expanded industry and alumniengagement; (c) incentivize innovative collaborations; and (d) advance the larger field and the future ofreal estate programs and pursuits at Cornell.The vision and opportunityIn its positioning jointly in AAP and CSCJCB, the hallmark of a real estate education at Cornell will be anintegrative vision that weaves together finance, development, and the built environment in anunprecedented way.Real estate is a critical component of economies worldwide. Real estate holds a substantial portion of theworld’s wealth, valued four times greater than the global GDP; the combined value of residential andcommercial real estate in the United States is greater than the total stock market capitalization. Myriadactors come together in real estate markets to shape housing opportunities, land markets, bankingsystems, and the built environment. The impact of real estate on national economies as well as on1
individual households cannot be overstated. To effectively address the undeniable importance of realestate, innovative and collaborative thinking is required. The super department of real estate at Cornellorganizes the broad range of expertise of AAP and SCJCB to tackle such important issues.Real estate practice is necessarily a multidisciplinary endeavor, bringing together the talents ofdevelopers, designers, financial officers, analysts, asset managers, and many others. As key figures in thecreation of the built environment, real estate professionals have incredible power and unwaveringresponsibility to engage with urgent and significant national and global environmental, social, andgovernance (ESG) concerns. Forward-thinking real estate professionals must not only be skilled in thetools and techniques of current real estate practice, but they must also be able to recognize theopportunities, possibilities, and constraints affecting their practice. The department will enable multi- andinterdisciplinary scholars and students to weave together finance, development, asset management, andthe built environment in unprecedented ways. No other real estate program in the country formallycombines these disciplines as we can. It is this dynamic, integrated, and interdisciplinary vision that is thehallmark of real estate education at Cornell and that differentiates it from other real estate programs.No other real estate program in the country formally combines these disciplines as we can do within asuper department of Real Estate at Cornell. In its reconfiguration, the super department will attractleading global scholars in real estate research and will strengthen Cornell’s professional real estatemaster’s degree program - namely, the Baker Program in Real Estate, the anchor degree program in thenew department. It will also broaden professional and research (MS/PhD) degree programs and enhanceaccess to existing undergraduate minors. It will enable Cornell to offer the richest possible appliedinstruction and opportunities to our students. It will provide a context for cutting-edge multidisciplinaryresearch and expanded industry and alumni engagement, which advance the future of real estateprograms and pursuits at Cornell.The background and planThe proposal to establish a super department of Real Estate reflects the findings of a comprehensive 2021self-study and review. It builds on a 30-year legacy of real estate research and teaching, particularlyaround the Baker Program in Real Estate, managed presently through an out-of-date and ineffectualmemorandum of understanding between the Nolan School of Hotel Administration (in CSCJCB) and theCollege of Architecture Art and Planning (AAP). Within AAP, the Department of City and Regional Planningis the unit which contributes to the Baker Program in Real Estate.In creating a core department at the university level in which Real Estate is the primary focus and strengthof the departmental research and teaching, the super department will address the broader intellectualdisciplinary domain of Real Estate professional education and scholarship. The super departmentstructure will also correct organizational misalignments, enabling a more coherent configuration and2
allowing Cornell to expand its pedagogical focus in ways that are urgent and possible. (See the diagramon the present and proposed organizational structure in the appendix of this proposal).The establishment of a super department of Real Estate will: Create a core department where Real Estate is the primary focus and strength of the departmentfor research teaching, and engagement.Strengthen the professional master’s program as the anchor degree program in the department,a foundation on which the new department will build and its educational and teachingcontribution,Broaden undergraduate, professional, and research masters and doctoral degree programs, aswell as increase access to courses, complementary lectures, symposia, programs, and experientialopportunities.Hire dedicated core faculty (currently 22 faculty are contributing a portion of their teaching loadtoward the Baker Program in Real Estate), including 2-5 professors of practice) and other nontenure track faculty, who will substantially grow our work in the field.Connect Cornell’s programs and academic units in Ithaca and New York City - capitalizing on ourinstitutional strengths in both settings and building creative and collaborative ties amongst ourschools and scholars.Create an enhanced, robust travel program, enabling students to experience the realities andcircumstances shaping the field through domestic and international contexts and practice milieu.In sum, the super department will provide a structure for deeper and more intentional collaboration inmultidisciplinary research, teaching, and engagement with industry, policy makers, and for profit and nonprofit organizations working in the real estate terrain.Proposed Policies and Practices for the Super Department of Real EstateThe purpose of this section is to assemble various policies and practices of the new Department of RealEstate that will be ratified in the new Bylaws which will be developed in the coming year.a. Leadership PositionsA Chair will serve as the administrative and academic leader of the Department. The Deans ofthe constituent colleges will negotiate with the relevant faculty member about a reasonableterm length. In most instances the ideal term length will be 3 years, with reappointmentspermitted at the discretion of the Deans and ideally in consultation with the faculty.The Chair, in consultation with the Deans of AAP, CSCJCB and at their discretion, will appoint aProgram Director for the Baker Program in Real Estate, as well as a program oversightcommittee of faculty members that advises the Program Director. The Chair may decide to take3
on the role of Program Director if and until they decide appointing one is appropriate for theProgram.b. Faculty Membersi.Inaugural members. The deans of AAP, CSCJCB, with the support of the Vice Provost, willidentify a set of initial faculty members to serve as inaugural members of theDepartment. They will be existing tenured members of Cornell AAP and of CSCJCB’sApplied Economics & Policy Area Group who are most closely aligned in their research,teaching, and external engagement activities with the goals of the Department of RealEstate. They will retain their current faculty appointments in the respectivedepartments, area groups, and schools so their new Department appointments willrepresent joint appointments.ii.New hires. The inaugural members with the deans of AAP, CSCJCB will define newtenure-line positions that reflect the integrative vision of the Department of Real Estate.These tenure-line faculty will apply for tenure in the super department. Depending onthe hire’s individual disciplinary fit, the tenure process will be run by either by AAP orCSCJCB, a specification reflected in appointment letters.iii.Joint appointments. Joint appointments are tenure-line faculty who are members of theDepartment but with tenure homes in other units. All joint appointments are termappointments in the super department. Joint appointments have full voting rights in theDepartment, consistent with their rank. New joint appointments must be proposed bycurrent Department faculty and chair and approved by both deans. Any candidate mustbe nominated by tenured faculty in the Department. A new joint appointment has a 3year term. After 3 years, if the person would like to remain a member of theDepartment, there will be a renewal vote. The eligible voters are all tenure-line faculty,and a simple majority is required for reappointment. A renewed joint appointment has a5-year term. After 5 years, the renewal process is the same as that for the initialrenewal.iv.Additional affiliated members. The inaugural members of the Department will advisethe constituent deans on the criteria and processes toward the appointment ofaffiliated members from Cornell. Affiliated members will contribute to the mission ofthe super department as a secondary appointment. Affiliated members may deliverexpertise in research, teaching, and/or industry engagement to the super department.c. CommitteesThe Bylaws will distinguish between a standing committee that is written into the Bylaws as acommittee that is expected to be formed each year, and an ad hoc committee that is formed bythe Chair to address a particular issue within a specified term period.4
The Department will have several ongoing ad hoc committees, such as one related to theseguiding principles and Bylaws for operation, that they are expected to operate yearly for sometime. The reason to leave these as ad hoc committees as opposed to standing committees isthat it makes it easier to disband and suspend their operation if they are not effective or if theirwork is complete. If there comes a point where it makes sense to turn one of these committeesinto a standing committee, the Bylaws can be changed accordingly.d. Tenure and promotion. Members hired into the super department will have theirreappointments, tenure, and promotions go through either SCJCB or AAP. After a formalevaluation process conducted by an appropriate internal ad hoc committee, the departmentchair will make a recommendation to the respective college dean following the criteria, policies,and procedures defined by the respective college.e. Annual Evaluation of Tenure-Track, Tenured, and RTE FacultyThe Bylaws call for annual evaluations of each untenured and tenured faculty as well as RTEfaculty member. The Bylaws do not specify the specific process to be used, but they do specifythat these Departmental annual evaluations will be conducted using the same process for allsuch faculty, regardless of their college of formal HR appointment.f.Student and Other Support ServicesStudent services support, including admissions, advising, career management, diversity, equity,inclusion and belonging support, as well as for Alumni Affairs & Development, ExternalRelations, Finance, Facilities, HR, and Marketing & Communications, will be offered through oneor more of the constituent colleges by agreement of the Deans, with cost allocations to theDepartment budget approved and agreed upon by the Deans of AAP and CSCJCB.g. Accounting and BudgetingAll university accounts associated with the Department will be managed by the DepartmentChair. All tuition and costs associated with the Department, including graduate financial aid,university support pool commitments, and allocated university costs, will be the responsibility ofthe Department. Support services for Finance will be offered through one or more of theconstituent colleges by agreement of the Deans, with cost allocations to the Department budgetapproved and agreed upon by the Deans of AAP and CSCJCB.h. Administrative Support and ProcessesThe inaugural faculty will, in consultation with the department chair (upon hiring) and bothcollege deans, determine hiring priorities, recruitment practices, guidelines for promotion,5
reappointment, and tenure procedures, expectations and guidelines for joint appointments andaffiliations within department.The inaugural faculty will, in consultation with relevant HR professionals and the deans in AAPand CSCJCB, detail the leave and sabbatical policies for departmental members and adopt a setof governing bylaws for faculty engagement, rights, and responsibilities. This will include theformation of a representative EPC and faculty governance committee to ensure proper facultygovernance and control of the curriculum and program/department related matters.Proposed Timeline of Milestones for Establishing the Super Department of Real EstateThe following estimated timeline offers guidance to the Deans of the constituent colleges for the launchof the new Super Department of Real Estate.Year 1 (January 2022 – December 2022) Secure Senate and Provost/Trustee approval for super department (Spring 2022) Organize a task force as working group to establish working guidelines and bylaws for the newdepartment (Spring 2022), including processes for review of affiliated faculty across Cornell Identify inaugural members of the new super department (Spring/Summer 2022) Initiate search for inaugural chair (Summer 2022) and expect to secure successful hire by Spring2023 in time for July 1, 2023 start. Request delegation of the Baker Program from the Graduate School to the Department (Fall2022)Year 2 (2023) Assemble a committee of the inaugural members of the department to design the process tomove the 2nd year of the Baker Program in Real Estate in NYC. (Fall 2022) Initiate search for two Professors of the Practice (Spring 2023) in time to start July 1, 2024. Initiate search for second endowed, tenured professorship (Spring 2023) in time to start July 1,2024.Year 3 (2024) Develop a strategic plan to review annually Develop student support priorities and develop metrics for tracking Develop a unique differentiator element of the Master’s program Assess structure, leadership, faculty success, and department culture and make coursecorrections as necessary.6
AppendixPresent Organizational StructureProposed super department structure7
Alex M. Susskind, Ph.D.Associate Dean for Academic AffairsProfessor of Food & Beverage Mgmt.Director, Cornell Inst. for Food & BeverageMgmt.Office of the Dean146 Statler HallIthaca, NY 14853-6902T. 607.255.3692F. 607.255.8570Sha.cornell.eduCornell Peter and Stephanie NolanSchool of Hotel AdministrationCornell SC Johnson College of BusinessDecember 6, 2021Avery August, Ph.D.Vice Provost for Academic Affairs453 Day HallCornell University Ithaca, NY 14853Dear Vice Provost August,On behalf of the Real Estate Review Committee you appointed, please find the attached finaldraft of the review. The committee members endorse this report. We are happy to meet withyou to discuss the report and answer any questions you may have about its content andcomposition.Sincerely,Alex (co-chair, on behalf of the committee)CC/ccSuzanne Charles (co-chair)Jeff ChusidAlexei Tchistyi
SELF-STUDY FORMAT FOR REAL ESTATE AT CORNELLReport Assembled by Alex Susskind (co-Chair), Suzanne Lanyi Charles (co-Chair), Jeffrey Chusid, andAlexei TchistyiThe self-study is the portrait of the entirety of Real Estate at Cornell and a potential blueprint for itsfuture. It should be informative to the external reviewers, who are experts in the field, but also to internalreaders who may not be. Gathering the materials and reaching consensus on how to portray the areaand its future should be a constructive activity for members of the area. The self-study should bethorough but compact and frank, and should address the broad areas described below. Typically, theself-study also includes a number of appendices as necessary.Profile of Real Estate State the mission of the Real Estate programs, including the undergraduate minor, theBaker Program in Real Estate’s Master’s program, online programs, and research in thisarea. Provide a concise overview of the critical issues and approaches that structure thediscipline(s) or field(s) represented in the area. Explain how the structure and activitiesof Real Estate at Cornell relate to these issues and approaches.Our real estate programs at Cornell are designed to create a platform for our students to beexposed to cutting-edge teaching, research, and industry leaders (alumni) to build their careersin the real estate and hospitality industries, as well as to provide non-majors and dual-degreestudents at the graduate and undergraduate levels exposure to real-estate practices, methods,and concerns. Through our programs we attract and retain world-class faculty in the CornellPeter and Stephanie Nolan School of Hotel Administration (the Nolan School), the SC JohnsonCollege of Business (JCB), and the College of Architecture, Art and Planning (AAP),specifically the department of City and Regional Planning (CRP). We attract promisingstudents to all of our programs, and we create and maintain strong connections to industryleaders and our alumni around the world. Through our programs, in both required and electivecourses, at both the graduate and undergraduate levels, we address the elements of planningand development, feasibility, financing/deal making, construction/design, and assetmanagement.Faculty members in the Nolan School and AAP are prolific researchers addressing the areas ofboth public and private real estate, development, finance, financial modeling, feasibility, designof the built environment, and market development (spanning all types of real estate domains).In the Nolan School we produce a quarterly Real Estate Index which is used globally and throughthe Baker Program we produce the Real Estate Review annually. Both outlets demonstrate ourposition of strength in the global real estate industry.These principles apply to:1. The SHA undergraduate program (including the SHA specialization requirement, whichcan be fulfilled by the Real Estate Minor)2. The Real Estate Minor3. The MMH program4. The Baker Program in Real Estate (MPS)5. The graduate Real Estate Minor
6. Joint programs between the Baker Program and the department of City and RegionalPlanning in AAP (CRP)Real estate education is a central part of our undergraduate curriculum at the Nolan School. AllNolan School students are required to take a single course in real estate (HADM 3210) whichfollows core perquisite courses in finance (HADM 2220), accounting (HADM 1210), informationsystems (HADM 1740), development and design (HADM 2550) which lay the foundation forreal estate education. Through our Nolan School core curriculum, all students complete threecourses toward the real estate minor and are well positioned to easily complete the minor. Forother non-Nolan School students, through the business minor courses and HADM 4200, allCornell undergraduates have access to a minor in real estate. Our Masters of Management inHospitality (MMH) students can also complete the real estate minor along with their graduateprogram.In our new Executive Masters of Management in Hospitality (EMMH) program one of the twoconcentrations is in real estate and in our new Dual MBA-MMH degree with The GuanghuaBusiness School at Peking University also includes real estate instruction.We currently have a suite of eCornell courses that are used for non-degree programs andexecutive education: both in the open enrollment and custom program domains. Below is thelist of certificate programs we offer specifically in Real Estate, comprised of a total of 25 courses:In addition, we offer 32 eCornell certificate programs (through 250 courses) in hospitalitymanagement, broadly defined addressing all aspects of the industry, including accounting,finance, real estate, marketing, data analytics, operations management, food and beverage, andlodging management, leadership, and strategic management.The mission statement approved by the Graduate Real Estate Faculty (on May 15, 2014) forthe Baker Program in Real Estate (Master of Professional Studies [MPS]) follows(attached as Appendix A):BAKER GRADUATE PROGRAM IN REAL ESTATE MISSION STATEMENT:The Baker Program in Real Estate at Cornell University admits mature individuals who will leadothers in the profession. Our mission is to educate, develop, and graduate leaders who havecompleted a comprehensive two-year curriculum that combines coursework with industryexposure to deliver fundamental knowledge about all facets of real estate including an array ofadvanced analytical skills. Students are educated about real estate as the built environmentand as investible assets, which play important roles in the international economy and insocietal institutions. The Baker Real Estate Program is the premier education opportunity of itskind in the world, built on a long-standing commitment to maintaining a large resident facultyand an interdisciplinary curriculum with access to an extensive set of courses in traditional andemerging areas of study.
Describe the organization of Real Estate at Cornell including its presence in schools,colleges and/or departments. Call attention to any past conditions or events that arecritical to understanding its current organization.Currently, the Baker Program is managed administratively by the Nolan School. Nolan AssociateDean for Academic Affairs works closely with the Chair of CRP to ensure the program is staffedand functions well.Within the Nolan School real estate is present across all of our degree programs. Currently wehave 10 full-time faculty members in the real estate area in the Nolan School (six tenured ortenure-track, four RTE).Nolan School faculty teach required and elective courses in our B.S. program, in the Baker MPSprogram, in the EMMH program, in the Guanghua-Cornell dual MMH-MBA degree program, andfor the real estate minor. Furthermore, the faculty teach elective courses that serve theresidential MMH and MBA students interested real estate.The Nolan School used to also support a three-year dual MBA-Baker degree. At the momentwe are no longer taking students in this capacity, due to complications with the scheduling ofprerequisites in both programs.The College of Architecture, Art and Planning has played an important role in the Baker Programsince its founding. Initially, AAP was one of five colleges/schools that governed the program,which was officially housed in the office of the provost. Along with the Nolan School, AAPbecame one of two parents to the program when the provost’s office relinquished direct controlof these types of programs. Today, there are two faculty lines in the department that are directlytied to the Baker program, one tenured and one long-term faculty member. The department ofCity and Regional Planning offers 17 courses that are part of the Baker Program in Real Estatecurriculum, along with several others that fulfill requirements. These courses are taught by thetwo dedicated faculty members, by at least three other regular CRP faculty, and by adjunctfaculty hired by the department. Approximately half of these courses are also taken by studentsin CRP or other departments outside the Nolan School. The graduate field of Real Estateincludes at least six CRP faculty.In addition, there is an active MRP-MPS dual degree--a three-year program. CRP students canalso pursue the graduate minor in real estate, and real estate students can pursue graduateminors in city and regional planning or historic preservation planning.Baker Program in Real Estate students participate in a number of multi-disciplinary creditbearing workshops offered by CRP, such as the ULI Hines Urban Design Competition or DesignConnect, which bring them into productive collaborations with urban planning architecture, andlandscape architecture students. Describe the major areas of scholarly concentration (within and across the disciplines)represented in Real Estate. Call attention to any past conditions or events that are criticalto understanding the present situation and future development.Students in the Baker Program in Real Estate are required to choose one of five academic
A Plan for a New Super Department of Real Estate at Cornell University Executive Summary To be jointly administered between the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business (CSCJCB) and the College of Architecture, Art, and Planning (AAP), the super department in Real Estate will develop visionary real . hallmark of real estate education at Cornell .
