2009 Educators’ Conference tackles big (as in global) issues

The MACPA's 2009 Educators' Conference was titled “Accounting Education: What’s on Your Plate Today?” If the day’s discussions were any indication, that plate is crowded and heaped high with challenges.

A taste of what’s to come: IFRS

The session started with a topic that has not quite been brought to the table yet, but is firing up the kitchen. Kim Kushmerick (Accounting Standards, AICPA) provided an introduction to the new International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). She gave an overview of the standards and how they would be structured in the United States and the latest SEC actions. She also summarized the roadmap for establishing IFRS, with the tentative start date of 2014. Finally, Ms. Kushmerick described the many AICPA resources designed to train CPAs in adapting IFRS.

Ray Speciale (Mount St. Mary’s University) followed with a report on the latest developments at the State Board of Public Accountancy. After surveying recent legislation on educational requirements, peer review and mobility, Mr. Speciale addressed issues on the regulatory horizon.

Echoing Ms. Kushmerick’s comments, Mr. Speciale noted that international standards loom large for licensing issues, especially in terms of accepting other jurisdictions’ licensing standards and establishing a database to help states keep up to date on licensing and firm information.

Also in the offing is a potential debate on whether to allow candidates to sit for the exam at 120 credits, and then earn the additional 30 credits after passing the exam. Nearly 30 states allow candidates to sit at 120 credits.

Mr. Speciale closed with a proposal to increase the yearly carryover of CPE credits for self-study and instructor hours to 45.

Food for thought: The curriculum, the exam

Lawrie Gardner, CPA (Anne Arundel Community College), offered a real change of pace with a brainstorming session on “What’s Your Ideal Curriculum?” She reviewed statistics on how the number of accounting students has grown in recent years and the core skills needed by a CPA. She asked the group what sort of topics they covered in the introductory accounting courses and how their teaching approaches were received by Generation Y students. The audience broke up into small groups and each produced an accounting exercise they could use in their introductory classes that would satisfy the AICPA core skill set and also the needs of the students of today.

The CPA exam is always a germane topic at this conference. Joe Hoyle, a well-known professor and author from Virginia, introduced his new program site, “CPA Review for Free” (cpareviewforfree.com). After some 27 years’ experience in teaching and running a CPA prep course, Mr. Hoyle decided to develop a free site that would coach exam candidates with FAQs, practice tests for each of the four sections and other tips and tricks. He discussed the rising pass rates, the changing difficulty of multiple-choice questions, the exam grading process and the written communications portion. He also addressed questions as to the efficacy of a free exam course and shared figures on the increasing success of the free site.

A side order of financial literacy

Everyone agrees that financial literacy — especially in the current economy — is a critical issue. But nobody agrees on the best solution to the problem, including college accounting departments.

After inspiring words from former MACPA Chair Patricia Reese, CPA, about the importance of financial literacy to American society and the economy, Professor Hyacinth Ezeka, CPA (Coppin State University), raised the question of who is responsible for personal finance education on the college campus. He shared grim statistics about student debt in Maryland and questioned whether the federal government, state government or colleges should take responsibility for financial education.

Mr. Ezeka noted that nearly 60 percent of colleges and universities offer some kind of financial literacy training, generally though the Financial Aid Office. He urged accounting educators to integrate financial literacy into introductory accounting classes, get involved in campus efforts to promote and teach financial literacy.

In the conference’s final panel, three current accounting majors – Tracy Fluty (Mount St. Mary’s University), David Tomney (Stevenson University) and Josh Smith (McDaniel College) discussed “What made me major in accounting?” All agreed that the broad opportunities offered by the accounting field helped influence their decision. Such factors as the post-Sarbanes-Oxley job market, the opportunity for international exposure and travel and, of course, inspirational teachers and others also sparked interest in the CPA career.

Don Butt, CPA (Mount St. Mary’s University), closed the session with results of his recent survey of Maryland accounting educators. His findings included concerns about IFRS, a shortage of accounting faculty, and student recruitment and retention. Eighty-two percent of the respondents indicated that an accounting internship can be taken for credit at their school.

The Members in Education Committee of the MACPA is grateful to MACPA members and colleagues who contributed to the success of this year’s conference.

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