Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Accessibility Committee
Fostering education and mentorship, building a sustainable community, and advocating for fair housing across San Francisco real estate.
About DEIA
Our Mission
Our mission is to empower and support San Francisco real estate practitioners in order to create a level playing field for all people and eliminate discrimination, by fostering education and mentorship, creating a sustainable community, and advocating for fair housing.
Committee leadership
Chair & Co-Chair
Dennis Eison
Chair
Ashlee Johnson
Vice Chair
RISE Grant & Mentorship Program
Let’s RISE
Congratulations, 2026 RISE Cohort!
The San Francisco Association of REALTORS® Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (DEIA) Committee is proud to announce the members of its 2026 RISE Cohort. Selected from a competitive applicant pool of BIPOC REALTORS® after multiple rounds of discussion and voting by the DEIA RISE Selection Committee, the cohort will participate in a year-long mentorship program, each receiving a financial grant toward their real estate business needs.
Now in its fourth year, RISE encourages access to opportunities for those historically underrepresented in the real estate profession and in San Francisco’s professional community overall. Our mission is to usher in a new generation of thriving and successful San Francisco REALTORS® who are Black, Indigenous, and/or people of color (BIPOC).
Meet the 2023 inaugural RISE Cohort
Get to know the members of the first RISE Cohort: Sierra Shields, Chris Edwards, Nicholas Carnell Johnson, Jorge Hidalgo, and Emerald Maher.
Program details
Each RISE cohort member receives a financial grant and one year of mentorship with seasoned, top-producing SFAR agents. Mentorship includes monthly two-hour sessions with a different top REALTOR® covering a specialty area — sales, business operations, personal finances, marketing, mindset and personal development — plus monthly one-hour cohort sessions to build community and troubleshoot together.
Priority is given to applicants who identify as Black/African/African American, Indigenous/Native American, and/or Hispanic/Latino/a/Latinx, but any REALTOR® from a historically underrepresented community is encouraged to apply.
2 ways to help
Donate to fund a cohort member’s grant, or apply / refer a REALTOR® to the program.
Application deadline
March 22 · new cohorts announced each April following committee selection.
Qualifications
- 18+ years of age
- High school graduate or equivalent
- Current resident of the Bay Area
- Currently licensed California DRE Salesperson or Broker
- Active REALTOR® for less than 3 years
Resources
DEIA resource directory
Black Vendor List
Support Black business owners and individuals in our communities for your business needs.
Architects
Bankers / Lenders
Interstate Equities Corporation — Bacardi Adams
(650) 917-8600
interstateequities.com
Omni-Fund Inc. Maxwell Lending Group — Shawn Maxwell
(650) 759-4094
Catering
Commercial Broker
Colliers
Gregory Hunter
CPA
Will Ash
(510) 444-5622
Debris Removal
elitedebrisremovalservices.com
(510) 938-4753
Developers
(510) 712-8088
Electrical
(510) 878-2433
(510) 436-4787
(510) 325-6774
quaweayelectric.com
Engineering
Allen Architectural Engineering — David Allen
(510) 387-7503
Flooring
Tradeway Flooring — Darrell
(510) 230-0059
tradewayflooring.com
Furniture designers
Design by Ini — Ini Archibong, Mark Jackson
designbyini.com
Glass & Window Repair
Simmons Glass Co.
(510) 596-4010
Handypersons
Mario Brown
(510) 776-7540
Interior Designers
Joy Street Design — Kelly Finley
(510) 817-4003
joystreetdesign.com
Landscapers
(510) 595-0688
Languages Spoken
Amanda Dunn
Michael Young
Michael Young
Mortgage Brokers
Photography
Rhett Jones Photographs
rjjrphotography.com
Plumbers
(650) 704-1982
Real Estate Attorney
Elaine Lee
(510) 848-9528
eleeattorney@aol.com
Sewer Repair & Compliance
Sewer Master — Vincent
(510) 385-6539
sewermaster-bayarea.com
Signs
Signworks, Inc.
(510) 357-2000
info@signworks.us.com
Staging
Accents Home Staging — LaShawn Holden McKinzie
getstaged@accentshomestaging.com
Surveyors
(510) 917-1505
(610) 633-1797
This directory is community-submitted. Add a resource or request one.
Questions?
Connect with the DEIA Committee
DEAI
Whether you want to get involved, apply for RISE, add a resource, or just learn more about our work, we’d love to hear from you.