Teaching Record
The Numbers Behind the Classroom
In a sample academic year, students scored Devon's teaching above the faculty average in 191 of 195 measured comparisons and matched it in the rest, with his highest-rated section landing in the 96th percentile of the entire business college. Five sections, 120 anonymous responses, from official Student Opinion of Teaching Effectiveness (SOTE) evaluations at San Jose State University. He teaches at Santa Clara University's Leavey School of Business.
4.8/5
Average teaching effectiveness across five sections and 120 student responses
96th percentile
Highest-rated section scored above roughly 24 of every 25 faculty sections in the business college
191 of 195
Faculty benchmarks beaten outright, across every question, section, and comparison group; the remaining four matched exactly
30+ courses
University courses taught over eight years across three institutions
Every Section, Side by Side
The survey's summary measure of teaching effectiveness, scored 1 to 5. Department averages sit in the mid-4.4s; every one of his sections beat them, and his highest reached 4.9, territory few sections in the college touch.
| Term | Course | Responses | Devon | Dept. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall 2025 | Fundamentals of Finance · Section 05 | 20 | 4.7 | 4.4 |
| Fall 2025 | Fundamentals of Finance · Section 01 | 23 | 4.7 | 4.4 |
| Spring 2026 | Fundamentals of Finance · Section 10 | 24 | 4.6 | 4.5 |
| Spring 2026 | Fundamentals of Finance · Section 11 | 37 | 4.9 | 4.5 |
| Spring 2026 | Fundamentals of Finance · Section 20 | 17 | 4.8 | 4.5 |
The pattern holds across all 13 evaluation dimensions (relevance, responsiveness, clarity, feedback, respect, and more): his sections beat the finance department, the business college, and the university-wide faculty averages in 191 of 195 comparisons and matched them in the remaining four. Zero conceded.
In Their Words
“Seriously the greatest class I’ve ever taken. I truly learned real-life concepts, and the passion he has for all students to succeed was a pleasure to experience. I cannot stress how much I learned from him. Such a great instructor.”
“This instructor was amazing at making financial concepts super easy to understand and relatable to all business students. I appreciated that the instructor provided all the resources I needed to practice working questions and understand concepts.”
“Professor Coombs genuinely cares about the success of his students. He is always willing to answer questions, even encourages them, in order to gauge how much we are understanding his material. His care for our success is what drove me to want to do well in his class.”
“Really engaged with students, developing a friendly and open environment to learn. He used personal and real-world examples to teach the course, which I found very effective. Concepts taught were relevant and incredibly useful for future careers.”
“Professor Coombs was very welcoming, understanding, and supportive throughout the semester. Every morning, he greeted the class and made the environment feel comfortable and positive. He always made sure students understood the material before moving on and was willing to help whenever needed.”
“It was very clear he wanted the best for his students, so it was great that he was teaching finance in a way that would benefit students for their entire lives. He was good at explaining concepts and providing study resources.”
The Same Teaching, Applied to Your Team
Teaching is a craft, and most corporate training is delivered by people who do not practice it. The instruction behind these numbers is the same instruction behind Devon's executive education, AI enablement work sessions, and corporate finance training: complex material made clear, practical, and immediately usable by the people in the room.
About these numbers
SOTE is San Jose State University's official, anonymized end-of-term evaluation instrument. Figures above cover every section Devon taught in the sample year (five sections of BUS 170, Fundamentals of Finance; response rates 40% to 71%). Comparison groups are the Accounting & Finance department, the Lucas College of Business, and all SJSU faculty for the same terms. Public reviews tell the same story: 4.9/5 across 38 RateMyProfessors ratings (97.5% would take again).