Mark Riley, Assistant Professor in the Department of Accountancy, has been selected to receive research funding from PricewaterhouseCoopers through the firm's INQuires Program (2008). This year, Riley is one of only 26 researchers nationwide to receive funding from the firm. The INQuires Program is a highly competitive research grant program that is in its second year; since its inception in 2006, PricewaterhouseCoopers has funded nearly $1 million grant requests. Riley's grant request proposal that won the research funding is "Accounting Estimates: A Study of the Estimates Associated with the Allowance for Doubtful Accounts." Riley co-authored the grant request proposal with Bill Pasewark from Texas Tech University.
Sally Webber, HSBC Professor of Accountancy, was one of three women from the faculty and staff ranks to be honored by the NIU Presidential Commission on the Status of Women. The NIU Presidential Commission gave Webber the 2008 NIU Outstanding Mentor designation for her tireless commitment over the years to mentoring students and fellow faculty members. Webber has been a NIU business faculty member for nine years and is also an alumnus of the business college, earning both a B.S. in Accountancy and an M.A.S. in Accountancy from NIU. Having experienced the university as both a student and a faculty member, Webber possesses a unique insight into the NIU culture and educational environment that has proven to be invaluable to both students and faculty. An accomplished scholar-teacher, Webber's intellectual contributions are also highly respected. More >>
Shaokun Carol Yu, assistant professor of Accountancy, co-authored a research paper which received the American Accounting Association's (AAA) Midwest Region 2008 Best Paper Award. The paper is entitled "SFAS No. 131: Are Reconcilable Differences between Firm-Level and Segment-Level Earnings Informative?". The paper explores whether firm-segment reconcilable differences in segment earnings provided under the SFAS No. 131 'management approach' segment reporting regime is more informative than that provided under the SFAS No. 14 'industry approach' segment reporting regime. Yu's co-authors are Dana Hollie at the University of Colorado at Boulder and Robin Tarpley at George Washington University.
Pam Smith, KPMG professor of Accountancy, and Linda Matuszewski, assistant professor of Accountancy, co-authored a paper that describes how the NIU business college is integrating ethics into the business curriculum through the college's BELIEF Initiative ("Building Ethical Leaders Using an Integrated Ethics Framework"). Their paper was presented at the March 28, 2008 Midwest Regional Meeting of the American Accounting Association. At this meeting, Smith and Matuszewski were awarded the Teaching and Curriculum Section Best Manuscript Award for their work. The co-authors recently revised their award-winning paper and title to "Integrating Ethics into the Business Curriculum." This updated version has subsequently been accepted for publication in the ethics column of the May 2008 issue of Strategic Finance. Strategic Finance is a monthly publication of the Institute of Management Accountants.
Congratulations to Ester Chen and Andrea Myers for being named recipients of the 2008 NIU Outstanding Women Student Award! The award recognizes their leadership, scholarship, and community service.
For more information about this award, visit the Outstanding Women Student Awards Web Page of the NIU Presidental Commission on the Status of Women.
Pam Smith,
KPMG Professor of Accountancy, was named the Illinois CPA Society's 2008 Educator of the Year and media coverage on this was included in the Daily Chronicle (April 25, 2008). A highly intense state-wide competition, the Illinois CPA Society's selection of Smith as the award winner is a testament to her talents and abilities. Pam Smith's award continues a long tradition in the NIU Department of Accountancy. Prior Illinois CPA Society Educator of the Year award recipients include NIU Accountancy members Don Kieso (Professor Emeritus, award recipient in 1988), Pat Delaney (Professor Emeritus, award recipient in 1991), Richard Baker (Professor Emeritus, award recipient in 1993), and Debra Hopkins (Director, NIU CPA Review Program, award recipient in 1997). The Illinois CPA Society (ICPAS) is a statewide, professional membership organization that serves students, educators, and related finance professional. Founded in 1903, ICPAS boasts more than 22,700 members and is the fifth largest CPA society in the nation.
Professor Chih-Chen Lee was named the recipient of the Michael and Patricia Strachan Professorship. Michael Strachan is a 1976 ACCY alumnus and is currently the Pacific Northwest Area Managing Partner for Ernst & Young (managing E&Y's offices in northern California, Nevada, Utah, Oregon, and Washington). Mike was selected as one of the outstanding accountancy alums in 2003. Besides the professorship, Mike and Tricia made a substantial financial commitment to the Accountancy Department in 2003 – establishing an endowed scholarship fund and providing continuing support to the Department via the Ernst & Young Excellence Fund.
Professor Rebecca Shortridge was named the recipient of the Gaylen and Joanne Larson Professorship. Gaylen is a 1962 ACCY alumnus, was a partner with Deloitte, chief accounting officer for Household International (where he was instrumental in establishing what is now the HSBC Professorship in the Accountancy Department) and then served on Financial Accounting Standards Board before his retirement. He was selected as an outstanding accountancy alumnus in 1988 and Gaylen continues his dedication to the Department through his efforts on the Advisory Council. The Larsons pledged one million dollars to NIU via the True North drive, which will go to student scholarships and international study abroad initiatives.
The NIU Accountancy program - a standout nationally for more than 20 years - was ranked 23rd best in the country by U.S.News & World Report in its ranking of best undergraduate programs (2008).
For more than a decade, U.S.News & World Report has ranked The Northern Illinois University College of Business as among the best business colleges in the country. In 2007, the NIU College of Business continued to be ranked as among the nation's best by making the listing of "America's Best Colleges and Programs" (2008), as recently published by U.S.News & World Report.
Douglas Clinton, Professor of Accountancy and Alta Via Consulting Professorship was named the Burge Family Faculty Fellow in Fall 2007. Click here for a list of all College of Business Professorships and/or Fellowships.
Jim Young, Accountancy Chair and Crowe Chizek Professor selected as a 2007 NIU Presidential Teaching Professor. More details.
Within A Prestigious Group. The NIU College of Business has been ranked among the best undergraduate business schools in the nation according to BusinessWeek magazine's 2007 online ranking. Of the 540 AACSB-accredited business colleges worldwide, 125 - NIU among them - were invited to participate in the BusinessWeek ranking survey. Based upon the publication's ranking criteria - which include meeting the threshold for student response rate - NIU's College of Business was ranked 65th on BusinessWeek's final list of the 93 programs designated as The Best Undergrad B-Schools. Other Illinois schools making the rankings were the University of Illinois (No. 22) and Illinois State University (No. 75).
On the national stage, NIU's ranking puts the college in the company of nationally-known schools such as the University of Iowa (68), Arizona State (66), SUNY (74), Purdue (60), Virginia Polytechnic Institute (59), Tulane University (67).
High Marks from Students. Some of BusinessWeek's ranking criteria included academic performance, feedback from companies that recruit nationwide, and responses from student surveys. The college received especially high marks from its students in the areas of:
Students rated the college so highly that NIU would have been ranked 36th, had the survey been based solely on student satisfaction. Click here for a complete look at BusinessWeek's rankings. - by Joe King, NIU Public Affairs
Check out comments made by some NIU students who completed the survey (as listed on the BusinessWeek website):
STUDENT COMMENTS
The Accountancy department of NIU has been instrumental to my academic and professional development, and should I have the opportunity to give back, I definitely will.
This is a truly spectacular program to study business. The facilities are second to none and the teachers truly care about the students and the success they want them to have. I came here for a tour before freshman year and walked around the Barsema Hall with my family and the head of the accounting came up to us out of nowhere and took an hour out of his busy schedule to give us a tour of the building and talk about the program. I was shocked someone would do that in a school this big. That is a major reason I decided to come here.
I am glad that I attend one of the best accounting programs in the U.S. This program has changed my ways of thinking and learning. It has changed my perception of teamwork, leadership, and professionalism. I have gained so much knowledge from this program, not just the accounting knowledge but other aspects as well. I hope that someday I will be able to do something for the school in return.
I transferred to NIU from a Big 10 school and I had my doubts about how NIU would match up. My experience as an undergrad at Northern surpassed any expectation I ever had. The classes are small and conductive to learning, but the campus is huge and provides all the same opportunities that the big 10 school I attended did. People are friendly and you can always find someone to help you. I love the faculty in the accounting program, they are all outstanding teachers, people, and mentors. I am so grateful that I gave NIU a chance, because it has provided me with an outstanding education, great leadership experience and opportunities I had never expected.
Professor Kate Mantzke was named the recipient of the Kieso Professorship.
Professor Natalie Churyk was named the recipient of the Caterpillar Professorship.
The accountancy graduate tax team placed in the top ten nationally in the Deloitte Tax Case Competition. This is the second time in the three past years that an NIU tax team was ranked in the top ten nationally. Members of the team are Kari Ehlers, Jessica Johns, Dan Siebold, and Justin Van Zuiden.
NIU Accountancy Department Chair James Young's, Crowe Chizek Professor of Accounting co-authored research receives media coverage in The Wall Street Journal September 20, 2006 article: "A First Look at Next Year's Taxes - Analysis Shows How Inflation Adjustments Will Affect Your 2007 Bill." MORE
Congratulations, Lindsey LaChiana, Emily Montgomery and Andrea Myers on receiving the NIU Outstanding Women Student Award. More details.
The U.S. News and World Report's Annual America's Best Colleges 2006 edition ranked NIU's Accountancy program 25th in the nation out of 450 programs.
An NIU CPA Review candidate passed the exam, finishing with scores of four 99's. To learn more click here.
