UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Penn State Smeal College of Business recently appointed Ronald Christy, one of the founding partners and executive director of Adamsbridge Global Inc. (adamsbridge) to the executive committee of the Penn State Real Estate Advisory Board.
The board includes business, government and academic representatives who are interested in promoting real estate education and scholarship at Penn State. Members make a financial commitment to the college in support of Smeal’s Borrelli Institute for Real Estate Studies.
Christy earned a bachelor’s in economics from Penn State in 1992. He began his professional career in real estate tax and valuation consulting before moving into leadership roles at firms including LoopNet, Dow Jones, OfficeTiger and Accenture, where he worked closely with owners, investors and operators to improve real estate business performance through process improvement and strategic outsourcing.
A technology‑enabled professional services firm, adamsbridge serves the commercial real estate industry. In this role, Christy leads a team of more than 1,850 professionals across the United States, the United Kingdom, India and the Philippines, delivering technology-enabled sourcing and back‑office solutions in commercial real estate leasing, accounting and finance.
Brent Ambrose, the Jason and Julie Borrelli Faculty Chair in Real Estate, director of the Borrelli Institute for Real Estate Studies and professor of risk management, said he was looking forward to welcoming Christy at the board’s spring meeting, held April 21 in New York City.
“With more than 30 years of experience and a deep understanding of how technology and operations intersect in real estate, Ron brings a forward‑looking perspective that will greatly benefit our students and programs,” Ambrose said. “His insights will help strengthen the connection between classroom learning and industry practice, ensuring our students are well prepared to lead in a rapidly changing field.”
Christy, who became familiar with Penn State’s real estate program through internship recruitment efforts at adamsbridge, said he was drawn to the board for both personal and professional reasons.
“It’s important to me that today’s real estate students see the full ecosystem of commercial real estate and that they understand the wide range of career paths available to them, from acquisitions and asset management to operations, finance, technology and analytics,” he said. “I believe my professional experience can help ensure Smeal’s curriculum and practical training align with what employers are currently looking for.
“As my alma mater and home to a nationally recognized business school with a dedicated real estate program, Penn State was the right place to focus those efforts.”
Donors and volunteers like Christy advance the University’s historic land-grant mission to serve and lead. Through philanthropy, alumni and friends are helping students to join the Penn State family and prepare for lifelong success; driving research, outreach and economic development; and increasing the University’s impact for students, families, patients and communities across the commonwealth and around the world. Learn more by visiting raise.psu.edu.