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Winner of 2022 Frascona Award came to teaching late, but has created outsized impact on the lives of students.鈥�

Curtis Sears still remembers the first exam he wrote as a college professor.听

Sears was making the transition from industry鈥攈e was a successful real estate attorney, broker and developer looking for a new direction after the 2008 recession鈥攚hen he created a 100-question, multiple-choice exam for his Principles of Real Estate course.听

鈥淣o one finished it. I had a total rebellion on my hands,鈥� Sears said.听

From that inauspicious start, Sears has become one of the most respected professors at the Leeds School of Business at the University of baby直播app Boulder. At commencement, he was honored with the Joseph L. Frascona Teaching Excellence Award, presented annually by students to a professor who is a strong mentor, who encourages intellectual development and creates lasting impact beyond the classroom.听

It鈥檚 the fifth time he鈥檚 been a finalist for the award; he also has won the Marinus Smith Award for teaching excellence from the university.

鈥淓arly in my teaching vocation, I got a lot of grace from students, because I think they could tell I wanted to be there, appreciated being there, cared about them and cared that they were learning,鈥� Sears said.听

That often means challenging students to develop the skills they will need to become successful professionals鈥攍ike an ability to think critically, recognize patterns and make inferences. An avid cyclist, Sears likes to tell students that studying is a lot like riding a bike.

鈥淚f you鈥檙e on a bike, if the muscles don鈥檛 hurt, you鈥檙e not changing your physiology,鈥� Sears said. 鈥淲hen you鈥檙e studying, if your brain doesn鈥檛 hurt a little bit, you鈥檙e not actually thinking and learning. If it鈥檚 not uncomfortable, you鈥檙e not really working.鈥澨�

He called the Frascona Award 鈥渓ovely recognition,鈥� saying feedback from students and alumni 鈥渋s the juice that keeps me going. I literally have hundreds of letters and emails from former students. Those notes just mean the world to me.鈥�

Sears has had a front-row seat to the growth of the undergraduate real estate program, from when it was just a certificate program to becoming a full-fledged area of emphasis, with 200 students graduating from the program this year.听

鈥淭he partnership of the CU Real Estate Center is phenomenal, the way the Center connects industry people to our program and to our students,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e have a feedback loop through CUREC that helps us stay on task, teaching students the skills they need to get hired and be successful.鈥�

It doesn鈥檛 hurt that Sears brings law- and real estate-focused experience to class鈥攁nd freely shares resources with students. Michael Kercheval, executive director of CUREC, said he appreciates that Sears鈥� classes are 鈥渇irst and foremost about learning.鈥澨�

鈥淐urtis is one of the finest teachers I have ever encountered, leading through inspiration, demanding of integrity and truly committed to preparing our society鈥檚 future leaders,鈥� Kercheval said. 鈥淗e is a joy to work with and learn from.鈥澨�

And while student recognition is what fuels him as a teacher, it was the support of his wife and three daughters that helped him pivot away from the demands of development work amid financial crisis.听

鈥淲hen I told my wife I wanted to get into teaching, she encouraged me the whole way,鈥� Sears said. A meeting with Thomas Thibodeau, then-executive director of CUREC, led to the principles course, 鈥渂ut I was still neck-deep in real estate and practicing law鈥擨 wanted to make this a career. Tom told me that doesn鈥檛 happen much, and that he didn鈥檛 want to get my hopes up. I said, 鈥楾om, I鈥檒l just keep showing up, and we鈥檒l see what happens.鈥欌�澨�

Why Leeds听 CU Real Estate Center听 Frascona Award winners