Power of Diversity Collaboration Event Starts Discussions

Over 40 people gathered Wednesday, November 19, for the opening discussions between REALTORS® and REALTISTS® on “The Power of Diversity: Collaboration with the National Association of Real Estate Brokers and Tri-County Suburban REALTORS®.

The event featured a panel of representatives from both Tri-County Suburban and the Philadelphia Metropolitan Board of REALTISTS®, the local chapter of the National Association of Real Estate Brokers. It also allowed attendees to share their own experiences and thoughts as related to diversity, equity and inclusion in real estate.

The event was the launch of the diversity collaboration between the two organizations to help from the conversation on diversity and inclusion and to build relationships across the two associations. Members of the panel shared their personal stories in the business along with a history of the National Association of Real Estate Brokers.

“We have to understand how we got here, and we have to ask how we’re going to move forward,” said Michael Howell, adding “Diversity and Inclusion make a healthier organization. Howell is the chair of the Diversity & Inclusion Committee for Tri-County Suburban and a continuing education instructor on the topic.

During the discussion, panelists noted that the discussion is a great start, but it is important to keep the conversation growing. “The question is what we are doing when we leave this room,” said Annette Collier, first vice president for the Philadelphia Metropolitan Board of Realtists.

While this was the first collaboration between the two organization, it was not the first event on diversity and inclusion for Tri-County Suburban. Over the last year, the association has hosted several virtual events on the topic. All recordings and additional resources are available on the website.