Registration Now Open for Outside Chicago Metro Area
Practical Tools and Real-World Knowledge
All classes will be in-person held at the Chicago Rehab Network Office located 140 S. Dearborn, Suite 1420, Chicago, IL
- Community Building
- Finance Skills for Real Estate
- Proforma Development
- Sources of Development Financing
- Single Family Housing Development
- Multifamily Housing Development
- Project and Construction Management
- Property and Asset Management
Learn to be a leader in improving the quality of life in your community. CRN's Community Empowerment Workshop Series uses practical tools and real-world knowledge of practitioners to teach you how to effect positive change in communities through housing development. Offered annually, the training series is designed for staff and board members of community-based affordable housing development organizations, government employees, community bankers, small neighborhood developers, and elected officials and their staff.
Graduates of the series receive a certificate of completion that is well-known and respected by community development and affordable housing practitioners and advocates. Registration for the 2025-2026 Community Empowerment Workshop Series will open soon.
Workshops will be held in person at the Chicago Rehab Network office located 140 S. Dearborn, Suite 1420, Chicago, IL.
PLEASE NOTE: ALL CLASSES WILL BE HELD OVER MULTIPLE SESSIONS. YOU WILL NEED TO ATTEND ALL SESSIONS TO RECEIVE THE COMPLETION CERTIFICATE.
Fees
Register for the full series or individual workshops.
Full series (eight workshops)
$1,400 nonprofit / $1,800 for-profit
Individual workshops
$200 nonprofit / $250 for-profit
About the Workshops
Property taxes, high housing cost burden, gentrification, vacancy, abandonment, homelessness—all are issues community developers work to overcome. Using a value-based approach to learning development fundamentals, you can learn to be a leader in improving the quality of life in your community for renters and owners through housing. You'll learn technical development skills, discuss strategies for community empowerment and reinvestment, and share your experiences with others in the field.
Community Building
Instructor: Joy Aruguete, Chief Executive Officer, Bickerdike Redevelopment Corporation
Day In The Field:
Class:
The first in the series, this workshop will present the community assets perspective as a model for community planning. Through looking at strategies employed by community-based development organizations, we will discuss the elements beyond bricks and mortar that community building requires.
Finance Skills for Real Estate
Instructor: Maurice Williams, MW Associates
Class:
Class:
Technology can enhance your organization’s ability to operate efficiently in today’s challenging market. Learn housing finance concepts, how to compute financial calculations, and how to use spreadsheets to create development proformas.
Proforma Development
Instructor: Maurice Williams, MW Associates
Class:
Class:
Understanding principles of real estate development and finance is critical to maintaining the long-term affordability of your project. In this session, learn to create development proformas, income and expense statements, and cash flow analyses. Emphasis will be placed on structuring projects with tax credits, grant funding, and public funds.
Sources of Development Financing
Instructor: Yittayih Zelalem, Director and Research Associate Professor, Nathalie P. Voorhees Center for Neighborhood and Community Improvement
Class:
Class:
Developing affordable housing is a challenging process that requires the layering of financing to achieve the goal of affordability. This workshop will familiarize participants with the mechanics of securing development capital, debt and equity financing, grants and subsidies.
Single Family Housing Development
Instructors: Teresa Prim, President, Prim Lawrence Group; 
Linda Greene
Class:
Class:
The process of developing single family housing will be discussed both in terms of the technical skills involved, and in terms of maximizing production to meet community needs. Assembling the development team, acquiring property, securing financing, and marketing will be examined in detail.
_________________________________
Multifamily Housing Development
Instructors: Teresa Prim, President, Prim Lawrence Group;
Linda Greene
Class:
Class:
Multifamily housing development will be discussed as one tool for creating community-based affordable housing. The development process, acquisition, sources of financing, development team, and legal issues will all be discussed.
Project and Construction Management
Instructor: Angela Hurlock, Executive Director, Claretian Associates
Class:
Day In The Field:
Creating quality affordable housing requires knowledge of construction that includes knowing how to choose a project team, how to manage contracts, and how to closeout the project.
______________________________
Property and Asset Management
Instructor: Eleazar Vazquez
Class:
Class:
This course will review the key aspects of the property management of subsidized housing. Focus will be given to marketing and lease up, accounting, asset management, fair housing laws, maintenance, capital improvements, and resident services.
Make a payment for the Empowerment Series
This form is for individuals who have set up an incremental payment plan for the Community Development & Empowerment Series. It is not a registration form. Don't have a payment plan in place but want to set one up? Contact Terrhonda Hudson at terrhonda@chicagorehab.org.
