About Our Company
Overview
Emerge Here Student Housing
Emerge Here “Emerge” was founded to elevate student living through a unique, female-driven perspective. With a women-led team, we focus on designing spaces that nurture a sense of home, community, and security. We know the importance of comfort, style, and attention to detail—qualities that bring both parents and students peace of mind.
The principals of Emerge collaborated for 14 years at Next Chapter Properties. During that time, we developed some of the finest student housing properties across 10 states, serving universities and colleges with undergraduate enrollments ranging from 8,000 students, like Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, to 50,000 students at the University of Illinois.
As Next Chapter expanded beyond student housing, Emerge was established to maintain an exclusive focus on meticulously designed, detail-oriented student housing. Today, we continue the vision we embraced at Next Chapter: delivering high-quality, student-centered developments in premier markets with high barriers to entry and exceptional locations.
Relationships and loyalty remain the foundation of how we conduct business at Emerge. We continue to collaborate with the same general contractor, architect, and banks helping us deliver outstanding developments.
We deeply value our relationships with universities, cities, and villages where we build. These partnerships foster positive, long-term collaboration that benefits all stakeholders.
Finally, and most importantly, we cherish our residents and the parents who entrust us to provide living environments that foster pride, serenity, and calm. Our goal is to create spaces that empower students to reach their fullest potential, supporting them with a living experience conducive to personal and academic success.
Mission
Our mission is to redefine student housing by creating mindful functional spaces that cater to students and reassure parents.
Values
- Integrity: Honesty and transparency in all that we do.
- Innovation: Constantly innovating to meet the unique needs of students and parents.
- Excellence: We aim to exceed expectations with every property we develop and manage.
How We Develop
As a smaller development firm in student housing, we leverage our size to our advantage. We are more strategic with our capital, we approach each project with heightened selectivity, conducting thorough due diligence to ensure we’re investing in prime locations near top schools. While some larger firms may focus on numerous projects to maximize fees, we prioritize quality, ensuring each project receives our full attention and this allows us to explore all potential options, ultimately leading to more profitable projects that are carefully curated for success.
Our Team
Kelly Quinn
CEO, President & Chairwoman of the Board
Kelly began her career in the banking industry, quickly advancing to senior portfolio manager, overseeing a diverse range of loan types. While working in banking, she was recruited to develop healthcare real estate—all while pursuing her MBA part-time. In this role, Kelly collaborated with healthcare systems to create and implement comprehensive real estate strategies. Her work focused on strategic site selection aimed at maximizing market share and profitability for hospitals through an optimal mix of physicians and services.
Kelly also pioneered the use of unique ownership structures that enabled healthcare facilities to maintain high-quality patient care while safeguarding the financial health of their operators.
During the 2008 market downturn, many healthcare systems implemented capital freezes. It was during this time that Kelly joined Next Chapter, allowing her to continue pursuing her passion for real estate development. At Next Chapter, Kelly’s responsibilities included financial modeling for all new development projects, as well as leading the expansion and management of the firm’s debt and equity partnerships. She also oversaw the firm’s developed-to-core portfolio, which comprises 548 beds in Champaign, IL.
As CEO of Emerge, Kelly oversees the company’s day-to-day operations. Her responsibilities include sourcing new development opportunities and securing financing for such projects. In addition, Kelly provides oversight across all aspects of existing developments and guides the pre-development process for new properties.
Kelly holds a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, with concentrations in finance, real estate, and health industry management.
Audrey Rund
Chief Operating Officer
Audrey is a versatile leader with over a decade of property management, asset management, and strategic marketing expertise. As Chief Operating Officer, she elevates portfolio performance, optimizes value, and champions operational excellence. Known for her collaborative, lead-by-example approach, Audrey empowers teams to achieve exceptional results. She strategically oversees resource allocation, closely monitors performance, and drives operational efficiency, all while proactively managing risks. Leveraging her analytical expertise and strategic insight, Audrey employs a data-driven approach, maximizing rental income and overall revenue.
Audrey has gained extensive experience working with major national firms, leading new departments, managing teams, and providing strategic consulting. She has a strong background in overseeing marketing for large-scale portfolio acquisitions involving multiple buildings and hundreds of units, as well as managing new development projects. Additionally, Audrey has worked with property management CRM systems and contributed to product development initiatives to enhance operational efficiency. She holds a B.A. in English from Illinois College.
Nikki Miller
Chief Financial Officer
As the head of the accounting department at Emerge, Nicole ensures the accuracy of financial statements across all of the company’s properties. She plays a key role in the property budgeting process and supports asset management and loan compliance efforts.
Nicole began her career in public accounting but transitioned from audits and taxes to join one of her clients, where she served as Controller for a private real estate development and management company. In that role, she oversaw financial reporting for $680 million in assets and helped guide the company through its acquisition by a publicly traded firm.
Stacey Poole
Director of Marketing and Customer Service
After receiving a Bachelor of Science from Illinois State University, Stacey began her career at CarleCare HMO, owned by Carle Clinic Association, a large physician group in Urbana, IL. She was hired by their new CEO to create their first Customer Service Department. Over her 21-year career she held various positions such as Director of Customer Service, Director of Marketing/Sales, Director of Medicare, and Director of Self-Funded Operations. Stacey helped grow the HMO to what is now known as Health Alliance.
Health Alliance, grew to a 450,000-member, multi-state insurance company offering HMO’s, PPO’s, Medicare Supplements, Medicare HMO’s and Self-funded Plans. After a storied career, Stacey departed Health Alliance to work as a consultant for One Main Development and was hired as their Director of Marketing and Sales.
Rodney Poole
Board Member
Rodney A. Poole co-founded Next Chapter Properties (NCP) in 2010 and serves as its Chief Executive Officer. A veteran in real estate development, Rodney brings extensive expertise across all phases of development, management, and disposition of real estate projects. He has deep experience in capital markets, having raised private capital and secured loan financing commitments totaling over $1 billion.
Before founding NCP, Rodney was Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, and later President of Royal Properties, a national student apartment management and development firm, where he served from 2000 to December 2009. During his tenure, he expanded the company to serve 7,349 student residents, generating $26 million in annual revenue, and managed a team of 100 employees across 13 properties. In 2005 and 2006, Rodney led the negotiation and $244.3 million sale of 13 student properties, comprising 5,710 beds across 10 markets, through an UpREIT transaction with American Campus Communities.
Beyond student housing, Rodney has designed, developed, and financed single-family spec homes, hotels, and high-rise buildings. He also acquired, repositioned, and sold The Club at Renaissance Golf and Country Club in Fort Myers.
Rodney holds a bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and is an active member of the University’s President’s Council and Loyalty Circle.
Patrick Quinn
Board Member
Patrick Quinn co-founded Next Chapter Properties (NCP) in 2010 and serves as the Chief Financial Officer.
Patrick has extensive experience in all facets in the multi-family real estate sector. In addition to financial and management oversight of the current portfolio, Patrick spearheads new developments for the NCP’s future developments. Those responsibilities include market selection, site identification, contract negotiation, pursuing zoning and entitlements, assisting in the pursuit of capital, development, stabilization and continued management of the asset.
Prior to co-founding NCP, Patrick was the President and Founder of Q181, Inc., a Chicago based real estate consulting firm focused on site selection, zoning/entitlements, financing and development in the multi-family sector. Patrick also served as an Institutional Sales Director at Cabrera Capital Markets where he covered corporate and municipal bond underwritings and sales. Patrick transitioned to the equities desk at the request of his firm to manage capital requests in the real estate sectors and cover public traded REITs.
In addition to student apartment development, Patrick has designed, developed and capitalized single-family spec homes and have assembled and developed multiple acres of land for future development.
Patrick holds an Illinois Real Estate License, a Bachelor of Arts from Dominican University in River Forest, Illinois and an M.B.A. from the Walter E. Keller College of Business Administration at Roosevelt University in Chicago, Illinois.