DALLAS—From the development surrounding Texas A&M University's ever-expanding environs to the unique infill challenges of Drexel University's urban campus, public-private partnerships were the theme of RealShare Student Housing's third panel, "The Evolving P3 Model," in Dallas on Wednesday.

The three panelists—Joe Campbell, senior associate vice president for administrative operations at Drexel; Calvin D. Jamison, vice president for administration at the University of Texas at Dallas; and Phillip Ray, vice chancellor for business affairs at Texas A&M—joined moderator Josh Smith, vice president at Balfour Beatty Campus Solutions to discuss the interplay of this growing class of partnerships, the amount of which has more than doubled in the last five years.

Jamison relayed his university's evolution, and explained how it has always been tied to the area's employers and capital base.

“We were founded by the founders of Texas Instruments,” he said. “Basically what we had was 2,000 acres [and it was] whittled down to 700. But because of where we're located State Farm is moving business there. Toyota, too, looked at us as a talent pool land for its growth.”

The panelists agreed that in such developer partnerships, relationships remain tantamount.

“Relationship with the city is key,” said Ray. “When we go out with a mixed-use urban village, [it puts a] strain on the infrastructure. So when we're out building, it's a collaborative process.”

Campbell, with his university's inner-city setting, couldn't have agreed more.

“There's a yours, mine and ours piece,” he said. “Universities don't really want to hear about the yours just mine. So there's an education that has to occur; we spend a lot of time aligning interests so we know what we want what they need in a real estate deal.”