University of Mount Saint Vincent’s Post

📣🏃🏽 T-Shirt Thursday & CPAwareness: A Tribute to Resilience (and Accounting Students) 🏃🏽📣 This weekend, as I gear up in purple (for Sarcoidosis awareness) and green (for St. Patrick’s Day) to run the NYC Half Marathon, my focus isn't on speed but on the finish line. My "deliberate" pace echoes the resilience and grit New York State epitomizes, the very qualities that both Frank Sinatra and Jay-Z celebrated in tributes to our indomitable spirit. It's this resilience that connects me to our accounting students and CPAs, who also exhibit remarkable tenacity, especially here in the Empire State. Accounting students, with their late-night study sessions and deep dives into complex financial concepts, mirror the dedication CPAs show during the intense tax and audit seasons. It's all about the grit required to push through challenges. This resilience fuels my pride in the Society’s ☀️Moynihan Scholarship Fund ☀️ aimed at supporting aspiring professionals in overcoming the financial hurdles to their education and career goals, and exposing high school students to our great profession. I invite you to contribute to this noble cause at this link: Donate to MSF: https://shorturl.at/ehxL0 We have many events and activities pending that will support MSF (which will celebrate its 10th anniversary next year). So stay engaged. Let's unite in bolstering the journey of accounting students with MSF scholarships, turning resilience into opportunities for those destined to shape the future of our profession. And, I’ll see you at the finish line! 🏅 QUESTION: How can WE better support our students and aspiring CPAs in their journey? NYSSCPA - The New York State Society of CPAs #TShirtThursday #Resilience #EverUpward #IfYouCanMakeItHere #AccountingStudents #Accounting #MSFScholarships

“I just went straight for accounting after my first intro to accounting class,” says Nina Petinglay, a 2024 Capitalize Campus Star. “Accounting just felt good.” Nina, a student at Mount Royal University and future Alberta CPA, has found a balance between academia, work, extracurriculars, and more…and she has tips for how you can too! Learn more about Nina: https://lnkd.in/gAACFNja

This is my summer “perch,” a place where I do a lot of reflecting. As I look back on the past year, I'm incredibly proud of our department's achievements—record numbers at a time when accounting programs across the country are facing serious declines in enrollments. Just today, a leading national CPA firm informed me that they hire more accounting majors from Saint Ben’s and Saint John’s than any other college in the entire Upper Midwest. Not bad for a couple small liberal arts schools! In my reflections, I constantly think about how our department can improve even further and, of course, what I need to do better. I do so because I want as many students as possible to join in our success. To become and remain elite, I have realized there are three things an organization needs to excel at. I'll be sharing these insights in a three-part series, in the order these realizations came to me. Early in my career, while I was in public accounting, I learned the value of OUTWORKING others. Chargeable hours were an important metric in our annual reviews. Although I’ve changed industries, outworking others can still pay huge dividends. I used to serve clients, now I serve students. That means always saying “Yes” to students who want to chat or want my support in their activities—day, evening, weekend, or summer. Yes, that requires more of my time. But students see that, appreciate it, and are drawn to our program. I'm in a good spot in life to make these time investments. With my kids grown, I can put in more hours than earlier in my career. For those of you who don’t have as much time, you need to outwork others by being as efficient as possible with the time you can invest.                                                                                                          Everyone has to make their own choice that works for them and their family. But simply put, if I can put in 50-60 quality hours while someone else can put in 30-40, I’m going to accomplish more. A lot more. No, I don’t “have” to put in that many hours. But I also don’t “have” to help develop an elite program with incredible student outcomes and enthusiasm. Outworking others is key, but it certainly isn’t the only thing. It’s probably not the most important thing. I’ll be back at my perch tomorrow to share more.

If you're interested in finding out more about the Coverdell Education Savings Account and the Qualified Tuition Plan, check out this great new blog post from the Largo-based CN Accounting & Business Services LLC. Just click below.

I had the privilege of sharing my recent classroom experiences with the Oregon Society of CPAs. As part-time Executive in Residence at Oregon State University, I provide guidance to faculty and students on bridging the gap between academia and the accounting profession. It's been a rewarding opportunity to contribute to Oregon State University College of Business, its exceptional students, and committed faculty. Please take a moment to read and share any thoughts! #gobeavs #beaversmeanbusiness #osucob #accountingmajors #accountingprofesson

We just published a new blog post about the Coverdell Education Savings Account and the Qualified Tuition Plan, learn more from your friends at Accounting Complete. Just click below.

Interesting article on the 150 hour requirement for a CPA. With the decline of students pursuing an accounting undergraduate degree and even fewer pursuing a masters degree in accounting, it begs the question, is this requirement necessary for success in the public accounting field?

So many student resources provided for here in this article from David Hartley of Anders CPAs + Advisors for high school students who want to explore the field of accounting!

It was a delight to attend part 2 of the annual Victorian Commercial Teachers Association conference which brought more insights, learnings and connections. Some of the highlights on Day 2 included: - Attending Nigel Credlin's (Wealth Advisory Director at William Buck) presentation on Investing, and how to discuss and teach investment options with VCE Accounting and Business Management students. Such financial literacy and education can not only assist with real world case study understanding with mock exam based scenarios but also benefit these young minds early on, with the power of compounding, understanding these investment options and set them up financially for their future. - Meeting Joshua Jones and Jesse Spehar from Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand and understanding their roles in career engagement and relationships with various stakeholders across the Accounting industry such as high schools, universities, professional accounting firms and the industry. As someone who as been through the educational system, professional services and industry, it was incredibly insightful to understand the relationships between all of the respective bodies and what I would be able to contribute to the field in the future as an educator. - Attending Noel Boys' (Teaching Fellow at the Department of Accounting at The University of Melbourne) presentation on the University's perspective on the future of Accounting. It was fascinating to hear from him and to see some of the myths regarding our industry debunked such as the rise of AI reducing employment opportunities in Accounting. In fact, the contrary is projected to be true, as per government data, which forecasts a 9.2% increase in jobs in accounting (Source: https://lnkd.in/ggbWMZKJ). It was thought-provoking to reflect on Noel's presentation and compare them with my own conversations and discussions with parents and students over the years in their subject choices for VCE and university course selections. #comview23

Today, President Biden released his FY25 budget. We applaud the administration's continued support for high-quality diverse educator pathways into the profession and support for the ongoing retention of educators. Addresses Critical Educator Shortages (page 70 of the document): "While the education sector has faced shortages in critical staffing areas for decades, these shortages have grown worse since the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the importance of retaining educators and building strong pipelines into the profession. Since 2021, the Administration has supported schools in addressing educator shortages, including by supporting the expansion of evidence-based pathways such as residencies and grow your own programs, which may be provided through teacher-registered apprenticeships." The Budget also includes:  - $90 million for Supporting Effective Education Development - $95 million for the Teacher Quality Partnership program  - $30 million for the Hawkins Centers of Excellence program, to expand the number of prospective teachers who have access to comprehensive, high-quality pathways and improve the diversity of the teacher pipeline - Critical investments in the recruitment and retention of teachers and school leaders - $173 million for the Teacher and School Leader Incentive Fund.  Read more: https://lnkd.in/gTDanURs