Accounting Continues Tradition of Excellence

Fairmont State University's accounting professors speak the language of business as they bring the real world into the classroom each day. Outside of their classrooms, within both academic and professional circles, they are recognized as leaders in their field.

Students in Fairmont State University's accounting program are guided along the path to their degree and, subsequently, their careers, by professionals who have gained marked achievements wherever life has taken them. Not surprisingly, that same level of success follows graduates of the program as they transition into their own careers.

Faculty Bring "Real World" to Class

The West Virginia Society of Certified Public Accountants recently named Mary A. "Dede" Burnell, Assistant Professor of Accounting and Information Systems, as its Outstanding Educator of the Year for 2008. In 2007, Burnell was a finalist for the Abelina Suarez Professorship at FSU which honors excellence in teaching.

A Fairmont State faculty member for about 20 years, Burnell has taught courses in accounting, finance, computer science and information systems. She also serves as coordinator of the Fairmont State accounting program and advisor to the Student Accountant Society. In addition to teaching, Burnell advises 135 accounting and finance majors and serves on a variety of FSU and School of Business committees. She earned a B.A. in Education and a B.S. in Business Administration at Fairmont State and a Masters of Professional Accountancy at West Virginia University.

Gary K. Bennett, who recently retired from FSU as a Senior Associate Professor of Finance/Accounting, was named the WVSCPA's Outstanding Educator of the Year in 2002. During his tenure at Fairmont State, Bennett also received the Faculty Recognition Award and the William A. Boram Teaching Excellence Award.

During the years that Bennett spent teaching full-time at Fairmont State, he was also a practicing CPA. Students benefit from having professors who know not only the academic side of accounting, but have practical work experience as well.

"You can't just read about it," Bennett said. "My students have told me I bring the real world to the class every day. I always told my students that we can talk all day about the rules, but I want you to be familiar with what you will encounter when you go out there and actually work as an accountant."

This fall, the FSU School of Business will welcome Dr. Jean Engebretson to the accounting program faculty. Engebretson, a native of Marion County and graduate of North Marion High School, received her Doctor of Business Administration from Cleveland State University and her Master of Professional Accountancy and Bachelor of Business Administration degrees from West Virginia University.

Students Find Motivation, Encouragement and Support

While the doctorate degree is considered the highest level of academic achievement in other disciplines, certification as a CPA is the defining professional credential in the field of accounting, Burnell said.

Burnell is among three Fairmont State graduates who have received the WVSCPA Merit Award. Burnell said FSU students graduate with the skills they need to succeed on the exam, but the accounting program at FSU is not designed, specifically, to prepare students to meet that goal.

FSU student Alcinda Boggs started her education at Fairmont State in the accounting program at the Gaston Caperton Center in Clarksburg. Boggs said the support system established there continues to follow her as she continues her academic studies on the FSU main campus.

"That really means a lot when you are a student," Boggs said. "The motivation, encouragement and support I have received here are unsurpassed."

Between half and three-quarters of students enrolled in intermediate accounting take advantage of two extra hours per week of additional instruction that is available to them. Burnell said these are some of the reasons that FSU students graduate prepared for careers in accounting and to succeed on the CPA exam

Each semester, between 20 and 25 students graduate from the FSU accounting program. The days when accounting was a narrowly specialized profession are gone. Accountants now work as tax consultants, management consultants, information technologists, litigation specialists and chief financial and executive officers of major corporations.

Internships Give Students a Head Start on a Career

Phillip Nuce is an FSU senior majoring in accounting. He is treasurer of the FSU Student Government and is employed as an intern at Bennett's accounting firm.

"I am able to do so many things at work because of the education I am receiving in class," Nuce said. "I am very confident that I will succeed in the future at both graduate school and my career because of my education at Fairmont State. The accounting staff is amazing and is always willing to help at any time."

Russ Roberts, an accounting senior and vice president of the Student Accountant Society, said the two internships he has held as an FSU student have made him confident that he will be successful in his career.

The company where Roberts is currently interning employs several Fairmont State graduates.

"Seeing what they have been able to accomplish and how they are regarded and respected by their fellow employees make me feel very good about getting my accounting degree at Fairmont State," he said.

Roberts said at FSU he has benefitted from the amount of time the professors devote to making sure that the students understand the material.

"I feel that the biggest reason why the accounting program is doing so well and why students are having success after graduation is because of the quality professors we have here," Roberts said.

"The accounting professors at Fairmont State are very approachable outside of the classroom. They really want their students to understand what is being taught to them in the classroom and they are willing to spend as much extra time as needed to insure that the students understand the material. They are always easy to find or to get in contact with and they always encourage you to visit them in their offices if you have any questions."

Graduates Succeed in a Variety of Careers

Graduates of Fairmont State's accounting program are succeeding in a variety of careers with public accounting firms, corporations and in government.

Susan Harper, who was the recipient of the Mary B. Jaynes Award and named the Outstanding Senior in Accounting while a student at Fairmont State, has been with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service since receiving her degree in 1988.

Harper is currently employed as a Revenue Agent and Fraud Technical Advisor. Prior to that, she served a six-year assignment with Abusive Tax Avoidance Transactions where she performed tax audits of persons accused of willfully evading income tax. In her work as a Fraud Technical Advisor, Harper is a liaison between employees of the IRS Examination and Criminal Investigation departments. Each fall, Harper instructs federal income tax seminars throughout West Virginia and Pennsylvania.

"Fairmont State certainly gave me the beginning tools I needed for the position," Harper said. "The professors were always accessible and I liked the small classes."

Kenneth R. Martin Jr. graduated from Fairmont State in 1994 with a degree in Business Administration and Accounting. He received a master's degree in accounting from West Virginia University the following year. Martin is now the Managing Director of the Richmond office of Resources Global Professionals, an international professional services firm that provides project consultants to support major corporate cross-functional initiatives.

Martin said the practical experience of the professors and the degree of personal attention available to students factored strongly in his decision to attend Fairmont State.

"The professors emphasized, not only the technical knowledge required for accounting, but also the integrity, professional skepticism and professional judgment necessary for success in the accounting field," Martin said. "This has proven invaluable to me in my career and provided me with a clear, competitive edge in my initial years as an accounting professional."

Martin said he continues to look to the professors at Fairmont State as mentors in his career. He recently became a member of the Fairmont State School of Business Advisory Board.

Gary LeDonne was a first-generation college student when he attended Fairmont State. A 1980 graduate of Fairmont State, he also received his master's degree in accounting from WVU. LeDonne is now Ernst & Young's National Director of State and Local Tax Services, responsible for more than 600 tax professionals in offices across North and South America. As a senior partner, he is involved in all aspects of the firm's tax practice.

In the fall 2008 edition of the alumni magazine Maroon & White, LeDonne said Fairmont State prepared him well for his course work at WVU and, later, his professional career.

"I know that my path in life may have been very different if it had not started at Fairmont State," LeDonne said.

For more information on FSU's accounting program, visit www.fairmontstate.edu/academics.