Setting the frame:I am an investor and make my income from being a practitioner of real estate rather than a professor of it.

Being a student can provide as a valuable resource, personally I utilized a lot of business school professors to connect with investor friendly agents and lenders. 

I have a tenant who has not lost her job (professor at a private university), is paying the min 25% rent and is subleasing (property is in LA County). 

Those Professor bennies ain't cheap.

It's like a professor who teaches a business course, does that individual actually own and run their own business?

I am a semi-retired business professor, veteran, and have the time and cash flow to sponsor some involvement in some capacity in real estate investing. 

Finally, I landed a professor in real estate finance that got me all fired up. 

One of his major mentors was a professor (who specialized in coding) at his college alma mater, who was a great help to him throughout the process.

The professor challenged his students to experience the time value of money first hand by advising they borrow the maximum amount in federal student loans available, spend as little as possible during our years at school, and invest the difference.

Now, at a big school like Penn State, you might have enough demand for STR for the football season as well as for visiting professors/contractors/etc the rest of the year, but obviously you'll have to do your homework on the rest of those options.