Portland State University Master of Real Estate Development (MSRE) students, Heather McGinn-Girón and Michal Orczyk, recently had the opportunity to travel to Minneapolis–St. Paul as participants in the Portland Metro Chamber’s Best Practices Trip, generously sponsored by Killian Pacific. As Adam Tyler, President of Killian Pacific, reflected:
“Real estate influences the built environment. When working in commercial real estate we need to consider the larger community. Our participation in the Best Practices Trip allows us to keep focused on the bigger picture and consider how other cities are being developed. In my experience, the most successful communities are the ones working collaboratively across public and private sectors and higher education.”
The trip was an incredibly rich experience for PSU’s graduate students to learn not only about urban development but also bring home to Portland lessons on how civic collaboration, cultural investment, and community care intersect in service of shaping the cities of tomorrow.
Over several days, the Portland delegation, made up of business and thought leaders across sectors, experienced a series of curated panels, conversations, and tours that revealed how the Twin Cities uplift their homegrown cultural and community assets. The Twin Cities are home to more than 15 Fortune 500 companies and proudly claim the birthplace of Target. As one economic policy advisor put it, “We build companies and try to hold onto that growth.” It was a sentiment that underscored the area’s enduring and intentional commitment to economic progress, which is the critical foundation for supporting the community assets that make the region distinct.
Hosted by PSU President Ann Cudd, the trip concluded with a thoughtful conversation featuring Rob Vischer, President of the University of St. Thomas. Together, they discussed the critical role higher education plays as an economic engine for any city.
Vischer emphasized the importance of institutional visibility, noting that “visibility is oxygen in higher ed.” While he made the point in the context of Division I athletics, he broadened the message to stress that colleges must clearly demonstrate their return on investment and then go further by deepening their mission and purpose, without losing sight of the fact that “every student is the center of someone’s world.”