B.C. real estate brokerage launches a new scholarship for women

Credit: Courtesy of Oakwyn Realty

Morgan Browne, co-founder and president of Oakwyn Realty, created the Women of Oakwyn (WOO) program to support women in real estate

For the first edition of Oakwyn Realty’s annual award, eight recipients will receive an educational grant

Women who aspire to succeed in the real estate industry just got a helping hand from Oakwyn Realty.

In this year’s instalment of its Women of Oakwyn (WOO) event, which celebrates women in the business, the Vancouver-based property brokerage raised funds for a new annual scholarship. Attendees of the virtual gathering gave a minimum of $20 for recipients’ education and career development, with Oakwyn matching all donations.

The total amount raised was $8,000, allowing for eight scholarship winners. Each woman will receive a grant of $1,150 to cover the cost of the Real Estate Trading Services Licensing Course at UBC Sauder School of Business.

“One thing that we wanted to do was help women who are looking to enter the field, in terms of the initial fees for doing the course,” Amanda Lehman-Choi, director of corporate brand at Oakwyn, tells BCBusiness. “Just so we can encourage people who may not necessarily have that opportunity financially but have that ambition to exceed in the industry.”

Although women are well represented in real estate, the vast majority of top-producing agents are men. Morgan Browne, co-founder and president of Oakwyn, created the scholarship to provide equal opportunity to ambitious women, without finances standing in the way.

“I am so proud to see this money go back to support a woman in her career path,” Browne said in a release. “I myself started in this industry as a young, inexperienced agent, and it took a lot of effort to prove myself. I hope that our support and scholarship will not only encourage this year’s scholarship recipients but other women as well!”

The 2021 winners of the Women of Oakwyn Scholarship are a diverse group. “As a single mother, my goal is to break the glass ceiling women face in corporate positions and leave a legacy for my son,” said recipient Zora Hucalak. Another winner, primary-school teacher Sarah Shakur, volunteers in community support programs she once relied on. Shakur plans to use her real estate education to help low-income individuals and families.

Here’s the full list of the winners:

Shaimaa Basharati
Zora Hucalak
Hanieh Khakbiz
Gurleen Pooni
Sarah Shakur
Coral Uster
Niti Verma
Daniela Wolfman