A
four-member team of accounting students from the College of Business
has won first place for the third consecutive year in the annual
Indiana CPA Society (INCPAS) Case Study Competition.
The team made an oral presentation in Indianapolis on November 3 and
was recognized that night as the winner of the competition at the
organization’s CPA Celebration at Union Station. They made history
as the first team in the seven-year history of the competition to
win for three straight years.
The USI team qualified as one of six finalists to give an oral
presentation after preparing a written case study. Teams from 11
universities throughout the state entered the competition. |
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Front row: Amy
Oglesby and faculty advisor Jeanette Maier Lytle. Back row: John
Hayden, May Flores, and Adam Knepp. |
The USI College of Business team includes May Flores, senior,
of Newburgh, Indiana; John Hayden, senior, of Evansville;
Adam Knepp, senior, of Montgomery, Indiana; and Amy Oglesby,
junior, of Galatia, Illinois. Flores also was a member of last
year’s winning team.
Each of the USI team members received a $1,000 award from INCPAS.
Jeanette Maier-Lytle, USI instructor in accounting and
faculty coach of the accounting team for the third year, also was
recognized at the CPA Celebration. INCPAS selected her as 2006
Outstanding Accounting Educator.
Maier-Lytle said, “I think many factors contributed to the team’s
success again this year: their extensive research in the area of
peer review, their excellent presentation skills, and their ability
to field every question the judges asked. They worked many long
hours over the past three weeks.
“Also, I believe they were driven by the fact that no other school
has had a ‘threepeat’ in the history of this competition. They had
mentoring and coaching from past winners, Donovan Sexton (2004) and
Andrew Eddmenson (2005), as well as an advisor who wouldn’t let up
on them. I knew they were a first place team, and I challenged them
to raise the standard again this year. Lastly, they had a lot of
cheerleaders backing them from USI, and they were determined to
bring home the win.”
The case study for this year’s competition was on the topic of peer
review. The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
requires that its member firms participate in a practice-monitoring
or “peer review” program.
The USI team’s most prominent recommendation was the creation of a
certification process similar to the AACSB International
accreditation for colleges of business and the ISO 9000
certification used in the manufacturing industry.
The students researched the topic through professional journals and
publications as well as through interviews with members of USI’s
Accounting Circle and accounting faculty. Dr. Craig Ehlen,
USI professor of accounting, served as a mentor. The team also
interviewed people who have served as peer reviewers.
Flores said, “The early preparation was an important part of our
success. Even before they announced that we were finalists, we were
making our PowerPoint presentation.”
Flores is considering job offers from Indianapolis offices of two of
the big four accounting firms. She moved to Newburgh from the
Philippines when she was 15 and graduated from Castle High School in
2002.
Hayden said the presentation before the judges was the best the team
had given. Prior to the final presentation in Indianapolis, they
practiced in formal settings in front of College of Business faculty
and representatives of Kemper CPA Group in Evansville. The team also
videotaped a practice in the new Joe Coslett Family Sales Management
Development Laboratory.
Hayden said they also practiced in student apartments, in
Maier-Lytle’s office, and in the van on the way to Indianapolis.
He will complete an internship this summer at Defense Finance and
Accounting Services (DFAS) in Indianapolis.
Flores and Hayden are members of the College of Business’ Speaking
Eagles Toastmasters.
Knepp holds the Edgar W. and Lucile E. Schergens Endowed
Presidential Scholarship at USI. He said the team competition helps
participants learn to work well with a group.
“You find out what each other’s strengths and weaknesses are. You
learn where you need to pick up,” he said.
Knepp also said that the practice presentation with Kemper helped
the team prepare for the question and answer session that followed
their 20-minute oral presentation.
After the USI win was announced, Oglesby said the competition
timekeeper told them that she knew “when they walked in with those
matching suits and name tags that they meant business.”
Oglesby transferred to USI this fall after earning an associate
degree in business administration at Southeastern Illinois College,
where she was a member of a Phi Beta Lambda team which won a first
place in national competition in the organization’s American
Enterprise program.
The accounting team representing Butler University placed second in
the 2006 INCPAS competition. Each team member received $750. Third
place winner was the team from Manchester College with each team
member receiving a $500 award.
Other teams in the finals represented Indiana University-Purdue
University Indianapolis, Purdue University-Calumet, and Valparaiso
University.
Teams from Indiana University-Bloomington, Indiana-Purdue Fort
Wayne, Saint Mary’s College, University of Indianapolis, and
University of Notre Dame also participated in the competition.
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