On Sept. 30, The Appraisal Foundation (TAF) announced a new scholarship program which would blaze a trail for aspiring appraisers to fulfill their experience requirements with financial backing. TAF will fund $1.22 million over three years to establish the Pathways to Success scholarship, which will be administered by the Appraisal Institute (AI) as part of the Appraiser Diversity Initiative (ADI), TAF announced in a release.
The scholarship is open to all aspiring appraisers and would cover tuition to enroll in a Practical Applications of Real Estate Appraisal (PAREA) module, which fulfills the experience requirement for an appraiser credential.
This multi-year scholarship is the second phase of TAF’s Pathways to Success initiative. Starting in 2021, Pathways to Success began as a conditional grant to support bringing a PAREA module to market. As a result of TAF’s $500,000 investment, AI brought the first PAREA modules to market in 2023 and celebrated the first graduates earlier this year.
“The foundation is taking a bold step to build the next generation of appraisers,” TAF President Kelly Davids said in the release. “This scholarship program has been a long-held dream for our organization, and I am so pleased that we are moving forward to welcome new people to this exciting profession. I look forward to continuing to champion the importance of building a qualified appraiser workforce for years to come with this program.”
ADI expressed its sentiments.
“We are pleased to announce the successful closing of our partnership with TAF,” ADI said in a released statement. “This achievement reflects the hard work and dedication of all partners. We are eager to embark on this journey together to create value and drive success. Over the past six years, our sponsors’ contributions have resulted in over 800 scholarships, directly benefiting those in which we serve.
“We will continue, through joint efforts, to demonstrate the power of working together toward a common goal of overcoming barriers to entry and provide support for opportunities for the next generation of professionals in the appraisal industry,” ADI added. “As we look into the future, we remain committed to deepening this collaboration with The Appraisal Foundation and continuing to serve our communities with passion and purpose.”