Robert D. & Margaret A. Wark Memorial Scholarship Recipient

Biography: Peonia Chan is a second year undergraduate at UCLA double majoring in Economics and Communications and double minoring in Asian Humanities and Entrepreneurship. Born and raised in Palos Verdes, CA, Peonia had always known she wanted to establish a career in California – leading her to choose an education at UCLA. She currently serves as the Co-Director of Marketing for the Bruin Real Estate Association, the largest commercial real estate organization on campus, and served as the Financial and Administrative Director of the Hong Kong Student Society as well as the Historian for Delta Sigma Pi. In the past, Peonia has held internships at companies such as RE/MAX and Central Escrow Group. In addition, she currently works three internships – UCLA Luskin Conference Center & Hotel, PMI Properties, and Project Destined. During her free time, one can find Peonia playing competitive volleyball, discovering new local eateries, or searching for her next read of the month.

Future Plans: Peonia plans on entering the commercial real estate or private equity industry upon graduation. At Coretrust Capital LLC, she will be interning as an Acquisition and Asset Management Analyst this upcoming summer in their Downtown Los Angeles office as she hopes to gain valuable hands-on experience in the Southern California market from a vertically scaled company. Meanwhile, she is also fortunate enough to have the opportunity of participating in an ongoing Mentorship Program with Jones Lang LaSalle, hoping to expand her experience with their San Francisco and Century City Capital Markets offices in the future, alongside the AZ Summer Educate Program with Ackman Ziff’s office over in New York this upcoming summer. This has inspired her to potentially apply to MBA programs in order to truly hone in on her passion for the real estate industry.

What does the scholarship mean to me? I am extremely grateful and honored to be the recipient of the Robert D. & Margaret A. Wark Memorial Scholarship. This scholarship will assist in easing my financial worries and allow me to dedicate more of my time and energy towards my academics and extracurricular activities – essentially allowing me the opportunity to build the foundation of my professional career. This award has given me another reason to work harder towards my career goals as I wish to properly honor my donor and their recognition of both my educational and professional ambitions. This is such a pivotal moment during my lifetime so I truly hope that when I am an established professional within the industry, I can pay it forward by supporting others in their professional journeys just as these donors have done for me.