A shout out for a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion at Texas REALTORS®

One of Texas REALTORS® Core Values is Respect. The value statement reads, "We value all people and ideas. We treat each other in a professional and respectful manner." At the heart of valuing all people and ideas is recognizing that our differences, whether they be cultural, ethnic, experiential or otherwise, make us a stronger organization with better and more creative outcomes. Our diversity is an area of celebration for us. But it starts with an understanding of one another and the many things that make us all unique as well as an understanding of ourselves, our thoughts and our experiences through which we filter our impressions and interactions with one another.

NAR issued a challenge to its association and committee leaders this year: complete both the At Home With Diversity (AHWD) certification and the Fairhaven fair housing simulation as well as view NAR's Implicit Bias Training video, all designed to help members identify, prevent, and address discriminatory practices in real estate. In turn, Texas REALTORS® encouraged staff to utilize these resources as well, even hiring an instructor to teach a staff-only offering of the At Home With Diversity certification course.

Congratulations and thank you to the 40 Texas REALTORS® team members participated in the AHWD course (if you didn't apply for your certification, go ahead and apply before the December 31 deadline for a reduced application fee, which Texas REALTORS® will reimburse) and 19 team members completed the Fairhaven training. The Implicit Bias Training video participation is not tracked, so we don't know how many have completed it.

A special shout out to the 18 members of the team who completed both AHWD and Fairhaven:

Angela Brutsche, Leslie Cantu, Pete Craig, Stephanie Cuffee, Andrea Friedman, Michelle Gutierrez, Deb Hernandez, Jon Houser, David Jones, Travis Kessler, Lori Levy, Briana Mier, Kinski Moss, Lili Neal, Melanie Reynolds, Emma VanDelinder, Tiffany Wu & Mike Barnett