Accounting Department Update 2018 by Isenberg School of Management

2018

ACCOUNTING DEPARTMENT UPDATE

ACCOUNTING

IN THIS ISSUE Message from the Chair

Accounting at Isenberg

Department News

Faculty Highlights

Program Innovation

Alumni Profile

Student Profile

Student Organizations

Community

Faculty List

Accounting Advisory Council

MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR DEAR ACCOUNTING ALUMNI AND FRIENDS, We are proud to share our recent successes and national recognition for the Accounting Program at Isenberg. Here’s what’s been happening in Accounting:

OUR STUDENT EXPERIENCE IS AMONG THE BEST IN THE NATION •

ur students keep winning national competitions. O Isenberg Accounting students were National Champions of the Grant Thornton Ethics Competition, National Co-Champions of the PwC Tax Challenge, and finished 2nd place nationally in the EY Diversity Competition, beating teams from universities across the nation.

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ur Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) O program is the largest in the nation, repeatedly winning the IRS’s National Award for the most tax returns prepared and the most active volunteering. In that role, our students help low-income people with their taxes free of charge.

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ur Beta Alpha Psi chapter (the nation’s foremost O honor society for accounting students) continues to earn national awards as a Superior Chapter every year.

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ur large and rapidly growing Master of Science O in Accounting (MSA) Program has adapted significantly to the demands of today’s accounting marketplace, while maintaining the rigor and quality of our AACSB-accredited MSA degree. In the process, the MSA Program has increased a massive 600% in size over the past five years, as students witness all that it has to offer, and as firms literally can’t hire enough of our students.

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I senberg’s Business Innovation Hub, a $62 million building addition, opening in January 2019, will enhance the student experience even further, with

state-of-the-art classrooms, experiential learning centers, new learning commons, and expanded career and professional development support.

RECENT HIGHLIGHTS FROM OUR NATIONALLY ACCLAIMED FACULTY •

ur faculty ranks #1 in the nation in auditor O judgment and decision-making research, and #6 in the nation for audit research overall.* With about 60% of our students going into auditing, they are being taught by the nation’s thought leaders in auditing and auditor judgment.

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rofessor Bradley Bennett was one of two faculty P nationwide to serve as KPMG’s Professor in Residence at its headquarters in New York City. Dr. Bennett was also recently the winner of the American Accounting Association’s Wildman Medal, one of the world’s greatest honors for accounting faculty. Dr. Bennett brings his unique experience with KPMG’s National Audit Innovations group and his award-winning audit research to our MSA Program’s Advanced Audit curriculum.

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s one of the world’s leading audit researchers, A Professor Chris Agoglia is serving as Senior Editor of “Auditing”, the world’s premier audit research journal, from 2017 to 2020.

The reputation and value of an Isenberg Accounting degree keeps on growing! Go Isenberg! Go UMass! Sincerely,

M. David Piercey, PhD Professor, John Spinney Faculty Fellow Accounting Department Chair

*Source: 2016 BYU Research Rankings, top 6 accounting journals, past decade 3

UNDERGRADUATE ACCOUNTING PROGRAM RANKINGS

#5 MASTERS OF ACCOUNTING PROGRAM RANKINGS

#6 #3

IN NORTHEAST U.S. SMALL FACULTY SIZES, ENTIRE U.S.

Public Accounting Report 2017 Rankings

IN NORTHEAST U.S.

SMALL FACULTY SIZES, ENTIRE U.S.

Public Accounting Report 2017 Rankings

ACCOUNTING AT ISENBERG Accountants help individuals and businesses make the most critical decisions with the utmost confidence. Highly sought-after advisors, accountants paint a picture of the health of a business—guarding it against pitfalls and opening doors to new growth opportunities. With so much at stake, Isenberg carefully prepares accounting students to skillfully interpret and record data to make informed decisions.

WE DO THIS BY OFFERING: • E xpert faculty who are top leaders in the auditing field. Our faculty ranks #1 world-wide when it comes to auditor decision making and #3 overall in auditing. Considering that the majority of students start in the auditing field, give yourself a true competitive advantage by learning from our award winning faculty in teaching and research. • Flexible and efficient curricular options. Our curriculum will allow you to graduate in 7 semesters with your BA and complete a Master’s of Science in Accounting all within 4 years plus a summer. This is a cost-effective, timely approach to meeting education requirements for CPA certification. • Teaching, tutoring and mentoring opportunities. Many of our talented seniors are teaching assistants in various courses across Isenberg, including accounting. They are actively involved as tutors and mentors.

• Hands-on experience that gives students real-world skills, like the Semester in the Profession internship program, our Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, and case challenges offered by many of the accounting firms. • A ACSB Accounting Accredited Program. AACSB represents the highest standard of achievement for business schools worldwide. Isenberg is part of the 1% of the world’s 13,000 business programs have earned the AACSB accounting accreditation. AACSB-accredited schools produce highly skilled graduates valued by employers over graduates from nonaccredited schools. Isenberg is proud to have this distinction.

Isenberg’s BBA yields employment opportunities in most private accounting and finance jobs and offers exceptional preparation for a graduate degree. Isenberg’s Master of Science in Accounting (MSA) program allows students to complete their degree in as few as two semesters after the senior year. Taught by some of the world’s top researchers, Isenberg’s PhD program in Accounting prepares students for exceptional academic careers in business schools. Isenberg also offers a transitions program that allows students without an accounting degree to gain entry into the MSA program after successful completion of an accelerated prerequisite curriculum.

DEPARTMENT NEWS

FACULTY NEWS

A key ingredient in the Accounting program’s continuing success is our investment in faculty members who are accomplished educators, researchers, and—in the case of the four standouts below—superior administrators/leaders.

Accounting Department Chair David Piercey’s research focuses on the effects of accounting regulations on auditors, investors, and companies. As John Spinney Faculty Fellow in Accounting, Dave teaches undergraduate and master’s courses in financial accounting and financial statement auditing and a PhD seminar in behavioral and experimental research methods. Dave’s PhD in accounting is from the University of Illinois.

Associate Department Chair Tim Mitchell teaches managerial accounting, performance measurement, and managerial control and costing systems. An accounting PhD graduate of the University of Kentucky, Tim was previously at the University of Waterloo in Ontario and Georgia State University in Atlanta. A CPA, he brings extensive professional experience to Isenberg in financial management, budgeting and forecasting, financial reporting, and auditing.

In her new role as MSA Director, Kerri Bohonowicz ’06 ’07 MS brings eclectic industry experience to Isenberg’s fast-growing Master of Science in Accounting program. Most recently, Kerri was CFO of Community Health Care Center of Franklin County in Greenfield. Before that, she was VP of Financial Reporting with Chicopee Savings Bank, and an auditor with both Wolf and Company in Springfield and PricewaterhouseCoopers in Boston.

William Brown ’02 PhD, who became Associate Dean of Isenberg’s Undergraduate programs in January, excelled as Accounting’s Associate Department Chair from 2013 through the end of 2016. In that role, Bill, an associate professor of accounting, led the department’s successful AACSB reaccreditation and revitalized its MSA curriculum.

HIRING

FIRMS

OUR STUDENTS

CohnReznick

KPMG

RSM

Deloitte

Grant Thornton

PricewaterhouseCoopers

DEPARTMENT NEWS ISENBERG ACCOUNTING PROGRAMS EARN TOP 30 RANKINGS IN ANNUAL SURVEY Isenberg’s undergraduate accounting program has earned a ranking of 25th and its master’s degree accounting program a ranking of 30th among the nation’s accounting programs in Public Accounting Report’s annual survey. A monthly newsletter devoted to competitive intelligence and the business side of the public accounting profession, Public Accounting Report bases its rankings on a national survey of accounting professors. In the Northeast, Isenberg’s undergraduate program ranked 5th and its MSA program ranked 6th. We are in great company with schools such as NYU, Wharton and Penn State.

PROGRAM NEWS Last summer, 25 students completed the program. That cohort successfully became MSA students in the fall, with many securing competitive internships through Isenberg’s Chase Career Center. “We will follow up with the firms to see how those internships pan out,” notes Isenberg Director of Professional Programs for Accounting Jeanne Bagdon. All of the Transitions students, she adds, have joined or plan to join Isenberg’s MS in accounting program. “We launched the Transitions Program in response to the high number of MSA inquiries from individuals with nonaccounting backgrounds. A lot of folks are looking to change careers into accounting,” she remarks. “Many in the industry value accountants with specialized backgrounds or professional experience in other industries like, for example, health care.”

Nearly 1,000 accounting professors from 200 U.S. colleges and universities that offer accounting degrees participated in the survey, now in its 36th year.

MSA PROGRAM GROWTH

AUSPICIOUS DEBUT FOR ACCOUNTING TRANSITIONS PROGRAM Created to give non-accounting majors and professionals a path of entry into Isenberg’s MS in Accounting Program, Isenberg’s Accounting Transitions Program has earned high marks from students and employers alike since its debut last summer. To complete the online program, students must achieve a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher in four accelerated courses devoted to financial accounting and reporting, corporate governance and risk attestation, cost management, and taxation. Applicants who complete the coursework in good standing receive exemption from the GMAT exam and admission to the MS program.

2015

2016

2017

Total new student admissions

109

158

New students admitted from outside the Isenberg School

FACULTY HIGHLIGHTS As a productive member of Isenberg’s nationally prominent behavioral accounting research group, Assistant Professor Bradley Bennett is a staunch advocate for its approach in research and practice. “In practice, behavioral considerations can bring auditors and other professionals a more critical perspective that ultimately improves their insights with risk and uncertainty,” he observes. “They, for example, might become more aware and critical of how certain factors impact the way they gather, evaluate, and/or make decisions with client data and information.” They might gain additional insights, he continues, into how new and different communication technologies can influence auditors’ strategies and decisions. In August, Professor Bennett began a prestigious three-month residency with KPMG’s James Marwick Professor in Residence Program. Based at KPMG’s Department of Professional Practice in Manhattan, Bennett is working with the firm’s Audit Innovation Group, which develops and fosters innovative

KPMG PROFESSOR IN RESIDENCE BRADLEY BENNETT approaches to the audit process and provides professionals with best practices that improve audit quality and client service. He was one of two professors chosen for the first year of the new program. Bennett’s interactions with partners and other professionals are shedding light on a dynamic, changing profession and the education of accounting professionals. He is also gaining an immersive, firsthand look at current auditing practice, including the evolving skills and capabilities valued by his host. That includes KPMG’s premium on the impact of new technologies, which Bennett plans to explore during his residency. “Their impact at firms will prove pivotal for the profession, affecting audit procedures and methodologies,” he predicts. “I think it’s inevitable that auditing standards and regulatory inspection processes will have to be reexamined and changed,” he insists. “Without question, an understanding of those evolving issues will contribute to my research and inform my teaching.” The role of technology has been a periodic theme in Bennett’s research. In a recent working paper with Rick Hatfield of the University of Alabama, the Isenberg professor explored different perspectives and outcomes in auditors’ deployment of computermediated versus face-to-face communication with clients. Compared with managers and partners, staff auditors, the researchers found, are more comfortable using computer-mediated communication (CMC) in a wider variety of interactions with clients.

BENNETT RECEIVES WILDMAN MEDAL AWARD Bradley Bennett was a co-recipient of the 2015 AAA/Deloitte Foundation Wildman Medal Award for their paper, “The Effect of the Social Mismatch Between Staff Auditors and Client Management on the Collection of Audit Evidence.”

“While auditors may applaud CMC gains in efficiency, our findings also suggest that they and other mediums with reduced channels are less appropriate for complex and unique problem-solving tasks,” Bennett remarks. You lose, for example, nonverbal cues, including body language, verbal pauses, and changes in pitch. In contrast, face-toface interactions spawn more content and followup questions as well as more relationship-building statements. A bottom line: a richer interactive “picture” arms auditors with greater skepticism — a key professional asset. In a second paper, with Cornell University’s Ryan Guggenmos (a recent graduate of Isenberg’s PhD program in accounting), Bennett investigated investor responses to the alignment of a company’s image/brand with the communications platforms that it employs (in this case, the social media platforms Facebook and Twitter). The researchers found that when a company’s image and media platforms don’t align (e.g., a less innovative company using an innovative communication mode), it takes longer for investors to process the information and make their “buy” decisions, even though their investment amounts were no different from those where investor perceptions of the company and media platform did align. Back at Isenberg, Bennett’s aim in his undergraduate and masters-level audit classes, he emphasizes, steers clear of creating legions of behavioral accounting researchers. “But I do want Isenberg students to become more comfortable with uncertainty, problem solving, skepticism, and complexity,” he insists. “In that, taking an innovative approach to challenges and problems, especially as new technologies emerge, will impact the way decisions are made and problems are solved, yielding more rewarding careers.”

NEWLY TENURED PROFESSOR LEADS ISENBERG’S ACCOUNTING PhD PROGRAM One of two professors at Isenberg to achieve tenure this past year, Associate Professor Elaine Wang also coordinates the PhD program in Accounting. Epitomizing the program’s national prominence in behavioral accounting research, Professor Wang investigates individual judgment and decision making in accounting and auditing as well as linguistic aspects and “real” effects involving financial reporting. In the classroom, she teaches undergraduate courses in intermediate and international accounting and PhD seminars in behavioral accounting research. In “Fair Value Accounting and Managers’ Hedging Decisions”—a widely cited 2013 study in The Journal of Accounting Research—Professor Wang and two coauthors demonstrated conditions where the presentation of fair value accounting’s influence on information can lead to suboptimal decisions. In the linguistic arena, she has explored how positive language can backfire in earnings judgments and the influence of readability on investors’ judgments.

PROGRAM INNOVATION Seven months later, Isenberg rolled out a second MSA forensic offering, White Collar Investigations. Also taught by an alumnus, Eric Forni ’04, the course dissects relevant federal laws and the legal context of forensic accounting, focusing on white-collar fraud investigations involving publicly traded companies. A practicing public sector lawyer, Forni tailored a law course that he had previously designed, honing in on the current legal and regulatory environment and related skills for business leaders. “Fraud incidents, allegations by whistleblowers, business disputes, and regulatory compliance violations aren’t black swan events,” insists Isenberg alumna and forensic accountant Lynda Schwartz ’86. “They are perennial risks that call for proactive management as a (hopefully) non-routine business process. When such issues arise, Isenberg graduates should be confident and ready to fully address the issues at hand,” she emphasizes. Leadership, skill, and integrity in responding to incidents, she says, help organizations emerge even stronger and more resilient than before. For several years, Lynda has been on a mission to infuse forensic accounting skills into Isenberg’s MSA curriculum. In 2015, she devised and taught a colloquium that surveyed the subspecialty, including business and employee fraud and embezzlement, potential violations of SEC and other regulations, and evaluation of damages in litigation. The colloquium included real life case studies, data analytics, and participation from Isenberg accounting alumni. In the spring of 2017, Schwartz and Isenberg launched Introduction to Forensic Accounting, the MSA program’s first three-credit course devoted to the subject. Since its debut, the course has enjoyed a fantastic response, attracting over 120 MSA students.

AN ISENBERG SPECIALTY The ultimate aim of these and future forensic accounting offerings, Schwartz emphasizes, is for Isenberg to develop a specialty—ultimately yielding a graduate certificate in the subdiscipline. A crucial ingredient in the initiative, she continues, is participation from Isenberg alumni who identify as forensic accounting professionals. Isenberg, she says, “has a significant cadre of alumni who became leaders of thriving forensic and investigative teams. As a group, they have elevated forensic accounting in New England and nationally.” In addition to Forni, they include Jeff Sallet ’93 of the FBI, Peter Resnick ’93 at Charles River Associates, Tony Jordan ’96 at EY, LeeAnn Manning ’98 at Grant Thornton, Robert Temkin ’62 and Elisabeth da Silva ’92 at Gulman DiCicco and Company, and many others. Lynda herself continues to serve as an expert witness in litigation and regulatory matters through her own firm, Upland Advisory, in Newton. “Forensic accounting has matured as a recognized subspecialty in accounting in the last couple of decades,” Lynda observes. “It’s remarkable how many Isenberg alumni have been luminaries and leaders in the field. If you ask me, our Isenberg education gave us a rock-solid technical foundation, but it also taught us about being scrappy and entrepreneurial. Maybe that’s why so many of us forged new ground in forensics.”

With department chair Dave Piercey and former cochair (now Isenberg undergraduate dean) Bill Brown thoroughly on board for the forensics push in the MSA program, Schwartz will continue to recruit her fellow alumni in what will likely become a new market specialty for the school. “Once I started teaching, I found myself even more committed to Isenberg’s success,” she confesses. “By helping create an innovative program, I am one of the Driven! Most importantly, I’m always energized to work with our terrific students. Their engagement, their insight, and their drive are infectious.”

A CAREER REACHING FAR BEYOND THE NUMBERS “For me, every day is a new day with new problems and puzzles to solve,” notes 20year FBI agent and forensic accountant Jeffrey Sallet ’93. In November, the Isenberg accounting grad took the reins of the FBI’s Chicago office, the Bureau’s fourth largest. On April 12, Isenberg’s Accounting department will honor Jeff as Alumnus of the Year. In his annual visits to Isenberg, Jeff underscores the discipline’s value to a gamut of industries. “You will always be employable,” he tells the students. “And in auditing you really learn how to talk to people.” After getting his start as an auditor with EY, Jeff excelled briefly in forensic work with Arthur Andersen. That preceded a distinguished FBI career highlighted by combatting organized crime in and around New York City, overseeing the FBI’s Boston Division, including its response to the Boston Marathon Bombings, and recent posts as head of the Bureau’s New Orleans division and Section Chief in Washington for public corruption, civil rights, international human rights, international money laundering, and other concerns. It’s a career that reflects another Jeff Sallet pronouncement: “Accounting is the integrity of numbers.”

ALUMNI PROFILE

TONY JORDAN ’95 BBA

NUMBERS DON’T LIE. BUT THEY MIGHT TELL YOU WHO DID. The basic definition of forensic accounting is the application of accounting in a legal context. As Ernst & Young Partner and Isenberg alum Tony Jordan tells us, it’s a valuable practice, but not always an appreciated one. “It’s an interesting world”, he says, “because my clients never want to see me again. If they see me, that means that they have a problem. You don’t want to see the fireman at your house either, right?” In many ways a combination of CPA and CSI, forensic accounting uses accounting principles to answer questions that could lead to the discovery of a simple bookkeeping error, or implication of something far more serious – like fraud. It’s a

growing field that draws from practitioners with a variety of skills, as Tony explains. “I think the most exciting part of our business is combining the many things our talented people do. So whether it’s combining an accounting skill set with data analytics, or cybersecurity expertise, or whatever. Combining all those skill sets to bring solutions to clients – that’s what’s really exciting.” The variety of accounting options at Isenberg gives our alumni that in-demand diversity. It’s one reason growing numbers of Isenberg alumni are entering into forensic accounting every year, and are in high demand, which doesn’t surprise Tony at all. “Being driven, to me, is not that you’re just taking a set of goals and running ahead with those. It means that you’re constantly looking for change, and to make things better. It’s a big reason why Ernst and Young is one of the biggest employers of Isenberg students. As a big four firm, we recruit at hundreds of colleges all over the country. And we routinely go back to Isenberg, because of the quality of the students, and the quality of the education they get. Isenberg does a great job of having the different disciplines, so we see some valuable skill sets. And those are the types of people that we want to hire every day.”

MAKING DIFFERENT IMPACTS. SHARING A COMMON DRIVE. “My clients never want to see me again. If they see me, that means they have a problem.” Tony Jordan on Forensic Accounting drivethedriven.com

STUDENT PROFILE STUDENT PURSUES ACCOUNTING AND COMMUNITY ASPIRATIONS When Stephanie Castro ’17 ’18 MSA begins her full-time role as Tax Associate with PricewaterhouseCoopers next October, she will bring a well-honed skill set to her employer. Currently an MSA candidate (degree expected in June), Stephanie recently sharpened her accounting skills by teaching weekly sections in Isenberg’s Principles of Accounting course. Last summer, after earning her BBA in Accounting from Isenberg, she excelled as a Private Company Services Intern with PwC, completing tax returns for partnerships, high net-worth individuals, and trusts. And six months earlier during tax season, she thrived as a volunteer with VITA, Isenberg’s partnership with the IRS, where accounting student volunteers prepare returns for lower-income taxpayers and international students. “My ultimate aim as an accounting/business professional is to found one or more nonprofit organizations that deploy those skills to benefit minorities and financially challenged communities,” notes Stephanie. That includes, she emphasizes, empowering individuals through financial literacy. In the meantime, Stephanie plans to grow as an accounting professional with PwC beginning next fall. That’s a strong bet in view of her road-tested relationship with the firm, which includes two other internships: a PwC Start internship focusing on social responsibility initiatives, and a tax services stint with PwC’s health industry technology group.

COMMUNITY CONCERNS During her four years at Isenberg, Stephanie made the most of on-campus opportunities to pursue community service. Besides helping oversee tax returns in Isenberg’s VITA project, she was one of five student coordinators on campus who worked with a provost throughout 2017 to build a

STEPHANIE CASTRO ’18 MSA

‘‘

My ultimate aim...is to found one or more nonprofit organizations that deploy those skills to benefit minorities and financially challenged communities. program to improve recruitment and enrollment of underrepresented students. Among her many roles: demystifying college applications and financial aid hurdles. Stephanie actively served diversity initiatives at Isenberg as a member of the Beta Alpha Psi accounting honor society and mentored students through the Association of Latino Professionals for America (ALPFA). And she periodically supported Assistant Dean Melvin Rodriguez and Enrollment Management Director Christina Monte in their programs to attract and equip underrepresented students for success at Isenberg. Both, notes Stephanie, have been valued mentors in her own Isenberg success story. So have accounting professors Cathy Lowry and William Brown and Director of Accounting Professional Programs Jeanne Bagdon. And Stephanie gives mentorship status to a former student as well: “In my first year at Isenberg, Brittany Turcotte ’15, then an Accounting senior and ALPFA president, gave me invaluable insights and advice—advice that helped me secure my first internship with PwC.”

STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS BAP In 2017, Delta Nu, Isenberg’s Beta Alpha Psi (BAP) accounting honor society chapter, continued to expand its national footprint. Drawing on the diverse talent of its 150 members, the dynamic student chapter earned elite honors in two national BAP competitions. In the first, the chapter earned first place honors and $2,500 in BAP’s Ethics Award, sponsored by Grant Thornton. In the two-round competition, which entailed a proposal, budget, and assessment of its impact, a team from the chapter improved ethics content in Isenberg course offerings, including training of teaching assistants in ethicsfocused case studies. The chapter also placed second nationally in BAP’s EY-sponsored Inclusive Leadership Award, earning $2,000 for its proposal to foster a culture of chapterwide inclusiveness and diversity. To that end, the team proposed a strategy and measureable action plan to “enhance diversity and provide opportunities for Delta Nu members to think, learn, and act inclusively.”

“Our success in these competitions is striking when you consider that there are 220+ BAP chapters, all with eligibility to compete,” notes Cathy Lowry, the Isenberg lecturer who has excelled as Delta Nu’s advisor since 2011. The Isenberg chapter, she adds, has earned Superior Chapter status—BAP’s highest distinction—for six years running. Significant in the chapter’s community work, Lowry continues, is its recruitment of the lion’s share of students who prepare taxes for lower-income community residents and international students and academics through VITA, Isenberg’s annual tax preparation assistance partnership with the IRS. The chapter also gives back to the community through its participation in toy and clothes drives.

NATIONAL STUDENT CASE COMPETITION PLACEMENT FOR 2017 UMass Amherst National Champions, 2017 Grant Thornton Ethics Competition UMass Amherst National Co-Champions, 2017 PwC Tax Challenge Competition UMass Amherst #2 Nationally, 2017 EY Diversity and Inclusivity Competition

ACCOUNTING STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS FOSTER PROFESSIONAL MOBILITY, COMMUNITY SERVICE ALPFA, NABA, AND THE ACCOUNTING ASSOCIATION Isenberg accounting students also participate in smaller, focused student groups. The school’s Accounting Association focuses on regional and private accounting firms, offering students targeted networking and information gatherings. Isenberg’s ALPFA (Association of Latino Professionals for America) and NABA (National Association of Black Accountants) chapters also foster networking, professional opportunities, and community service. At the same time, BAP, ALPFA, NABA, and Isenberg promote the school by reaching out to students in the state’s community colleges and high schools with information sessions and scholarships.

“In Massachusetts, Isenberg is the standard bearer for accounting and business higher education set by the state’s Department of Higher Education,” remarks Lowry, who is on the statewide consortium that sets unified standards for student transfers to four-year colleges from high schools and two-year colleges. “Two-year accounting degrees prepare graduates for professions in bookkeeping,” she remarks. “A key outreach message from Isenberg and its clubs is that the school’s four-year program goes way beyond that by preparing you for a wealth of exciting roles in financial services.”

COMMUNITY Those learning experiences included workshops, where the students practiced team building and oral and written presentation skills. In addition, they morphed into small student teams, competing in a business case. And they practiced career development essentials like resume writing, networking, and job search skills. Just as valuable, C.A.M.P. excelled as a bonding experience. The students lived together in UMass Amherst’s stylish Commonwealth Honors College dorms and ate together in UMass Amherst’s awardwinning dining commons.

SUMMER C.A.M.P. IN JULY AT ISENBERG? For 35 high school students, it was the easy first choice versus fun in the sun. For 19 years, the Isenberg School of Management has hosted Massachusetts high school students predominantly from underrepresented backgrounds in an allexpenses-paid* weeklong immersion of accountingand business-focused learning experiences. Also known as the Careers in Accounting and Management Professions program, C.A.M.P. features business-focused talks, workshops, skill-building activities, and field trips. The idea behind the successful initiative, notes Isenberg Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Programs Melvin Rodriguez, is to motivate minority high-schoolers to pursue collegiate majors, and ultimately careers, in accounting and other business areas. During the week, Isenberg faculty members introduced the students to accounting and its subdisciplines of auditing, managerial accounting, tax, and forensics. Students also received informative introductions to marketing, operations management, and other Isenberg majors/career opportunities.

After hours, they enjoyed an ice cream social, movie night, bowling, and other recreations. In a more serious vein, they spent a day in Boston, where they got behind-the-scenes business tours at PricewaterhouseCoopers and Fenway Park. And they visited Massachusetts Society of Certified Public Accountants headquarters, where a panel of accounting professionals explored careers and issues in the profession. The students, notes Rodriguez, were nominated for C.A.M.P. by their high school guidance counselors. “For the students, C.A.M.P. is an information accelerator, exposing them first-hand to Isenberg and a wealth of career-focused insights and information,” he added. “With C.A.M.P. under their belts, they are bound to make better informed decisions about college and their future careers.”

*C.A.M.P. receives generous support from the Massachusetts Society of Certified Public Accountants, Susan and Richard Gulman ’79, Scott ’92 and Melissa Kaplowitch, and Margery ’84 and Mark Piercey. The Big Four Accounting Firms also provide support with contributions and gifts for the students.

STUDENT TAX PREPARERS HONE PROFESSIONAL AND COMMUNITY SERVICE On any given night during tax season, Isenberg accounting students prepare about 30 domestic returns for local lower-income U.S. residents. “We do the same for around 50 international returns, mostly for overseas students and scholars in the Five College Community,” observes Cathy Lowry, who with fellow Isenberg accounting lecturer Sean Wandrei coordinates VITA, Isenberg’s annual tax preparation assistance partnership with the IRS. Last year, Isenberg students prepared 1700 returns, saving their VITA clients $1.2 M. The VITA initiative, which this year runs three nights a week from February 6 to April 12, engages 80 to 90 student volunteers in work that, Lowry notes, “combines real world practice with giving back to the community.” “They’re really doing what any professional tax preparer would do,” Lowry continues. In handling domestic returns, which Lowry supervises, the students secure big savings for their clients through earned income, education, and child tax credits. That, says Lowry, can become a teaching moment, where Isenberg accounting students empower their clients with crucial financial information. “Two thousand dollars in savings is a big deal for lowerincome residents,” she emphasizes. In their international work, supervised by Wandrei, the students adapt returns to the IRS’ different tax arrangements with scores of nations. It is gratifying, he notes, to save a Chinese student, for example, $5K via an understanding of that nation’s regs. Isenberg accounting lecturer Pam Trafford also joins the VITA team once each week. The bottom line according to Lowry: “Based on our number of returns and volunteers, our VITA team consistently places in the top five nationally.

FACULTY CHRISTOPHER P. AGOGLIA

KERRI BOHONOWICZ

PhD Accounting, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, 1999 / BS Accounting, Florida Atlantic University, 1989

MSA, Isenberg School of Management, UMass Amherst, 2007 / BBA, Accounting & Information Systems, Isenberg School of Management, UMass Amherst, 2006

Lecturer

Richard Simpson Endowed Professor

ORHAN AKISIK Lecturer

Not testing PhD, University of Stuttgart, 1989 / MA, Bogazici, 1984 / MB, Bogazici, 1982

AUDIT JUDGMENT & DECISION MAKING*

WILLIAM D. BROWN, JR. BRADLEY BENNETT

Master of Science in Accounting Program Director & Clinical Associate Professor

PhD, University of Alabama, 2012 / MAcc, Millsaps College, 2001 / BBA, Millsaps College, 2000

PhD Accounting, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2002 / BBA, Accounting, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 1997

Assistant Professor

ALL ACCOUNTING JUDGMENT & DECISION MAKING*

JEREMIAH W. BENTLEY Assistant Professor

PhD Management, Cornell University, 2016 / MS Management, Cornell University, 2015 / MAcc, Brigham Young University, 2010 / BS Accounting, Brigham Young University, 2010

GRAHAM GAL

Associate Professor PhD, Michigan State University, 1985 / BA in Economics, University of Michigan, 1976

YOON JU KANG

Assistant Professor PhD, University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign, 2012 / MAcc, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2006 / BBA, Ewha Womans University - Seoul, Korea, 2003

AUDIT*

CATHERINE WEST LOWRY

Senior Lecturer, Director of Firm Relations

SEAN WANDREI Lecturer

MBA, Isenberg School of Management, UMass Amherst, 2001 / BA Accounting, Isenberg School of Management, UMass Amherst, 1996

MS Taxation, University of Hartford, 2011 / BS, Bryant University, 1996

W. TIMOTHY MITCHELL

Associate Department Chair

ELAINE (YING) WANG

Doctor of Philosophy in Business Administration Accounting, University of Kentucky, 2008 / Bachelor of Science in Business Administration Accounting, Auburn University, 1987

PhD Coordinator & Associate Professor PhD, Nanyang Technological University, 2011 / BS, Renmin University of China, 2006

M. DAVID PIERCEY

Department Chair, John Spinney Faculty Fellow & Professor

ROBERT WHITED

PhD, University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign, 2006 / M.Acc., Brigham Young University, 1999 / BS, Brigham Young University, 1999

PhD, University of Tennessee, 2014 / MAcc, Wake Forest University, 2008 / BS, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, 2007

MATTHEW SHERWOOD Assistant Professor

PhD, University of Kansas, 2016 / BS, University of Michigan â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Dearborn, 2001

Assistant Professor

FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING JUDGMENT & DECISION MAKING*

PAMELA TRAFFORD

YAO YU

Senior Lecturer II

Assistant Professor

MBA, University of Montana, 1982 / BA, Anthropology, 1977

PhD, Nanyang Technological University, 2015 / BBA, Xiamen University, 2009

*Faculty rankings In U.S., BYU, top 6 accounting journals, last decade

ACCOUNTING ADVISORY COUNCIL The department relies on the Accounting Advisory Council to assist us with strategic planning and program evaluation. The members serve as our vital link to the developing needs of the profession. We are the recipients of their hard work, wisdom, and guidance.

TODD BARI, ’94

JOHN MICALIZZI, ’94

EDWARD J. CALLAHAN, ’79

BRIAN PALMER, ’95

MARYTERESA CREALESE, ’86

MARGERY L. PIERCEY, ’84

COLLEEN DOWD, ’00

PETER I. RESNICK, ’93

SHELLEY DUNCAN, ’92

EDWARD M. SARGAVAKIAN, ’88

JOSEPH FLOYD, ’83

LYNDA SCHWARTZ, ’86

RYAN HURLEY, ’03

JOHN SPINNEY, ’87

JASON JANOFF, ’93

JODY STEEL, ’97

ANTHONY C. JORDAN, ’96

DANIEL TEMPESTA, ’92

JOHN MCNAMARA, ’81

CHRISTOPHER VAN VOORHIES, ’03

PricewaterhouseCoopers, Boston, MA

E.J. Callahan & Associates, Boston, MA

KPMG, Boston, MA

PricewaterhouseCoopers, Boston, MA

Deloitte, Boston, MA

Floyd Advisory, New York, NY

RSM, Boston, MA

Ernst & Young, Boston, MA

Sullivan Bille, Boston, MA

RSM, Boston, MA

White Mt. Insurance Group, Boston, MA

CPA, CGMA, Boston, MA

Charles River Associates, Boston, MA

State Street Bank, Boston, MA

Upland Advisory, Newtonville, MA

Bracebridge Capital, Boston, MA

Deloitte, Boston, MA

Nuance Communications, Burlington, MA

KPMG, Boston, MA

EMERITUS MEMBERS STEPHEN C. APPE, ’80 BBA

STEPHEN B. NEEDEL, ’60 BBA

JAYNE BURKE, ’77 BBA

JAIME PEREIRA, ’76 BBA

DAVID J. CLARKSON, ’73 BBA

MICHAEL QUINLAN, ’84 BBA

WILLIAM P. DALY, ’69 MBA

SANDRA B. ROSS, ’79 BBA

HOWARD W. FORMAN, ’56 BBA

B. ROBERT RUBIN, ’66 BBA

TIMOTHY GRADY, ’93 BBA

E. RICHARD RUTFIELD, ’55 BBA

D. GIBSON HAMMOND, ’77 MS

JAMES J. RYAN, ’82 BBA

GORDON B. HOFFSTEIN, ’74 BBA

PAUL H. SIENKIEWICZ, ’75 MBA

PAUL G. KELLIHER, ’74 BBA, ’75 MBA

BASIL A. STEWART, ’90 BBA

BARBARA KIPP, ’81 BBA

LINDA SUPRANOWICZ, ’93 BBA

THOMAS J. LIRO, ’74 MBA R’TRND

RALPH J. TAKALA, ’62 BBA ROBERT H. TEMKIN, ’64 BBA

PricewaterhouseCoopers PricewaterhouseCoopers McGladrey

Biddle Instruments

Forman, Itzkowitz, Berenson, & LaGreca, P.C. PricewaterhouseCoopers Deloitte, Retired Be Free Inc.

UMASS/PricewaterhouseCoopers, Retired PricewaterhouseCoopers

Allmerica Financial, Returned 3/2010

CATHERINE WEST LOWRY, ’96 BBA, ’01 MBA

Needel, Welch & Stone, Retired Ernst & Young, Retired

PricewaterhouseCoopers Ross Financial Services

PricewaterhouseCoopers, Retired Rutfield & Hassey Deloitte Tofias

Crane & Co. Inc.

Ernst & Young, Retired

UMASS/Meyers Brothers Kalicka

RICHARD J. MALONEY, ’71 BBA Altico Advisors LLC

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