Student Experience: F. Scott Bauer

“After retiring from almost 30 years of service with the United States government in one capacity or another, I'm looking forward to a new life in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. I'm fortunate to be able to transition into an ownership capacity with some commercial and industrial real estate properties in the DFW area. The daily job as I continue this transition is to properly manage several properties, employing two property managers who collect rent from approximately 50 tenants at various commercial and industrial locations.

“I knew that before I made the full transition, I needed a proper education, and I'm genuinely enjoying the education at North Lake. I was incredibly lucky to take two classes from professor Theda Redwine: Principles of Real Estate I and II. Professor Redwine has been wonderfully instrumental in this process as I continue to learn and understand all the nuances of being a property owner.

“The best part of my Dallas College education was having had the opportunity to gain an overview of the Texas-specific real estate arena under professor Redwine's tutelage. It's obvious that she knows her business, and I considered it an honor to learn from her wide array of experiences over many years of being in the real estate world.

“I'd have to say the most important thing I learned in the two courses I've taken so far are that I now know I need to take even more courses. It's that typical scenario that's happened to me many times over the course of my career: I go somewhere to learn some specialization, and I ultimately come out of the experience realizing how much I don't know about that field. The first two North Lake Real Estate overview courses provided that same experience in making me realize how much more I need to learn.

“I had to take a short break from the North Lake educational experience due to the COVID-19 shutdown. Having young children myself, I had to take up the mantle of being a home-school teacher after the elementary schools closed down in the Dallas area. Hopefully, I can live up to being as good a teacher to my kids as Professor Redwine was to me this past semester. Once my kids are back in school, I look forward to taking more courses at North Lake to continue my real estate education.

“The North Lake Real Estate program is definitely preparing me for my post-government life. I'm learning an entirely different operational environment. My new life in real estate all just boils down to being able to work well with people. It's easy to discern who around me is doing the right thing and who isn't. I know I can translate these types of skills to any field I choose. If there's anything in life I've learned to succeed, it's that 1) You accomplish the mission and 2) You take care of the good people around you. I'm sure as I continue my real estate education at North Lake, I'll be able to use the Dallas College experience in full capacity as a property owner in the DFW area."

Before becoming part-owner of commercial and industrial properties in North Texas, F. Scott Bauer served for eight years in the U.S. military and 21 years as an FBI agent. He is taking Real Estate classes at North Lake to help him become a better property owner and manager. Bauer also serves on the North Lake Real Estate Advisory Board, which allows real estate professionals to advise college instructors on the skills their students will need.

Read More