The Tennessee Association of REALTORS is proud to announce a recent graduate of the REALTOR Institute program:  PAULA THOMAS of Realty Executives Associates, with the Knoxville Area Association of Realtors.  By successful completion of this program, PAULA THOMAS, has earned the “Graduate, REALTOR Institute” (GRI) designation, signifying mastery of a specific and intensive program of classroom instruction. 

Through the REALTOR Institute program, sales professionals study marketing, ethics, contracts, finance, agency, technology and other real estate topics.  The program provides real estate professionals with the skills needed to render greater and broader services to the public and to their clients.  Graduation from the program in Tennessee requires successful completion of Ninety-Six (96) hours of coursework and Six (6) written examinations on various aspects of the courses taken. 

The GRI is a nationally-recognized professional designation.  The GRI program curriculum and standards are governed by the National Association of REALTORS.  In Tennessee, this program was first offered in 1966, and is administered by the Tennessee Real Estate Educational Foundation, Inc.  Currently, approximately one in eight REALTORS in Tennessee holds the GRI designation, with several thousand having taken one or more courses in the program series.  Courses in the REALTOR Institute program are offered at various locations in Tennessee, in cooperation with local Association of REALTORS.