The Goldie Initiative names Megan R. Abraham as chief executive officer

Abraham will focus on promoting mentorship for women in the commercial real estate industry

CHICAGO, Ill. - March 21 - The Goldie B. Wolfe Miller Women Leaders in Real Estate Initiative recently announced that Megan Roth Abraham, former executive director at The Goldie Initiative from 2016-2020, has been appointed as the organization's first chief executive officer. The Goldie Initiative, a nonprofit organization, is designed to prepare women for senior leadership roles in all sectors of commercial real estate,

An entrepreneurial non-profit builder and executive based in Chicago, Ms. Abraham has made a career as a leader in nonprofits and associations to expand and scale. She most recently served as the Chief Advancement Officer of JCC Chicago, and her experience includes roles at the National Association of Realtors, the International Real Property Foundation, the International Consortium of Real Estate Associations, and other organizations. She also serves on faculty at Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership.

"We are delighted to have Megan back at The Goldie Initiative," said Goldie B. Wolfe Miller, founder, chair and president at The Goldie Initiative. "When she first joined our team in 2016, we had partnerships with just five schools. Megan not only helped us expand into the 18 schools we currently serve nationwide, but she was also instrumental in helping us to launch our now annual Goldie Gala event. I am thrilled to have her back at the helm, now as CEO."

The Goldie Initiative was founded by Ms. Wolfe Miller in 2007 to provide scholarship support for graduate study, as well as a suite of mentorship, leadership development, and networking opportunities for the Goldie Scholars, women in commercial real estate carefully selected for their potential as future industry trailblazers. To date, The Goldie Initiative has supported nearly 150 Goldie Scholars at 18 graduate schools nationwide, including the University of Wisconsin, Roosevelt University, Georgetown, the University of Chicago, DePaul University and New York University, to name a few (see full list below). In 2022, the organization's sixth annual 'Goldie Gala' raised more than $1 million for the Goldie Scholars program, drawing on support from over 180 commercial real estate firms and nonprofit organizations.

In her new role as CEO of The Goldie Initiative, Ms. Abraham will lead the charge to shape the next generation of commercial real estate leaders by expanding opportunities for mentorship, providing unique and impactful career development activities, and awarding generous scholarships at esteemed graduate school programs nationwide.

"I am eager to get back to the important work of advancing and elevating female leaders, which is at the heart of our mission at The Goldie Initiative. Since pandemic-related shutdowns forced many women to make challenging decisions about their careers, I have become even more enthusiastic about our organization's role in preparing our young leaders to face the new realities of a career in real estate. I am honored to support our talented Goldie Scholars, real estate industry mentors, accomplished alumnae, and committed board members and dedicated staff to shape the future of the real estate industry," said Ms. Abraham. "I have always had a deep passion for helping women, and I feel it is an especially important mission today. Thanks to the incredible support of the commercial real estate industry, The Goldie Initiative is poised for strategic growth and expansion. I look forward to my role in bringing the organization to the next level."

CRE professionals interested in helping achieve the mission of The Goldie Initiative can get involved in multiple ways, including as a mentor via the organization's innovative mentorship program (goldieinitiative.org/mentor-program/).

Additionally, scholarship applications for the 2023 class of Goldie Scholars will be open from April 1 to June 4. More information on qualifying to become a Goldie Scholar is available at goldieinitiative.org/scholarship/.

About The Goldie Initiative

Founded by iconic commercial real estate broker Goldie B. Wolfe Miller in 2007, the mission of the Goldie B. Wolfe Miller Women Leaders in Real Estate® Initiative ("The Goldie Initiative®") is to prepare women for senior leadership roles in all sectors of commercial real estate. The Goldie Initiative does this by providing scholarship support for graduate study, mentorship, and networking opportunities to women with high potential who are committed to becoming leaders in the real estate industry.

Goldie scholars attend top graduate schools across North America. Schools participating to-date include:

• Chicago-Kent College of Law

• Columbia University

• Cornell University

• DePaul University

• Georgetown University

• Loyola University Chicago

• Marquette University

• New York University

• Northeastern Illinois University

• Northwestern University

• Roosevelt University

• The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania

• University of Chicago

• University of Illinois, Chicago

• University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

• University of Michigan

• University of Notre Dame

• University of Wisconsin-Madison

For further information about The Goldie Initiative, visit goldieinitiative.org.