AT Think

Last Wednesday, EY held their Diverse Abilities Leadership Summit at their Times Square office. The event was held to promote awareness and acceptance of people with differing abilities, and to "create opportunities for people of all abilities and the businesses which employ them," according to the event's program.

On Monday, Thomson Reuters announced the launch of a new sales lab for Michigan State University students, in partnership with MSU’s Eli Broad College of Business. The opening was marked by a ribbon-cutting and appreciation ceremony on December 5 at MSU’s Lear Corporation Career Services Center.

Last Tuesday, Pace University won the 11th annual national College Federal Reserve Challenge in Washington D.C. - a competition that tests students’ understanding of the U.S. economy, monetary policymaking, and the role of the Federal Reserve System. The Challenge was the culmination of five district competitions held around the country.

Members of The Georgia Society of CPAs (GSCPA), wishing to raise awareness of financial literacy education amongst young people, recently coordinated the second annual statewide GSCPA Financial Literacy Day for eighth-grade students. The program, titled "Millennial Money," gave CPAs throughout the state an opportunity to teach local eighth-grade students the importance of financial education, and how budgeting and saving can impact both their personal and professional lives throughout their futures.

Accountants will increasingly need to help the organizations they work with manage their financial risks, according to panelists at an event sponsored by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants and the Institute of Management Accountants.

On Thursday, Thomson Reuters released a special report, Retrospective on Key Tax Developments in 2014, providing a thorough briefing of key developments in 2014, including the tax extender provisions as well as many of the rates, dollar caps, and other key figures that changed over the course of the year.

The AICPA has announced that five students transitioning from community colleges to four-year universities have been awarded the inaugural AICPA Foundation Two Year Transfer Scholarship. Funded by the AICPA Foundation, the awarded students have earned an associate’s degree in business, accounting, finance or economics with a declared intent to major in accounting at a four-year college or university and will receive $1,000 towards their tuition for the 2014-2015 school year.

Accounting Degree Review, an online resource for accounting education and related topics, recently published their 2014-2015 affordability rankings for residential undergraduate accounting programs. The rankings include the thirty most affordable accounting schools based on annual tuition and fees for out-of-state incoming freshmen enrolling in the 2014-2015 academic year.

From December 8 - 10, the AICPA will hold their Conference on Current SEC and PCAOB Developments, held at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C. Key speakers will include Daniel Gallagher, Commisioner of the SEC in Washington, D.C. and James Doty, chairman of the PCAOB in D.C., who will have a conversation session on Monday.

Tomorrow happens to be Giving Tuesday, a global day dedicated to giving back, and a pair of CPAs have some advice for those who are planning their end-of-year charitable giving.