BOARD PERSPECTIVE
BY MARK WILLIAMS , EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT
Aligning Philanthropic & Business Goals
When we can marry helping people philanthropically and helping people through our business goals it ’ s a win win proposition . Over the past few months AAMD has launched new partnerships with organizations that will help achieve our longgame strategic goals of increasing the talent / labor pool to the apartment industry … while changing people ’ s lives for the better .
JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT
I met Robin Wise , President & CEO of Junior Achievement ( JA ) Colorado just after she went on stage to receive the “ 2023 Leaders in Action Award ” earlier this year . In just a few moments of talking with Robin I knew AAMD & JA had common ground for a mutually beneficial partnership .
JA is a non-profit that inspires and prepares young people for success - and has been doing so for over 100 years . Their proven formula teaches financial literacy and career readiness to tens of thousands of Colorado high schoolers . After Robin gave me a tour of their brand new “ Finance Park ” facility in Greenwood Village , I immediately knew AAMD had something to give - and something to gain -by showing young people that Apartment Living and Apartment Working could be a part of their future .
As one of 12 supporting partners of this cutting edge program , AAMD will help students explore a mini-city , learning first-hand how to budget for housing , insurance , transportation , investments and more . Harvard calls the JA Finance Park a best practice for teaching financial literacy where students become adults for the day in an immersive simulation . After years of searching for a meaningful way to reach high school students , AAMD now has a featured kiosk in JA ’ s Finance Park where students are
Kit Baker Carr , Executive Director for Entryway Denver , speaks at a recent Housing Summit
exposed to the Apartment business and rental housing in general . Students learn from expert volunteers from a variety of industries , including AAMD members who can tell their story about a career in the Apartment business .
For information on how to volunteer and get involved with Junior Achievement , please see page 11 .
ENTRY WAY ( FORMERLY SHUTTERS TO SHELTERS )
AAMD and several of our members have also partnered with Entryway , another 501 c3 organization . Entryway CEO David Wiliams recently visited Denver and met with AAMD Board members to explain how his organization provides life-changing solutions to situationally homeless people . Entryway helps transition individuals and families at risk of or experiencing homelessness to economic self sufficiency by providing career training , full time employment and housing opportunities .
Entryway recently brought on Kit Baker- Carr as their new Executive Director for
Denver . Kit was a special guest at AAMD ’ s most recent Housing Summit and Leadership Program , where he met with AAMD leaders to further advance Entryway . Kit explained that the Entryway program transitions people through skills and knowledge specifically needed for employment at apartment communities . Their online platform includes comprehensive assessments on eligibility , aptitudes and skill levels . Participants get customized training focused on the multifamily housing industry , along with training in technical skills , soft skills , and life skills .
While Entryway is brand new to Denver , AAMD President Jared Miller and many others have assured our commitment to making it successful in our market . For more information on this new partnership , please see a feature on page 30- 31 .
These two new partnerships partnerships align our philanthropic and business goals of being good corporate citizens . They help to identify additional solutions beyond our regular job of providing safe and affordable housing to over 800,000 Denver citizens and we ' re excited to see what the future holds !
Mark Williams is the Executive Vice President at Apartment Association of Metro Denver
6 | TRENDS OCTOBER 2023 www . aamdhq . org