Burns Collaboratory Brochure 2020

Opening the Door to Learning in the 21st Century

Envisioning The Marion J. Crean Collaboratory

CO LL A BOR ATORY

A L E ARNI N G EN V IRONMEN TRANSFORMING THE EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCE Learning doesn’t happen in a vacuum. Traditional classrooms and educational spaces have focused on teaching—not on learning. Those of us who have spent our careers in real estate, property development, design and construction know that space matters. Space greatly influences how people feel, engage, perform, produce, interact, and create.

The traditional classroom was designed for a 19th century factory model education system to serve the industrial age. The Collaboratory represents a learning environment for the 21st century.

• It’s a space designed to encourage innovation, collaboration, communication, and creative problem solving in an age of information and ever changing dynamics.

• I t’s a space where the technological capabilities available to serve the professional real estate and construction industries will be integrated into the learning environment.

• I t’s a space where students from different disciplines and backgrounds, with different aptitudes, interests, and abilities will be able to engage in real life, challenge-driven learning.

NT FOR THE 21 s t CEN T U RY THE BURNS SCHOOL­­ — BUILDING A BETTER WAY The Collaboratory will make the difference between students who have simply earned a degree and those who can hit the ground running to bring greater value and readiness to the companies and agencies for whom they go to work.

Who better to demonstrate the effect and influence that the built environment has on the learning environment and student experience than the Burns School of Real Estate and Construction Management.

With the help of industry partners, the Collaboratory will be designed by students for students to drive home the impact and importance of space on 21st century learning and growth­­.

The creation of the Collaboratory will achieve the mission of the Burns School to develop leaders who are ready and able to create integrated solutions for the built environment.

ENVISION A SPACE WHERE STUDENTS: •C an learn from expert faculty in a continuous interactive collaborative workspace that enables participation, creativity, and innovation.

•C an connect with real estate and construction professionals from anywhere in the world without leaving campus.

•E ngage in lively debates on critical topics associated with the many challenges facing the business of the built environment with industry experts.

•G et advice on career planning, job offers and opportunities, or starting your own business from supportive Burns School alumni, friends and partners.

•D iscuss the risks and rewards associated with making your first, or fifth deal with real estate pros who have been there and done that and learned from the school of hard knocks.

•W ork on special class projects, research endeavors, case studies or prep for student competitions, having access to the best coaches, technology and resources.

•H ang out, network, and collaborate with fellow students, faculty, advisors, and visiting alumni and partner guests.

MARION J. CREAN COLLABORATORY

LIQUID GALAXY

STORAGE

HUDDLE SPACES INSPIRATION STAGE

BLUESCAPE WALL

COMMUNICATION WORK STATION

HUDDLE SPACES

ADVISOR NETWORK

CO LL A BOR ATORY

KEY FEATURES

THE ADVISOR NETWORK CONFERENCE ROOM The Marion J. Crean Collaboratory will be equipped with technology that allows students to connect to a network of “advisors” located any place in the world. Students will utilize a variety of online meeting and web conferencing and collaboration tools such as GoToMeeting, WebEx and Meeting Burner.

• The Collaboratory will represent a type of face-to-face, live version of a platform similar to “LinkedIn,” whereby students can connect with experienced alumni and non-alumni advisors to engage and collaborate on assigned projects, student competitions, independent studies, start-up ideas, and various other endeavors.

• These “advisor” sessions will take place in a glassed-in conference room within the Collaboratory. Multiple video monitors will be displayed so students can interact and connect with several advisors simultaneously.

• It is anticipated that a Collaboratory App will be developed, allowing students and alumni to connect to the Advisor Network from any place outside the physical Collaboratory space as well.

BLUESCAPE INTERACTIVE VIRTUAL WORKSPACE WALL Bluescape is a continual interactive virtual workspace. Much of our classroom engagement will take place here, engaging students both live, in-class and virtually from anywhere in the world.

• Work at the same time or on your own time in an always-on collaboration space, seamlessly sharing ideas, media and documents.

• Bluescape is an infinite, collaborative workspace designed to accelerate decision-making by enabling anyone to create, communicate, visualize, organize, and strategize virtually anything, anywhere, anytime. Through this new technology platform, students, faculty can connect and improve communication and problem-solving with teams and industry executives around the world.

• The Wall is the Workspace and student input is maximized in this highly inclusive platform.

Technology Impacting Education

THE LIQUID GALAXY This amazing feature will allow students and alumni to explore the planet by engaging in a wraparound chamber of multiple LCD screens providing a truly immersive experience of panoramic images, video, tours and much more — all at the users fingertips in seconds.

• Seated at their joystick control console, students will be able to fly to any part of the world and explore real estate and development opportunities anywhere in the world • Various databases will be tied into the Google Earth and Street View programs, allowing students to simultaneously view a property or parcel of land and access and analyze information associated with that property, market, community, and surrounding environment.

THE INSPIRATION STAGE This is a Ted-talk like platform in front of the liquid galaxy where special guest presenters and industry leaders will engage with students frequently throughout the year on a variety of relevant topics.

• The stage will provide a dedicated event space for the Burns School, encouraging and enhancing regular speaker events.

HUDDLE SPACES These small group-seating arrangements are ideal for relaxing and participating in casual engagements and spontaneous gatherings. No need to schedule a conference room when these informal “touchdown” spaces provide the perfect setting for thoughtful, timely, connected, collaboration among teams.

• The huddle spaces are intended to drive collaboration and innovation among students by encouraging communication and impromptu gatherings through spatial design and inviting, comfortable furnishings.

THE SAIPE COMMUNICATON WORKSTATION This designated computer “benching” area is designed to allow flexibility for students to work individually without leaving the Collaboratory space. The primary intention of this workstation area is to accommodate individualized work needs while still contributing to a collaborative, team oriented effort.

• Each workstation will be fitted with integrated height-adjustability, power and data access, and a wire management system, easily adapting to each user’s work style needs.

Note: Specific details pertaining to these features are being finalized, but the above descriptions provide a realistic representation of the key elements planned for the Collaboratory.

CO LL A BOR ATORY

CO N NECTI N G L IKE NEVE R THE BACK STORY THAT SPARKED THE IDEA In September 2013, as Dr. Barbara Jackson took the helm as Director of the Burns School, she began meeting with recent alumni from the program. These former students had been working in the industry for 1-8 years. One of the common themes, especially among those who had graduated, worked for a number of years, and were now starting their own companies, was the desire to better connect with seasoned alumni. Many mentioned that starting a new company was “scary business,” and they all recognized the value that having greater access to experienced professionals would provide.

Consequently, Dr. Jackson started meeting with more senior alumni, particularly donors who had supported the program over the years. In one such meeting, the donor, reminisced about what he would have given to have had access to the “wisdom” of veteran professionals when he was trying to navigate the trials and tribulations of the business and avoiding pitfalls over the years. It was in that conversation that the idea of the Collaboratory was born.

YOUNG MINDS

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BE F O R E LEVERAGING TECHNOLOGY, ELEVATING RELATIONSHIPS The Collaboratory will facilitate the connection between the wisdom and experience of seasoned Real Estate, Property Development & Construction professionals with the enthusiasm, energy, and imagination of our students and younger alumni—nurturing true innovation and advanced thinking among our students. This virtual “Linked In” type network will provide a resource to our students beyond what any traditional laboratory or classroom experience could offer.

CREATING THE ADVISOR NETWORK The seasoned professionals, comprised of both alumni and nonalumni participants, will serve as “Advisors” to the Marion J. Crean Collaboratory. These identified advisors will come from all sectors of the Real Estate and Construction industries and have expertise and experience across the full spectrum of the built environment.

The Advisors would be “on-call” on a voluntary basis.

The Advisors will self-identify with areas of expertise and interest for which they would make themselves available to “connect” with students and/or young alumni within pre-arranged time slots. The pool of Advisors would be large enough to ensure that no one advisor would be inundated with more requests to connect than they could manage.

An Advisor could connect as little or as much as they want.

TECHNOLOGY

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WISDOM

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E XT R AO R DI N ARY V ISION FO MAKING A DIFFERENCE ONE STUDENT AT A TIME The Burns School is committed to educating and mentoring graduates who can develop, manage, and lead initiatives resulting in innovative, comprehensive, integrated solutions for the built environment.

DR. BARBARA JACKSON One of the best ways to prepare students for real world challenges and stimulate the development of real world solutions is to give them access to the expertise and wisdom that exists among our alumni and their “school of hard knocks” experiences. The Collaboratory provides the “ready access” to this invaluable wealth of experience and a front row seat to the real world.

DEAN VIVEK CHOUDHURY The M.J. Crean Collaboratory at the Burns School fits perfectly with our goal of developing graduates who are technologically and analytically savvy with hands on experience on the latest technologies and tools. The Collaboratory will be a national benchmark for state of the art, technology-enabled education in real estate and the built environment. In addition, it will allow our students to interact with and learn from leading industry professionals around the world, commensurate with Daniels’ vision of real-world, experiential education. I am very enthusiastic about seeing the Collaboratory built and implemented at Daniels.

OR T HE F UTURE IN HONOR OF MARION J. CREAN When the concept of a Collaboratory was conceived, the Burns School had received a generous donation from Nello Gonfiantini who gave the money to honor the impact that Professor Mike Crean made on him while Nello was a student at the University of Denver. Mike promptly stated that instead of having the Collaboratory named after him, he wanted it named after his beloved mother, Marion J. Crean, herself a visionary in her time and who had a major impact on his life.

Marion J. O’Keefe Crean was not a typical young woman growing up in the 1930’s. She was an avid athlete who channeled her unharnessed spirit and love of competition to excel in sports. After her marriage in 1942 to Martin Crean, whose only sport was golf, Marion took up golf and became a Club Champion. Sadly, Martin died and Marion was left to raise four young boys, ages 8 to 17, by herself.

Marion was more than up to the task. Her focus on the importance of education, effective communication and inquisitive nature were key values she instilled in her sons.

Marion’s youngest son and one of her granddaughters are also graduates of the Burns School. Her granddaughter also excelled in athletics, including playing soccer for DU. It was her fierce determination, independence, openness, honesty and “take-charge” attitude that mentored Mike and his three brothers after their father’s death. It is fitting that these same qualities are what we at the Burns School will ignite in the students who will be using the Collaboratory to discover solutions to all kinds of real estate and construction challenges, all the while exploring career paths and opportunities under the tutelage and encouragement of industry advisors and alumni.

CO LL A BOR ATORY

B E CO M E A PARTN ER THIS VISION CAN ONLY BECOME A REALITY WITH YOUR HELP RECM Alumni Nello Gonfiantini (Class of 1977) jump-started the vision by setting up an endowment to honor his mentor, Professor Mike Crean and the Burns School of Real Estate & Construction Management. At his good friend, Dr. Crean’s request, this endowment was directed to support the launch of the Marion J. Crean Collaboratory to honor of Mike Crean’s mother, Marion.

DR. MICHAEL CREAN “The Collaboratory is an ideal venue for leaving a legacy to both my mother and to the Burns School where I spent 44 years of my professional life and career as a Professor.”

NELLO GONFIANTINI III “If it weren’t for Mike Crean and the Burns School, I would have never gone into Real Estate, and Real Estate has been very good to me. I started the Collaboratory Endowment to honor “Crean” in a way that will serve generations of DU students to come.

If he impacted your life like he did mine, then I hope you will become a contributor to this larger than life space to honor a larger-than-life guy.”

BUILDING ON THE INITIAL ENDOWMENT This initial endowment planted the seed to develop and build this extraordinary, innovative idea and make it a reality. Be a part of this mission and leave a legacy that will ultimately change the nature of education as we know it today.

BLUEPRINT FOR SUCCESS: • B uild out, equip, and furnish the physical space for the Collaboratory.

This will be accomplished through Founding contributions by alumni, parents, friends, and business professionals committed to supporting Real Estate and Construction education at the Burns School.

• D evelop the Collaboratory Advisor Network through Founding Advisor and Annual Advisor contributions.

• C ontinue to grow the Endowment to ensure a sustainable future

“The Collaboratory will be an excellent opportunity for the students to learn about Real Estate and Construction in Denver, in Colorado, and around the world. Bringing students and Advisors together will enable everyone to learn best Real Estate and Construction practices from different disciplines and geography.”

— Hank Saipe, BS ‘79, MBA ‘81 Sponsor of the Communication Work Station

CO L L A BORATORY

PA RT N ER S HI PS Nothing speaks more strongly to an institution’s quality and effectiveness than those who choose to affiliate with it, and your support demonstrates your enduring commitment to our mission.

This is one of the most exciting initiatives the School has seen in our 80 years! It is our goal to break ground by the start of 2021, and we thank you for your consideration in helping us get there.

NAMING OPPORTUNITIES These are the premier opportunities to make a high-profile gift in our state-of-the-art physical space. Your name or company name will be included in the Collaboratory feature of your choice, and artistically embedded in the space -— a consistent reminder of your enduring gift. Every named partner is also considered a founding partner with the acknowledgement that these legacy gifts make the Collaboratory possible. Please note that these gifts can be pledged up to a five-year period.

• The Advisor Network $150,000 • The Liquid Galaxy $150,000 • The Bluescape Wall $100,000 • The Inspiration Stage $100,000 • Huddle Spaces $75,000

Helping the Dream Come True FOUNDING PARTNERS $50,000 (Lump sum)

Founding Partners are the cornerstone of the M.J. Crean Collaboratory and will be prominently, and permanently recognized as FOUNDERS of the Collaboratory. Without Founding partners, the M.J. Crean Collaboratory at the Burns School would not be possible. Because of the foresight, generosity, and vision of these individuals, families, companies, and organizations, the Burns School will become the most advanced educational program in Real Estate, Construction Management, and the Built Environment. Their gifts will be used to build-out, fully equip, and furnish the Collaboratory.

FOUNDING CONTRIBUTORS $50,000 (Pledging five annual payments of $10,000 each)

The first installment of Founding Contributor gifts will be used to build, equip and furnish the Collaboratory through the construction phase. Subsequent installments will be used to enhance the facility and/or support the growth of the Endowment to ensure the on-going operations of the Collaboratory into the future. Founding Contributors will be recognized as FOUNDERS of the Collaboratory along with Founding Partners.

SUPPORTING PARTNERS $25,000 (Lump sum)

Supporting Partner gifts will be used to build, equip and furnish the Collaboratory through the construction and launch phase.

SUSTAINING PARTNERS $10,000 (Lump sum)

Sustaining Partner gifts will be used to build, equip and furnish the Collaboratory through the construction and launch phase.

CO L L A BORAT I ON + L A BOR ATORY = COL L ABORATORY

a place where: YO U N G MI N D S + T EC H N OLOGY + WIS DOM

come together to advance the business of the built environment by exploring ideas and new opportunities in real estate and construction through the use of technology and in collaboration with experienced professionals serving as advisors and mentors, adding real world wisdom to the mix of ideas.