USD Magazine, Summer-Fall 1993

FRED BAHR Professor of Business Administration Years at USD: 17

Last Christmas, Fred Bahr received more than 300 cards from former students. The business professor says those cards mean even more to him than the 14 military decorations he earned during three wars (World War II, Korea, Vietnam) and the numerous busi– ness honors he earned over the years. "They prove to me that I achieved what I set out to achieve as a teacher, and that was to touch students' lives," the 67-year-old Bahr says. The desire to be a true teacher to students drew Bahr to USD in 1976. Bahr retired from the Army in 1969 after being selected for full colonel, and decided to pursue a full-time teaching career at The George Washington University. Want– ing to be closer to family, he returned to Southern California and accepted a teaching position at USC a year later. "When I showed up for work the first day, I found I had an office adjacent to one occupied by a young man named Jim Burns," Bahr remembers with a grin. The two developed a strong friendship, and a year or so after Burns had accepted the position of dean of the business school at a place called the University of San Diego, he asked his friend to join him. When Bahr traveled to San Diego to check out the school, his years of military experience told him the small, young uni– versity had the most important ingredient for success: strong leadership. In the military, you learn that leadership is everything, he explains. "When I met Art Hughes, Sally Furay and Jack Boyce, I knew they, along with Jim Burns, were the kinds of leaders that would accomplish what they set out to do." In addition to strong leadership, USD attracted Bahr because it allowed him to put teaching first. "I believe there's a place in academia for research and publishing, but I think the primary function of teachers should be to teach." If the opinions of USD students are any indication, teach– ing is something Bahr did very, very well. For 12 years stu– dents ranked him as one of the best professors in the business school, and at this year's senior class banquet, he was greeted with a standing ovation. To hear Bahr talk about his students, it is easy to under– stand their enthusiasm. "Overall, there has been an emphasis in academia on beat– ing the student down. I don't believe in that," he says. "I like to tell students, 'You are smarter than you think you are, and I am going to prove it to you.' As the semester goes on and stu– dents have done things they didn't think they were capable of, I love to watch their self-confidence grow and to see them think, 'Hey, I am pretty smart!"' Bahr, whose classes consistently had more students than spaces, views college as a sort of "boot camp" for life. "Our

business as a university is to get students ready for the real world, and the real world is getting to be a tougher and tougher place. I try to teach them how to take needed risks and chances.'' Risking and taking chances are two things Bahr knows well. Reared during the Depression by a single mother who he describes as one of the first "professional women," Bahr learned early the lesson of those tough economic times. "You either stood up and fought, or you let it beat you. My mother was a fighter; she had high expectations for us. She wouldn't let my sister or me give up.'' When it literally came time to fight-in World War II– the 17-year-old Bahr marched to the Army recruiting center and enlisted. At 18 he was a commissioned officer, and at 19 he commanded a 200-man unit. Being in charge of other peo– ple's lives changes a person, and Bahr learned something about the preciousness of life and time the hard way. "You have to enjoy each day and live each day like it's going to be your last," he says. "You can't waste time looking back. You have to make the most of the time you've been given.'' Bahr practices what he preaches. While teaching at USD, he served as the regional consultant for State Farm Insurance, as well as sitting on the boards of several companies. Now that he has retired, he jokes that he doesn't know how he ever had time to work. "Betty (his wife) and I already have eight trips planned, we work out at the gym six days a week, and I have numerous projects around the house I want to finish. I don't know when this retirement is going to start.'' The couple also plans to spend more time visiting their four children and eight grandchildren, and Bahr relishes the thought of tending the 300 rosebushes and numerous fruit trees that surround their Rancho Bernardo home. Although he'll be busy in retirement, Bahr says he will miss USD. "I have worked in a lot of places, so you can believe me when I say USD was really Shangri-La.'' (Editor's Note: Bahr would love to hear from former stu– dents and colleagues. Letters should be sent to 12378 Reata Court, San Diego, CA 92128.)

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