Tawan W. Davis
Tawan W. Davis (born July 11, 1979) is President and Chief Operating Officer of The Peebles Corporation and an Adjunct Instructor at the New York University School of Continuing and Professional Studies.
Early life and education
Davis was born in 1979 in Tacoma, Washington, but he grew up in Portland, Oregon, where he was raised by his single mother, Sylvia.
Davis attended Lincoln High School, where he was the first African American elected as student body president. In 2001, Davis received a Bachelor of Arts from Georgetown University, with honors in Political Economy; he was also student body President. Davis earned a Masters of Sciences in Sociology from England's Oxford University and a Masters of Business Administration from the Harvard Business School.
Business career
Davis began his career as an Analyst with Goldman, Sachs & Co. There, he concentrated on mergers, acquisitions and financing of large publicly traded companies.
Davis then became an investment manager at Prudential Investment Managers. There, he managed several billion dollars of commercial real estate and private equity investments in the United States and Europe. He also managed real estate developments and joint ventures with more than a dozen development partners, and acquired and managed private companies on behalf of Prudential's private equity funds and investors.
Davis then served as a Vice President at the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC). NYCEDC leads the City's major economic development initiatives, including the rebuilding of the World Trade Center, redevelopment of Yankee Stadium, the New York City's expansion in the technology industry and to the revitalization of Upper Manhattan. While at EDC, Davis has focused on contributing major underutilized assets to economically productive uses and finding alternative ways to finance the City's infrastructure. Davis has initiated, structured, negotiated and executed some of the most high profile transactions Mayor Michael Bloomberg's third term. These have included the city's largest ever land transaction which will facilitate a new cancer research center for Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital and a new nursing school for the City University of New York; New York City government's largest ever building sale, which disposed of land-marked downtown Manhattan assets for private redevelopment; and the largest mixed use development in Uptown Manhattan, which will include a new national headquarters for the National Urban League and a Civil Rights Museum.
In 2013, Davis negotiated and awarded the sale of the landmarked 346 Broadway to The Peebles Corporation for $160 million on behalf of the City of New York.
Davis was offered the role of President and COO of The Peebles Corporation, and he sought the opinion of the city of New York's Conflict of Interest Board prior to accepting the offer. The COI Board sent a formal letter stating that there was no conflict and that Mr. Davis' was able to make the move.
Davis currently serves as President and Chief Operating Officer of The Peebles Corporation, a privately held national real estate investment and development company specializing in residential, hospitality, retail, and mixed-use commercial properties headed by real estate magnate R. Donahue Peebles.
Academic career
Davis has taught, lectured, and participated on panels at colleges, universities and think tanks throughout the United States. He has also written AbOUT the global business and financial climate, economic stratification, and real estate trends.
Currently, Davis is an Adjunct Instructor of Finance at New York University School of Continuing and Professional Studies. He is directly affiliated with NYU's Shack Institute of Real Estate. At NYU, Davis teaches courses in real estate, finance, and economics at the graduate and continuing education levels. He has taught courses in Corporate Finance, Microeconomics, Real Estate Finance and Financial Mathematics.
Community involvement
Davis serves as an Associate Minister at the Historic Kelly Temple Church of Harlem and as a member of the Boards of Directors of the Friends of Harlem Hospital, and the New HORIZONS Children's Advocacy Corporation.