The
“Accounting professors are the ones shaping the minds, and ultimately, the careers, of our future CPAs,” stated
The winners of the 2015
Their entry, “UBuild: A Simulation Bridging Financial and Managerial Accounting,” saw teams of students making complex decisions and learning their financial implications in the context of a startup business they helped shape. The teams chose which products and quantity to manufacture and sell from a choice of three select products. The simulation was organized around six stages: business organization, sales planning and purchasing, production and inventory management, sales, financial analysis, and budgeting.
The 2015
His submission, “Diamond Foods Inc.: One Company, Two Cases, Four Courses - The Recipe for a Rich, Relevant and Exciting Learning Experience,” examined the challenges faced by the actual company in 2011. The discovery of fraud at the company by an audit resulted in the stock price dropping from $96 to $14 at Diamond Foods. Students were tasked with researching accounting and auditing literature, and were put in the roles of financial accountant and external auditor to achieve several learning objectives - including the development of research, critical thinking, and communications skills.
The winner of the 2015
In her winning entry, “Detective, Critic, Curator, Investigator - A Novel Approach to Encouraging Student Research and Creativity,” activities were developed for the students in relation to fraud examination in an accounting classroom. The activities encouraged students to explore topics that complemented the course content, promoted creativity, and allowed them to make critical choices for themselves.
The award sponsors - the AICPA,
“The AICPA thanks the AAA for providing this opportunity for the winners to present their research, as well as the much appreciated contributions from FSA and Grant Thornton - which have allowed us to recognize and reward the contributions of these exemplary accounting professors," said Steve Matzke, the AICPA's director of faculty and university initiatives, in a statement.
Each award winner was selected by a task force comprised of past award winners and members of the AICPA’s
The winners’ curricula will be included alongside past winners as part of the
The 2015 honorable mentions for their respective award submissions are as follows:
Bea Sanders/AICPA Innovation in Teaching Award:
“Introducing Accounting: Classroom Application of the Pathways Commission Vision," Melissa Larson, Brigham Young University.
George Krull/Grant Thornton Teaching Innovation Award:
“Adding a Real-World Fraud Risk Assessment to Your Fraud Or Auditing Class," Mary Jepperson, College of Saint Benedict/Saint John's University.
Mark Chain/FSA Teaching Innovation Award:
"Crowdsourcing Analysis of Government Expenditures: "Armchair Auditors" - Case and Results of its Use in a Graduate Accounting Systems Class," Daniel O'Leary, University of Southern California.
“Bringing an Accounting Case to Life with Trained Actors: Teaching Interviewing and Teamwork Skills," Genevieve Risner, Michigan State University.
For more information on the AICPA educator awards, including submission information, head to the AICPA's