INSTRUCTORS

Our school faculty consists of approved instructors who are practicing attorneys, brokers, appraisers, mortgage bankers and leaders in other real estate-related fields, bringing strong academic backgrounds to their classroom presentations, as well as a wealth of practical knowledge and skill applications. Many of our senior faculty members have been with the school for over 15 years.

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Eve Benton

Eve L. Benton is licensed as a Pre-License Course Instructor, Continuing Education Instructor and REALTOR®. Her professional background includes real estate sales, personal financial advising and commercial lending where she managed a portfolio of small business relationships that included, but was not limited to, financing equipment, investment property and owner-occupied property. She spent 11 years in the Army National Guard and finished with an honorable discharge as a Commissioned Officer. She holds a Bachelor of Business in Finance.

Rosanna Diaz, ED.D, MBA

Rosanna Diaz is a Chicago native who has had an eclectic career in sales, marketing and operations consulting, teaching, training, research and administration. She began her real estate career as a sales associate when she bought her first property in 1986. In addition to managing her own property, over the years Rosanna has worked in real estate as an appraiser, mortgage broker, leasing agent and is currently licensed as a real estate broker and instructor in the State of Illinois.

Rosanna holds a doctorate in Adult Education and Administration from National Louis University and an MBA in Marketing and Research Methods from DePaul University. In addition to teaching real estate at CAR, Dr. Diaz teaches both undergraduate and graduate level business classes to adult students, both on-ground and online.

Lin Ewing

Lin Ewing, a native Chicagoan, was licensed in 1993 and currently holds a managing broker’s license. She has served on many advisory boards and councils and has written numerous residential real estate continuing education courses. Her teaching background expands from teaching English as a foreign language in Switzerland to teaching continuing education and pre-licensing exam prep courses to REALTORS®. Lin is a member of AIREE (Association of Illinois Real Estate Educators) and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Roosevelt University.

James Kaplan

James Kaplan is a graduate of the University of Illinois/Chicago. He is a licensed real estate broker and currently serves as Managing Principal of James Kaplan Companies, LLC which invests in and manages retail properties. Jim is an active member of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC). He has been involved with the Open Center, CSM (Certified Shopping Center Manager) and has been a member of ICSC’s Continuing Education Institute faculty for over 20 years. Jim is a past Illinois State Director and State Government Affairs Chair, past Central Division Chairperson for Government Affairs, and notably received the Trustee’s Distinguished Service Award. He specializes in teaching Leasing Agent courses at RRES.

Pat Murphy

Pat Murphy has practiced law since 1978 and taught real estate continuing education and pre-licensing classes since 1990. For over 30 years, Pat has practiced law specializing in real estate and acting as legal counsel for several local real estate offices.

In addition to his law practice, Pat has been a real estate educator for over 20 years, teaching a wide variety of real estate licensing, continuing education and informational programs.  Recently he has been a contributing editor of the last two editions of Modern Real Estate Principals and in the compilation of the text for the new 6 Hour Broker Management Course mandated by the State of Illinois real estate licensing agency. He has served on multiple committees to update pre-licensing text books and develop new text books, online pre-licensing programs and managing broker texts.

As an Irish-Native American descendant (Choctaw), Pat brings a unique perspective of his experiences regarding diversity to his classroom presentations.

Leo Schwartz

Leo Schwartz is President of Schwartz & Brannin Real Estate and has been a licensed REALTOR® since 1996. He is also an Illinois Licensed Real Estate Instructor and specializes in residential and commercial properties. His background includes fundraising and marketing for the Performing Arts and a career as a free-lance musician.

Currently he is very active as a composer and conductor. He is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music and a member of ASCAP. His musical Me and Al has been presented both Off-Broadway and as part of the Global Search for New Musicals at the International Festival of Musical Theatre in Cardiff, Wales. His choral and instrumental works have been performed by musical organizations in Boston, New York City, New Jersey, Houston, Denver, San Francisco, Palm Beach, and Edmonton, Canada. He is the conductor and artistic director for both the jazz big band SHOUT and the Lakeside Pride Clarinet Ensemble.

Risa Weiss

After 14 years of success in real estate as well as 20 years as an educator, Risa Weiss has become a Pre-licensing and Continuing Education Instructor at the Chicago Association of REALTORS® Real Estate School. Additionally, she teaches custom courses at @properties and her expertise is in Managing Leads. She is a current real estate broker with @properties and has won numerous awards in the industry including: rookie of the year, Chairman’s award, President’s award, and Listing Leader. Risa has appeared on several HGTV episodes on House Hunters, My House is Worth What? and Buy Me. In her spare time she volunteers at the local high school in the Show Choir, Band and Theater departments. Risa has degrees in Education, Educational Technology, Educational Administration and Leadership and Curriculum and Development. Students will enjoy Risa’s extensive knowledge in the industry as well as her high energy and dynamic learning environment.

Frank J. Williams

Frank J. Williams received his broker’s license in 1969 and went on to become a licensed instructor and appraiser. He has served on a myriad of committees for both the Chicago Association of REALTORS® and other associations, including as C.A.R.’s president from 1989 to 1990. The Illinois Association of REALTORS® chose Frank in 1991 to hold the first Distinguished Member Award for Community Service. The following year, he was named C.A.R.’s REALTOR® of the Year. In addition to receiving prestigious awards, Mayor Richard M. Daley appointed Williams to serve on the Affordable Housing Task Force and the Real Estate Services Advisory Council.

Williams’ ongoing love for education is apparent in his track-record with the REALTORS® Real Estate School. He has taught pre-licensing courses, multiple continuing education courses, diversity courses, risk management, ethics, finance and more. Williams continues to teach with enthusiasm and love for the real estate industry. He specializes in teaching Managing Broker courses at RRES.