William R. Sears was one of the greatest aerodynamicists of the twentieth century who made significant and enduring contributions to education, aerodynamics, and aircraft design. After receiving his bachelor degree in aeronautical engineering from the University of Minnesota, Sears moved to Pasadena to study under Theodore von Kármán at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). After academic and scientific success, Sears was appointed assistant professor of aeronautics at Caltech.The impending Second World War led Sears out of the classroom and into the position as Northrop's Chief of Aerodynamics and Flight Testing. There he led the team that designed the Northrop P-61 Black Widow and the Northrop YB-35 Flying Wing. Nearly five years after leaving Caltech for Northrop, Sears founded and directed the Graduate School of Aeronautical Engineering of Cornell University, in Ithaca, New York. While at Cornell, Sears also served as Editor of the Journal of the Aeronautical Sciences, which became one of the top U.S. publications in its field. Sears joined the faculty of the University of Arizona's Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering in 1974, becoming professor emeritus in 1978. After his passing in 2002 the University of Arizona, with the generous support of the Sears family, established the William R. Sears Memorial Lecture Series. The many professional honors bestowed on him include the prestigious Prandtl Ring, the von Kármán Medal, and the Guggenheim Medal.