TULLupdate
Achieving excellence in accounting education
Message from
the Director
FALL 2014 VOLUME 14, NUMBER 2
CohnReznick makes five-year,
$250,000 pledge to support
UGA’s Tull School of Accounting
The 2014 – 2015 academic year is one of great
change in the Tull School. Ben Ayers has moved
to the Dean’s office, and I have stepped into his
Director’s role on an
interim basis while we
search for a new permanent Director. It is my
privilege to hold this
position, even for a short
while. Having been at
UGA for the past 12
years, I know first-hand
what a great faculty and
Steve Baginski
student body we have.
Now I am learning more about wonderful and
supportive alumni and friends in the extended Tull
School family.
My transition has been smoother than expected
due to great staff support. Marsha Dickerson,
Paula Smith, and Jessica Ammons remain in place,
but in your interactions with the School, you will
notice several new names and faces. Dean Ayers
moved Laura Clark to the Director of the Terry
CohnReznick has pledged a gift of $250,000 to the J. M. Tull School
of Accounting at the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business.
In recognition of the pledge, which will be paid over the next five
years, the Tull School of Accounting will designate a CohnReznick
Teaching Fellow. The funds for the teaching fellowship will support faculty research and teaching, student organizations and scholarships, and
other priorities for the school.
“This is the second time in recent years that CohnReznick has made
such a gift to the Tull School,” said Steve Baginski, Interim Director.
“This investment in the school is a significant commitment to our students and faculty. We thank our CohnReznick friends and alumni for
this act of leadership.”
CohnReznick LLP ranks among the nation’s top 10 accounting firms,
with a staff of more than 2,500 located in offices from coast to coast.
The firm provides a broad range of services and industry expertise to
both public and private companies.
continued on page 7
inside
alumni spotlight
student honors
graduate and student news
4
6
9
Tull faculty and staff celebrate with Ben Ayers his appointment as Dean of the Terry College of Business. Michael and
Linda Bamber graciously hosted the event at their home on
Lake Oconee in Greensboro, Georgia.
TULL update
1
FACULTYactivities
Linda Bamber was the keynote speaker at the Virginia
Accounting Research Conference in Charlottesville, Virginia,
in May. The topic was “Give and ye shall receive: Even in
accounting academe.”
Synovus Financial Corporation has elected Tim Bentsen to
its Board of Directors.
In February, Denny Beresford presented “Lessons Learned
from WorldCom and Fannie Mae” to auditing students at
Georgia College & State University in Milledgeville.
Denny moderated the Financial Reporting Panel at
the Ohio Institute of Management Accountants Annual
Professional Development Conference in April at Kent State
University. Panel members included FASB Vice Chairman,
former FASB Chairman, a PCAOB Board member, and an
SEC Deputy Chief Accountant.
In August, he presented “An Insider’s Perspectives on
WorldCom and Fannie Mae: Two of the Largest Accounting/
Ethics Failures in History,” at the American Accounting
Association Ethics Symposium in Atlanta.
He served as a panelist on “Audit Quality Indicators –
Update from the Profession” at the Center for Audit Quality
Audit Practice Meets Audit Research Symposium.
Denny also served as a panelist in a session on
“Implementing the Pathways Report - Reshaping the
Accounting Professoriate: How to Successfully Integrate
Professionally Oriented Faculty into Your Faculty,” and
“Leveraging Interactions between the Academy and the
Profession: A Discussion of Successful Examples,” at the
American Accounting Association Annual meeting in Atlanta.
John Campbell’s paper, “Are Ex-Ante CEO Severance
Pay Contracts Consistent with Efficient Contracting?,”
co-authored with Sandy Klasa (University of Arizona) and
Brian Cadman (University of Utah), has been conditionally accepted for publication in the Journal of Financial and
Quantitative Analysis.
In August, John served as a sub-editor for the Financial
Accounting and Reporting Section (FARS) paper selection
process for the annual meeting in Atlanta. In addition, he has
been asked to serve as co-editor for the paper selection process for the 2015 annual meeting in Chicago.
Tina Carpenter received the 2014 Terry College of Business
Outstanding Teaching Award.
The Journal of Management Accounting Research has accepted
for publication Margaret Christ’s paper, “Outsourcing the
Information System: Determinants, Risks, and Implications
for Management Control Systems,” co-authored with James
Bierstaker (Villanova University), Long Chen (George Mason
University) and Natalia Mintchik (University of Cincinnati).
This spring, Margaret presented her paper,
“Compensation or Feedback: Motivating Performance in
2
TULL update
Multidimensional Tasks,” co-authored with Scott Emett
(Cornell), William Tayler (BYU) and David Wood (BYU) at
Michigan State University.
Margaret also served as the chairperson of the
Distinguished Contribution to Accounting Award for the
American Accounting Association (2013-2014).
The American Accounting Association Council has appointed
Mark Dawkins as its Diversity Section Representative.
Jackie Hammersley presented her paper, “Auditor Mindsets
and Audits of Complex Estimates,” (co-authored with Emily
Griffith (Tull Ph.D. 2014, now at University of Wisconsin
- Madison), Kathryn Kadous (Emory), and Donnie Young
(Georgia Tech) at the International Symposium on Audit
Research in Maastricht, The Netherlands in June.
Effective June 1, Jackie will serve as an editor for
Auditing: A Journal of Practice and Theory for 2014-2017.
She also was invited to continue to serve on the editorial
board of The Accounting Review for 2014-2017 and was
invited to join the editorial board of Behavioral Research in
Accounting for 2014-2017. She continues on the editorial
board of Accounting, Organizations and Society.
Finally, in June, Jackie received an Access to Personnel
Grant from the Center for Audit Quality for her project titled
“Ego Depletion and Evidence Integration While Auditing
Complex Estimates,” co-authored with Emily Griffith and
Patrick Hurley (University of Wisconsin - Madison).
Casey Schwab’s paper, “Noncompliance with Mandatory
Disclosure Requirements: The Magnitude and Determinants
of Undisclosed Permanently Reinvested Earnings,” coauthored with Benjamin Ayers and Steve Utke, has been accepted for publication in The Accounting Review.
This spring, Casey presented his paper, “The Accuracy of
Complex Estimates: Evidence from Reported Stock Option
Fair Values,” coauthored with Brian Bratten (University
of Kentucky) and Ross Jennings (University of Texas), at
the University of Toronto. This fall, Casey will present his
research at the University of Arizona, Indiana University, and
the University of Houston.
Erin Towery presented her paper co-authored with Leslie
Robinson (Dartmouth College) and Bridget Stomberg titled
“One size does not fit all: The effect of guidance intended
to improve comparability on relevance,” at the 2014 JATA
Conference in San Antonio, Texas, the 2014 Colorado
Summer Accounting Conference in Telluride, Colorado, and
the Southeast Summer Accounting Research Conference
(SESARC) in Atlanta.
At the 2014 AAA Annual Conference in Atlanta,
Erin presented her paper, “Taxpayer behavior under audit
certainty,” co-authored with Ben Ayers and Jeri Seidman
continued on page 9
Tull Faculty Member Receives Prestigious Wildman Award
This past August, the American Accounting Association presented Tull faculty member Tina Carpenter the 2014 AAA/
Deloitte Foundation 2014 Wildman Medal Award for her
paper, “Auditors’ Use of Brainstorming in the Consideration
of Fraud: Reports from the Field,” co-authored with Joseph F.
Brazel (North Carolina State University) and J. Gregory Jenkins
(Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University). The paper
was published in the July 2010 issue of The Accounting Review.
The medal and award are presented annually to the author(s)
of an article, chosen from their research published during the
five previous calendar years, which is judged to have made the
most significant contribution to the advancement of the practice
of public accountancy (including audit, tax and management
services). The award, sponsored by the Deloitte Foundation,
included a medal and a monetary prize and was presented to
each of the three authors at the 2014 AAA Annual Meeting in
Atlanta, Georgia.
Tina’s research investigates the prevention and detection
of fraudulent financial reporting. She was awarded the AAA
Auditing Section Outstanding Dissertation Award for her
dissertation on fraud brainstorming. Three of her papers
have been awarded the AAA ABO Section Outstanding
Manuscript. Tina has been invited to serve on a fraud
panel at the PCAOB, and her research has been cited by the
PCAOB, the SEC, and in TIME magazine.
She was interviewed by the United States Department of
Defense for her expertise in fraud and was invited to write a
fraud chapter in The Routledge Companion to Auditing book.
She was also recently selected by the AAA and PCAOB to
serve on a research team to synthesize fraud research.
Congratulations to Tina for her continued research success
and the peer recognition of her impact on auditing practice.
(L-R) Tina Carpenter and Ashley Austin
Current Ph.D. Student and ADS Scholar Ashley
Austin Awarded KPMG Research Grant
Ashley Austin and Tina Carpenter received a research
grant award from KPMG for their project, “Audit Firm
Communication: Can Fraud Simulation Games Improve
Auditors’ Professional Skepticism and Fraud-related
Decisions?” The award winners were selected in a highly
competitive process by KPMG partners. Ashley Austin is a
Ph.D. candidate in the Tull School who currently teaches an
undergraduate auditing class and serves as a research assistant
to Tull faculty. Her research interests involve understanding
and improving auditors’ professional skepticism and fraud
skills. Ashley’s other research awards include an Access to
Auditors Award from the Center for Audit Quality and the
Auditing Section of the American Accounting Association
to study factors that affect interview documentation and the
resulting effects on audit judgments related to complex estimates (with Jackie Hammersley). Ashley earned both a BS in
Commerce with a concentration in accounting, and an MS
in Accounting at the University of Virginia. She worked for
KPMG in the Richmond, Virginia office as an associate and
then senior associate in the audit practice. She was recognized
as an Accounting Doctoral Scholar by the American Institute
of Certified Public Accountants, a program created by the
world’s largest international accounting firms, in conjunction
with the AICPA Foundation, to advocate for an increased
number of accounting professors with real-world experience
in audit and tax.
This is not the first time Ashley and Tina (who is Ashley’s
dissertation chair) have been recognized for their outstanding research. Last fall, the team was presented with a grant
from the Institute for Fraud Prevention for their proposal,
“The Effect of Alumni Affiliations on Auditors’ Professional
Skepticism.” Congratulations to Ashley on her continued
success in obtaining research grants.
TULL update
3
alumni spotlight
Ed Heys
As a high school student, Ed Heys never doubted he would
end up at the J.M. Tull School of Accounting. His father,
after all, was a trained accountant and a senior executive at
J.M. Tull Metals Co., the company from which the school
took its name in 1978.
“I ended up right where I was supposed to be,” says Heys.
“The professionalism of the accounting program and faculty
really impressed me. I never really thought about doing anything else.”
Three decades after graduating from the University of
Georgia, Heys is now managing partner of Deloitte LLP’s
Atlanta office, a 2,300-employee operation that spans audit,
tax, consulting and financial advisory services for a wide
variety of Fortune 500 clients. As Atlanta’s largest public
accounting firm, Deloitte works with industries ranging from
consumer products to financial services, technology and
healthcare.
From the firm’s offices on the twentieth floor of the 191
Peachtree Building, Heys can look out and see the Equitable
Building a few blocks away in downtown Atlanta, where he
first worked for Deloitte after graduating. He’s been with the
firm ever since – 31 years – growing with the firm as the size
of its Atlanta workforce increased nearly twenty-fold.
“We have been fortunate to live in a business community
that’s growing and attracting new businesses and corporate
headquarters,” says Heys. “Over time, we’ve expanded the
types of services we provide, including internal accounting
controls and technological expertise to meet the evolving
needs of our clients.”
When asked if he has any advice for newly minted accountants, Heys advises them to get ready for accelerating change,
lots of opportunities and a greater need for global perspectives.
“Your career is going to have more twists and turns, more
variation, more opportunity to do different things,” says Heys.
“You need to be open to change and opportunity when it’s
presented to you. The speed and pace at which things occur
has certainly increased. Meanwhile, there has been increased
regulator involvement in our profession, which does increase the
expectations of our accounting and auditing professionals.”
The Tull School laid the foundation for Heys’ career. Dr.
James Don Edwards, who in 1976 was appointed the first
J. M. Tull Professor of Accounting at UGA, was a formative
mentor to Heys as he moved through the accounting program and even after he graduated.
“He always stressed the importance of the accounting profession,” says Heys. “He wanted students to recognize it as a
profession and carry themselves accordingly. That made a big
impression on me.”
UGA also heavily emphasized – and continues to emphasize today – the application of real-world knowledge with
practical guidance from professionals. Heys says UGA puts
real effort into grounding education in real-world examples.
“The types of things we dealt with in the classroom were
real-life examples, real issues that we’d be dealing with once
we joined the accounting profession,” Heys says. “Tull pre-
Ed Heys
pared me well. It emphasized the right things, and I think
that still holds true today.”
Contrary to accountants’ longstanding reputations as
introverted number-crunchers, the Tull School makes a point
of emphasizing that communication skills are crucial to succeeding in the business world. Oral debates and position
papers on accounting matters were ingrained in the coursework during Heys’ time at the school.
That fits the reality of the workplace. Heys says accountants who thrive are those who are able to connect with
people – clients, colleagues and others.
“You’re working with your peers, and in teams. To get
the job done, you have to have very strong interpersonal and
communication skills,” says Heys.
The mentoring and support from UGA didn’t stop when
Heys graduated and accepted a job offer from Deloitte.
Gerald McCarley and Dwight Mathews, UGA alumni who
worked as partners in Deloitte’s Atlanta office, helped Heys
chart his path. Professional development aside, Heys also met
his wife Lori – a graduate of the University of Florida’s Fisher
School of Accounting – in Deloitte’s Atlanta office.
Over time, Heys has led major efforts in the Atlanta community. He served as chairman of the Boys and Girls Club of
continued on page 9
4
TULL update
Educating the Next Generation of Auditing Professors
The J. M. Tull School of Accounting resides in a large
public graduate research institution. A significant part
of a Tull School faculty member’s job is the education of
undergraduate and masters degree students in accounting.
However, being a part of a graduate research institution adds
additional faculty activities – the production of high-quality
academic research and the education of the next generation of
accounting professors via the accounting doctoral program.
Producing high-quality doctoral graduates has an important
multiplier effect. These newly minted Ph.D.’s continue the
missions of educating accounting students of all levels far into
the future. Tull auditing Professor Jackie Hammersley has
produced an impressive body of impactful research and has
leveraged her success to educate a member of the next generation of auditing professors, doctoral student Emily Griffith.
Jackie Hammersley joined the Tull School of Accounting
in 2003 after receiving her Ph.D. at the University of
Illinois. Producing one’s own research is a mission in its own
right and a precursor to educating Ph.D. students. Success
came early to Jackie. In 2004, the American Accounting
Association presented Jackie with its prestigious Competitive
Manuscript Award and The Accounting Review published her
dissertation in 2006. Jackie continued to be highly productive in her pre-tenure years, publishing excellent papers and
establishing a national reputation in two main areas: auditor
decision-making and the causes and consequences of internal
control weakness and failures to remediate them. Her ability
to identify interesting and important research questions led to
substantial success in obtaining research grants. Although the
likelihood of winning a research grant is low, Jackie won multiple grants from the Center for Audit Quality (CAQ), two
of those grant victories shared with doctoral students. The
CAQ’s grant programs are designed to help junior auditing
faculty and doctoral students gain access to research resources, a significant constraint that can limit success in an academic career. In light of her great success with the grant programs, Jackie recently participated in a CAQ video designed
to help junior faculty produce successful research proposals.
Jackie is living proof that top academics do not slow
their productivity after receiving tenure; in fact, an advancing research career leads to leadership roles, new research
opportunities, and the further personal development necessary to prepare future professors for their careers. Jackie has
seized these opportunities. She has served for several years
as an editorial board member of The Accounting Review,
Accounting Organizations and Society, and Auditing: A
Journal of Practice and Theory (AJPT). Recently, Jackie began
a three-year term as an Editor for AJPT. In academic publishing, authors submit their papers to journals for consideration
for publication. An editor with some expertise in the area
chooses reviewers who will read and provide comments on
the paper. Based on the reviewers’ reports and her own reading of the paper, the editor makes a decision about the paper.
The editor can accept the paper for publication, invite a revision for additional consideration, or reject the paper from the
journal. Jackie says “having responsibility for these decisions
Jackie Hammersley
is a little daunting as the outcomes are so important to the
authors’ careers, so I will work very hard be to a fair and
helpful editor.”
In addition to communicating research results by publishing papers, direct presentations to policymakers provide a
rare and highly visible opportunity to increase the impact of
research. In October, Jackie travelled to Washington, DC to
provide input to the Public Company Accounting Oversight
Board (PCAOB) on how to revise the auditing standards
related to complex estimates and fair value measurements.
The PCAOB invited Jackie to summarize and interpret what
academic research has shown related to auditing estimates
based on her recent work in the area. “It was nice to see that
our research may affect the new standards because improving
the practice of auditing is really the ultimate goal of all of my
research. I also enjoyed learning a little more about the inside
workings of standard setting at the PCAOB,” Jackie says.
Successful participation in the entire research process –
obtaining grants, designing and executing research, communicating results, reviewing papers, editing journals – prepares
a faculty member to educate the next generation of professors.
Jackie notes that “every research project I have started since I
earned tenure has included at least one doctoral student as a
co-author. I view the doctoral program as an apprentice program
and working closely with faculty on research helps students gain
experience that supports what they learn in their coursework. It
continued on page 11
TULL update
5
STUDENThonors
Tull graduated 12 Leonard Leadership Scholars in the spring of 2014: Sarah Beatty, Jesse
Chan, Paul Chitwood, Chelsea Clever, Benjamin Fogle, Morgan Lester, Sarah Lowe, Julia
Bowen Newsom, Margaret Patton, Brittany Sink, Holly Tomlinson, and Joseph Youngo.
The Tull 2014 Spring Honors Banquet was held on April 17 at the Athens Classic Center.
Allison Karl O’Kelly, Founder and CEO of Mom Corps, was the guest speaker for the event.
Tull Professor Tina Carpenter served as Master of Ceremonies and announced the following
scholarship recipients:
Behrend Family Scholarship
Allison Schneider
Robert Richardson “Ricky”
Rice Ph.D. Fellowship
Lisa Austin Hinson
Voynich Family
Graduate Fellowship
Steve Utke
E. Dan Smith Outstanding
Undergraduate Student
Award
Benjamin Bowers
Meli Arant Memorial
Scholarship
Katherine Daugherty
Paula Denise Baughtman
Memorial Scholarship
Justyn Fudali
Malcom Byron Davis
Memorial Scholarship
Sarah Lowe
Lisa L. Graves
Memorial Scholarship
Carmen Arias
James David Holtz
Memorial Scholarship
Chelsea Clever
Stuart S. Kennedy
Memorial Scholarship
Meredith Lorys
Ceasare & Mary Laverne
Maestri Scholarship
Tina Zhang
Phillip Jiang
Flexible Products Award
Courtney Daniel
6
TULL update
Linda S. Bamber Ph.D.
Scholarship
Ashley Austin
FSA Graduate Student
Achievement Award
Jesse Chan
CohnReznick Scholarship
Steven Mroczkowski
Crowe Horwath
Scholarship (Junior)
Jenna Fleming
Vanessa Espinoza
KPMG Outstanding
BBA Award
David Liow
KPMG Outstanding
MAcc Award
Melanie Kesler
Mauldin & Jenkins
Scholarship
Laura Collins
Moore Colson Accounting
Achievement Award
Sarah Patterson
Georgia Society CPAs,
Academic Excellence Award
Victoria Bolick
Devon Pagoaga
Amanda Tinsley
Emily Velie
Crowe Horwath
Scholarship (Senior)
Morgan Seymour
Moore Stephens Tiller
Scholarship
Jesse Chan
Deloitte Academic Award
Jason Gong
Tull School Academic
Excellence Award
Devon Pagoaga
Sarah Beatty
Lela Norras
Joseph Baron
Bradley Goldstein
Deloitte Community Award
Ty Nelson
Porter Keadle Moore’s
Dennis R. Beresford
Scholarship
Casey Little
Becker Scholarship
Yingxue Yang
Colton Huebner
Gleim Scholarship
Alexandra Harnack
Kacey Hawkshead
Tage Kelkar
Allison Schneider
CPAexcel Scholarship
Nicole Crescenzi
Erin Gates
BDO Award
Jasmine Hill
Bennett Thrasher Award
Peter “Wilson” Couture
Carr, Riggs &
Ingram Award
Ashish Acharya
Dixon Hughes Goodman
Scholarship
Samuel Yusef
Elliot Davis Scholarship
Amy Perkins
Ernst & Young Tax
Research Award
Emily Eisele
Frazier & Deeter
Accounting Award
Emily Velie
Grant Thornton Excellence
in Community Service
Award
Audry Hsu
Grant Thornton
Leadership Award
Robert Kaus
PricewaterhouseCoopers
Scholarship
Liangqiong “Mary” Chen
Smith & Howard Scholarship
Cameron Roepe
Turner Accounting
Scholarship
Sagar Shah
Warren Averett Award
Stephanie Brown
BAP Advisor’s Award
Eric Morgan
Carly Saxon
Margaret Grady
Courtney Daniel
Morgan Seymour
Josh Silverman
Justyn Fudali
Habif Arogeti & Wynne’s
Merrill D. Wynne
Scholarship
William Merritt
continued on page 7
Message from the Director
continued from page 1
Student Honors
continued from page 6
PREVIOUSLY
ANNOUNCED
AWARDS
Beta Alpha Psi Spring
2014 Initiates
Kylee Arbuckle
Daniel Bailey
Mary Bateman
Olivia Boggs
Margaret Bolger
Rebecca Butler
Chandler Byars
Liangqiong Chen
Laura Collins
Sarah Cordell
Hunter Davis
John DiLeo
James Dilz
Mark Dwyer
Grant Eddy
Vanessa Espinoza
Daniel Fields
Jenna Fleming
Catherine Fogarty
Joan Freihofer
Christian Hall
Keaton Hong
Kaitlin Huguenard
Riana Ilango
Gabriela Irizarry
Christina Koch
Matt LaMontagne
Ryan Lehman
Justin Liberatore
Mary Elle LoCicero
David Lumsden
Bailey McDearis
Allison McElreath
Steven Mroczkowski
Zachary Murphy
Anna Neumeister
Nilay Patel
Daniela Romero
Erin Shultz
Mckenna Smith
Jaclyn Speer
Sarah Hope Strickland
Robert Thomson
Sara Walls
Abigail Weinstein
Beta Gamma Sigma
2014 Inductees
Juniors
Stephanie Brown
Derek Hammock
Jessica Herrmann
Seniors
William Merritt
Julia Newsom
MAcc
Jesse Chan
UGA Graduate School
2013-2014 Assistantships
Abhishesh Acharya
Naixian Cai
Minh Phan
2014 Deer Run Fellows
Chelsea Clever
Brooke Shedd
Who’s Who Among Students
in American Universities
and Colleges Awards
Olivia Boggs
Tina Zhang
Bennett Thrasher PC
Scholarship
MacKenzie Kruse
Collins/Moody & Company,
PC Scholarship
Steven Mroczowski
The Educational Foundation
of the GSCPA Accounting
Scholarship
Robert Kaus
Gifford, Hillegasse &
Ingwersen, LLP Scholarship
Adebisi Aiyeola
Jasmine Hill
Robinson Grimes &
Company Ross E. Robinson
Scholarship
William Merritt
Windham Brannon
Excellence in Accounting
Scholarship
Chelsea Clever
Undergraduate Programs. Christie Tarpley, who had served
in the past as our undergraduate advisor, moved into Laura’s
role as MAcc Coordinator. We hired Caitlin Ward to replace
Christie. Caitlin is a UGA graduate with a degree in sociology and previously worked as a student affairs professional
in the engineering program at UGA. We also share a new
undergraduate advisor with another department. Litashia
Carter formerly worked in administration and student services
in Atlanta Public Schools. We welcome Christie to her new
role and Caitlin and Litashia to the Tull School. I thank the
staff for going the extra mile to help me out in my new role.
We also added three new faculty. Robert Resutek was hired
as an Assistant Professor and is teaching Intermediate II this
fall. Robert earned his Ph.D. at University of Texas - Austin
and spent the last five years teaching at the Tuck School of
Business at Dartmouth. He researches the role of financial
accounting in capital markets. Jennifer Chapman also joined
us on a part-time basis, teaching Tax Policy and Research
this fall. Jennifer is an Associate Professor of Legal Studies
and Accounting and Assistant Dean at Georgia Gwinnett
College and a former Adjunct Professor of Tax Law at the
UGA School of Law. Finally, this coming spring, John Wise
will teach Systems I and Systems II. John is a retired Ernst
& Young partner in advisory services. He brings 15 years of
auditing experience and many more in information systems
and risk mitigation to the classroom. We are excited to have
all of these individuals as our faculty colleagues.
Our undergraduate and MAcc students continue to pass
the CPA exam at an extraordinary pace (84% first-time pass
rate in the most recent year) and do well in the job market.
Approximately 75% of our undergraduate students continue
in our MAcc program which has grown to over 180 students.
96% of our MAcc graduates were placed upon graduation.
Our Ph.D. program is also doing quite well. We have
launched somewhat of a Big Ten “invasion” in the past two
years. Our most recent three graduating students were placed
at Illinois (David Koo), Wisconsin (Emily Griffith), and
Michigan State (Wayne Nesbitt). Creating the next generation
of accounting professors is an important mission of the Tull
School, and I want to thank all the research-active faculty
who engaged in the dissertation-advisor, seminar-teacher, and
paper-reviewer activities which were necessary to educate and
place these students. Of course, our congratulations to David,
Emily, and Wayne for putting in the hard work to excel.
The fall semester is going well, and our classes are full.
The Dawgs continue to battle on the field and the hard
court. Students are making their final decisions about the
offers they have, and we just admitted a new class for next
spring. It is tough to beat the excitement of fall in Athens,
Georgia!
TULL update
7
Meredith Hightower: My Time at the GASB
Upon graduation from the Terry College of Business and
the Tull School of Accounting in 2012, I never could have
anticipated the exciting professional opportunities that would
present themselves just a year later. After leaving Athens, I
returned to my home state of Texas and obtained my Master’s
in Professional Accounting (MPA) from the University of Texas.
While in Austin, I also pursued a personal interest in politics
and spent the year working part time in Governor Rick Perry’s
office in the Budget, Planning and Policy division. After my
first few months at the capitol, I learned about a unique opportunity that combined my personal interest in government and
professional interest in accounting. The University of Texas has a
strong legacy in the Governmental Accounting Standards Board
(GASB) Postgraduate Technical Assistant (PTA) program. I was
fortunate to be one of the PTAs selected to begin the program
in July of 2013. Tull provided me with a great foundation to
pursue these opportunities.
While at the GASB, I witnessed many unique and dynamic
events, including the appointment of a new GASB Chairman,
David Vaudt, the celebration of the organization’s 30th anniversary and the completion of Concepts Statement No. 6,
Measurement of Elements of Financial Statements, a project
initiated in 2005. The GASB was established in 1984 and is
recognized by governments, the accounting industry and the
capital markets as the official source of GAAP for state and
local governments. The GASB’s mission is to issue standards
and other communications that result in decision-useful
information for users of government financial reports, including owners of municipal bonds, members of citizen groups
and legislators. GASB standards also help government officials demonstrate their accountability over public resources.
As a PTA I worked on many exciting projects covering a wide
array of accounting topics. During the fall, most of my time
was devoted to the Financial Reporting Model Reexamination
project, which was added as pre-agenda research in August 2013.
For the first step of our research we examined the comprehensive annual financial reports (CAFRs) of nearly 500 governments
across the country. We used this information to analyze and
assess governments’ use of Statement No. 34, the basis of the
current financial reporting model. Next, we hosted 11 roundtable discussions in major cities across the country and gathered
feedback from legislators, auditors, credit analysts, citizen groups
and preparers of financial statements on the costs and benefits of
the current financial reporting model. After thorough analysis,
I helped my team write a 250-page research memo presented to
the Board. The Board will use our team’s research to decide if it
will add the project to the current technical agenda. The project
should conclude sometime in 2020.
In the spring of 2014 I spent most of my time working on
the asset retirement obligations (ARO) pre-agenda research
project. There are still some areas of accounting covered
by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and
the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) that
the governmental environment has yet to address. Thus, we
helped pioneer research for a new GASB standard for AROs.
Our research consisted of examining financial statements
for public utilities listed with the American Public Power
8
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Meredith Hightower
Authority (APPA). We also spoke with auditors and preparers of financial statements for public power plants. Through
our research we concluded there is a need for a GASB
standard for booking asset retirement obligations, specifically for nuclear and coal-fired power plants. The process
for decommissioning these plants can be extremely costly.
Although some governments currently book AROs using
FASB Statement No. 143 or the GASB standard for landfill
closures, not all governmental utilities currently report their
AROs, leading to understated liabilities and a lack of comparability. A new GASB standard for AROs will address both of
these issues.
During the year we also issued GASB standards for pensions and other postemployment benefits (OPEB). Being a
part of these project teams was particularly interesting given
the national news coverage about governmental entities’
underfunded pension liabilities. Prior to the issuance of the
GASB pension standard, many government financial statements failed to adequately capture deteriorations in solvency.
It is important that credit analysts, municipal investors, legislators and taxpaying citizens have the most accurate information when it comes to gauging solvency and the financial
stability of governmental entities.
My incredible experience at the GASB would not have
been possible without the support of the faculty and staff
at the Terry College of Business and the McCombs School
of Business. The professors at Georgia and Texas constantly
challenged and encouraged me to seek out new and unique
opportunities. I am tremendously honored and grateful to
have represented the University of Georgia at the GASB this
past year.
News About Tull Graduates and Students
Senior Tull students Mary Bateman and Audry Hsu rep-
chapter as State Vice President for 15 years.
resented UGA this June at BDO’s annual national summer
leadership program, Pathway to Success, in Chicago, Illinois.
Shelby Collins (BBA & MAcc ’02) and her husband wel-
The program provides college students approaching their
comed baby Lily Diane Collins on June 23. Shelby is current-
second or third year of study an inside look at the public
ly teaching at the State University of New York in Buffalo.
accounting profession. Students attend presentations, work on
team projects, make group presentations, and interact with
Ivy Cadle (BBA ’00 & MAcc ’02) received the received
BDO professionals from all over the nation.
the Award of Achievement for Outstanding Service to the
Young Lawyers Division of the State Bar of Georgia. Ivy is
Atlanta’s Moore Colson has promoted Kelly Bird (BBA ‘05
an associate attorney at Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell
& MAcc ‘07) to Senior Manager in the Business Assurance
& Berkowitz, P.C. in Macon and teaches Accounting for
Practice. Caroline Geiger (BBA & MAcc ‘12) has been pro-
Attorneys as an adjunct professor of law at Mercer University
moted to Senior Associate in the Business Assurance Practice
Law School.
and was also a recipient of the Moore Colson Peak Award
for the first trimester of 2014. Stephanie George (BBA ‘08
A State Senate Concurrent Resolution has recognized and
& MAcc ‘09) has been promoted to Manager in the Tax
commended for contributions and service Skip Hughes
Practice. Finally, Moore Colson welcomes Adam Joseph
(Ph.D. ’96) upon his retirement from the University of
(BBA ‘13 & MAcc ‘14) as a Business Assurance Associate.
Southern Mississippi where he served as Directory of the
School of Accountancy.
Marvin Brown (BBA ’72) of Brown Valuation Group in
Athens, Georgia was awarded the Distinguished Service
Ning Jia (BBA ’09 & MAcc ’11) has joined Century
Award by the Georgia Chapter of the National Association of
Management in Austin, Texas as an Equity Analyst.
Valuators and Analysts on behalf of his services to the state
Faculty Activities
continued from page 2
(University of Texas at Austin) and served as a panelist in a
session titled “Preparing for the Interview Process.”
In August, Ben Whipple presented his paper, “Empirical
Evidence on the Effects of Measurement Error in NonGAAP Earnings Research,” co-authored with Mark Bradshaw
(Boston College), Ted Christensen (Brigham Young
University), and Kurt Gee (Stanford University) at the 2014
American Accounting Association Annual Conference in
Atlanta.
Heys
continued from page 4
Metro Atlanta and spearheaded the 2008 campaign for the
United Way of Greater Atlanta. He currently chairs the Metro
Atlanta Chamber’s education committee, which works to
connect industry needs to education policymakers to ensure
that Atlanta-area public schools are able to produce graduates
for jobs.
“The most rewarding part of my job is the opportunity
to work with very talented people – professional, motivated,
talented, smart, intellectual people,” Heys says. “That’s what
I find most exciting.”
Today, the Tull School is a prime destination for Deloitte
recruiters from the Atlanta office as well as from other
Deloitte hubs. As of January 2014, Deloitte employed more
than 300 UGA alumni and in addition, is second in the rank-
ings of hiring UGA graduates. In 2012, Deloitte established
an endowment for the Tull School with pledged gifts totaling
$1 million. The funds are aimed at attracting and retaining
outstanding faculty and funding scholarships for deserving
graduate and undergraduate students.
Deloitte has designated UGA as a strategic recruiting
source, which means it is a top national source of entry-level
talent for the organization.
“It’s had an outstanding reputation amongst accounting
schools for a long time,” Heys says. “When I attended, it was
a recognized school that was preparing students very well.
And today, it’s a priority school for Deloitte – not just for the
Atlanta office, but firm-wide.”
TULL update
9
Yes, I will support the Tull School of Accounting Excellence Fund at the
University of Georgia. Please accept my annual fund gift of $___________
to benefit the Tull School of Accounting Excellence Fund.
My company will match this gift:
yes
no
I would like information on making a gift via marketable securities:
yes no
Donor’s Signature
Donor’s Name (please print)
Address
City State Zip
Please make all checks payable to the UGA Foundation c/o the Tull School
at the University of Georgia.
Return to:
Office of Development
Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia
Brooks Hall, Athens, GA 30602
10
TULL update
Hammersley
continued from page 5
also helps them build a pipeline of research which will help them
be successful in their academic careers. This part of my job is
especially rewarding and a lot of fun.”
Emily Griffith was the first doctoral student to have Jackie
as her dissertation chair. The dissertation chair provides guidance on choosing a good dissertation topic and then helps the
student develop and execute the project. Emily’s dissertation
examines how auditors use valuation specialists during the
audit of complex estimates. Emily’s dissertation idea sprang
from a prior research collaboration with Jackie. Emily notes,
“Early in my doctoral program, Jackie and I began working together with Kathryn Kadous from Emory University
to investigate how auditors approach audits of complex estimates. Working so closely with Jackie allowed to experience
firsthand how the research process works. In this project we
identified some common problems that auditors have when
auditing complex estimates and the root causes of those problems. From this work, we learned that auditors often involve
valuation specialists–but this involvement can be problematic.
I became very interested in this topic and decided to investigate it further in my dissertation.”
The successful doctoral student/faculty collaboration
yields great benefits for the doctoral student. Jackie and
Emily teamed up to receive an Access to Audit Personnel
Grant from the Center for Audit Quality this past summer
for their project with Patrick Hurley (University of Wisconsin
– Madison doctoral student). The project examines an intervention to help auditors who are ego depleted – meaning
they are mentally fatigued and running low on the reserves
that help people make good decisions, as may happen during
the long hours of busy season – make better judgments when
they evaluate complex estimates. Emily was very successful
when she interviewed for academic positions last year and
is now an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin
– Madison. Jackie is especially proud of her placement since
Wisconsin is her undergraduate alma mater. Emily looks forward to her career at the University of Wisconsin – Madison
and was happy to find a university that offers a supportive,
dynamic research environment similar to what she experienced at UGA. “I believe I really benefitted from the positive environment at UGA, and it helped me get off to a great
start in my career,” says Emily. As evidence of this, Emily and
Jackie also just received word that their research paper with
Kathryn Kadous (Emory) and Donald Young (Georgia Tech),
“Auditor Mindsets and Complex Estimates” has been accepted for publication in the Journal of Accounting Research.
The successful collaboration of faculty and doctoral students illustrated by Jackie and Emily contributes to the reputation of the J. M. Tull School of Accounting as a place of
excellence in preparing the next generation of accounting professors. A successful doctoral program also attracts excellent
new faculty to a school. Doctoral students typically contribute
five years of their lives to the process, and faculty spend entire
careers preparing themselves to participate in doctoral-level
education and a substantial amount of time advising their
doctoral students. But, the payoff to the profession is great
Emily Griffith
and persists many years into the future. Because she has
achieved placement at a top graduate research institution and
is off to a great start in her career, Emily Griffith now has an
opportunity to “pay it forward.”
Tull School
Corporate Sponsorships
Thank you to these amazing firms for making a multi-year gift
to the Tull School and a tremendous difference for our faculty,
students and programs. We are extremely grateful!
Tull Fellowships ($50k and above)
Cohn Reznick
Deloitte
Dixon Hughes Goodman
Ernst & Young
KPMG
Pricewaterhouse Coopers
Friends of Tull ($10k – $24,999)
Cherry Bekaert
TaxConnex
The University of Georgia Foundation is registered to solicit in
every state and provides state specific registration information at
ugafoundation.org/charity
TULL update
11
Non-Profit
US Postage
PAID
Athens, GA
Permit 165
J.M. Tull School of Accounting
Terry College of Business
Brooks Hall
Athens, Georgia 30602-6252
TULLupdate
Achieving excellence in accounting education
Benjamin C. Ayers, Dean
Stephen P. Baginski
Interim Director
Tull School of Accounting
Karen Czarick, Editor
Christie Tarpley, Co-Editor
J.M. Tull School of Accounting
Terry College of Business
The University of Georgia
Brooks Hall
Athens, Georgia
(706) 542-1616
terry.uga.edu/accounting
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TULL update