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The 2011-2012 academic year marks the 30th anniversary of the Master of Accountancy (MAc) Program. The anniversary reflects the accomplishment and success of the more than 440 graduates of the program. The Master of Accountancy Program has flourished because of the faculty’s commitment to provide exceptional learning experiences and assist with high-quality career opportunities. Currently, 42 students are enrolled in the program.

The program was first proposed in January 1980 by fifteen faculty members who recognized both a need and an opportunity for graduate accounting education. The University first offered the Master of Accountancy and the Master of Science in Accounting during the 1982 fall semester. Randy Hultz had the distinction of being the first to graduate from the program in August 1982. During the late 1980s,the two graduate accounting programs were consolidated into the single Master of Accountancy degree.

MAc students and graduates of the program have forged a sense of identity with the program, and many alumni serve to strengthen the School of Business. Graduates of the Master of Accountancy program live, work and serve as accounting and financial professionals throughout the region, nation and world. Join us in celebrating 30 years of graduate accounting education!

January 2012 Edition of the School of Business Newsletter

To read the January 2012 Edition of the School of Business Newsletter, click the following link.

Students from Truman State University PBL chapter attended the Phi Beta Lambda (PBL) National Fall Leadership Conference (NFLC) in Milwaukee, WI on November 11 – 12.

The chapter had six members attending the two-day conference. Members were busy participating in workshops to hone their skills in leadership, community service, career development, and competitive events. They also attended general sessions featuring motivational speakers and membership awards. The students who attended are pictured below.

L to R: Yichao Zhao, Giorgi Amashukeli, Salisa Suwanprathip, Ryan Peterson, Dolkar Tuladhar, and Megan Recklein

About FBLA-PBL, Inc.

Future Business Leaders of America-Phi Beta Lambda, Inc. is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) education association with a quarter million members and advisers in over 6,500 active middle school, high school, and college chapters worldwide. Its mission is to bring business and education together in a positive working relationship through innovative leadership and career development programs. The association is headquartered in Reston, Virginia, just outside Washington, DC. For more information, visit www.fbla-pbl.org.

The National Association of State Board of Accountancy has released the percentage passing rates for the Uniform Certified Public Accountants Examination for 2010.  Once again, Truman State University graduates performed exceptionally well on the examination.  First-time candidates from Truman successfully completed 73.6% of the sections taken with an average score of 80.7%.  Truman’s passing percentage was the second highest rate of all colleges and universities in the states of Missouri, Illinois and Nebraska and the average score was the highest percentage in the three states.  The national average passing percentage for 2010 was 52.9%.

Truman State University is one of only 176 universities in the world accredited in both business and accounting by AACSB International –The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.  AACSB International is the foremost world-wide accrediting agency for schools and programs of business.

Kevin Baiotto, former coordinator of Kirksville’s Telecommunications Resource Center, received the “Community Partner of the Year Award” recognized at the Community Partner Appreciation Luncheon Nov. 3.

The Community Partner of the Year Award is given by the SERVE Center to an outstanding community member or agency that has worked closely with the University to promote public scholarship amongst Truman students.

Baiotto was nominated by Cody Hagan, SIFE president. He works with the Kirksville Sheltered Workshop, a business that creates meaningful employment opportunities for the developmentally disabled in the area. Truman SIFE members worked with Baiotto helping the managers of Kirksville Sheltered Workshop write a business plan that would enable them to set out on their own.

Baiotto’s outreach to Truman SIFE students helped them to gain experience in developing business plans and working with non-profit organizations. SIFE has also worked with Baiotto and the Kirksville Sheltered Workshop to create a manager evaluation form for the business.

Baiotto’s work with SIFE extends beyond the service opportunities he has helped the members find. He serves as a member of the organization’s Business Advisory Board and has been active in various facets of the organization.

Students present the Community Partner of the Year Award to Kevin Baiotto. From left to right: Jessie Eubank, SIFE vice president of communications; Baiotto, award recipient; Cody Hagan, SIFE president; and Lynn Dreisilker, event coordinator.

The Community Partner of the Year Award nominees stand with their certificates. Back row, left to right: Terri Cross from Northeast Missouri Community Action Agency, Michelle Yoder of Kirksville Middle School, Breanne Hunt of Lifeline, Deb Wohlers of Adair County SB40/Developmental Disability Board, Kevin Harrison of K-Life and Nancy Pride of Kirksville Manor Care. Front row, left to right: SIFE members Tim Cooper, Jessie Eubank and Cody Hagan representing and collecting the award for Baiotto.

Article and pictures courtesy of  Truman Today  »  Vol. 16, No. 13 – Nov. 29, 2011

Katherine Jackson, Gary Hollingsworth, Wayne Prichard, and Burt Beard

On Thursday, October 6, 2011, the School of Business at Truman State University sponsored a panel of entrepreneurs and small business owners to discuss the risks and rewards of being in business. The panelists included the following entrepreneurs – Katherine Jackson, owner of Blink of an Eye, a local business that opened a few years ago;  Gary Hollingsworth, who is Sales Manager for First Colony Coffee & Tea and a Truman alumnus; Wayne Prichard, Marketing Manager in this region for Chipotle Mexican Restaurants and a Truman alumnus was a panelist. Burt Beard, owner of Beard’s Decorating Center, another local business now run by the fourth generation of the Beard family that has been in operation for more than 95 years.

The panelists were asked a number of questions by the moderator, Leiren Jarvis, who is a current student in Dr. Neil Gilchrist’s Entrepreneurship class.  After the panelists addressed a number of topics, the session was opened up for the attendees to ask questions.  The session was well attended and the participants were able to peek, if only for a brief moment, into what it would be like to be an entrepreneur.

Gary Hollingsworth asked the audience of students and faculty how many wanted to be  entrepreneurs one day, and more

Entrepreneurship Panel Discussion

than half the students raised their hands.  One student asked the panel what was the one thing they looked for in an employee.  Burt Beard responded by saying, “Honesty. If the employee is honest, I can teach them anything else they need to know about helping me run my business.” The other panelists agreed.  Katherine Jackson added, “I look for employees who are upbeat, enthusiastic and willing to take initiative.” Wayne Pritchard, who recently started a motivational speaking business, talked about his efforts to set up his new venture and why he wanted to create something that was uniquely his.  Gary Hollingsworth explained that he has been in on the ground floor of a number of businesses and has learned a great deal from his experiences. He noted for the students in attendance that one can learn as much, if not more, from his or her failures as from successes.

School of Business Peer Mentors are sponsoring a program for freshmen and sophomores entitled ABC’s to Success.  The program will be in the Student Union Building (SUB) Activities Room on Tuesday, October 4th from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. the Peer Mentors will go over the Four Year Outline to help students succeed.

On September 28, 2011, Target is sponsoring “Road Map to Success: Leadership Conference”. The day consists of numerous 50 minute workshops presented by businesses from across the state of Missouri, and a keynote presentation by Dave Carroll, Target’s Group Director.  The purpose of the conference is to prepare students for the career fair and the job market. Students will have the opportunity to learn about internships and job opportunities, and gain essential resume, interviewing, and leadership skills. Click Here for schedule. Feel free to attend as many workshops as you would like. You do not need to be dressed professionally to attend.

Mr. Brian Krippner

Traditions continued as the School of Business held its 2011 Bridge Ceremony on September 12, 2011.  The Bridge Ceremony celebrates students’ transition to upper-level business administration and accounting courses.  To enroll in 300- and 400-level courses, students must have successfully completed a designated list of courses with minimum grades and cumulative GPA.

Mr. Brian Krippner, a 1989 alumnus, was our keynote speaker. Mr. Krippner is Vice President and Regional Manager for the Corporate Trust Division of UMB Bank in St. Louis. He focused his remarks on the skills and attributes required in the new world of business.

Ms. Erin Mayes

Ms. Erin Mayes, a senior Business Administration student concentrating in both Marketing and Management was our student speaker.  Ms. Mayes who hails from Lentner, Missouri, offered advice to make a successful transition to the junior and senior level School of Business courses.  She encouraged her peers to take advantage of every opportunity to develop their personal and professional skills.  She concluded by her remarks by leading students, faculty and guests in the recitation of the School’s Student Code of Ethics.

Each student’s name was read aloud by Dr. Steve Allen as they walked across the proscenium.  Interim Provost Richard Coughlin and Dean Deb Kerby were on hand to shake hands and personally congratulate each student.  Each student received a padfolio with Truman School of Business embossed on the cover to use for interviews for internships and employment.  After the ceremony, students had the opportunity to engage their networking skills during the reception that followed the ceremony.

Jessie Eubank, Chris Wall and Erik Brown

On August 23 the School of Business welcomed more than 170 first-year and transfer students to campus.  Major Day speakers structured their talks around the theme, “Developing Responsible Business Leaders.”

John Nolan

John Nolan, an entrepreneur from Joplin, Missouri and a recent graduate from Truman State University with an Interdisciplinary Studies degree in Sustainable Development, spoke on the topic of “Entrepreneurship and Responsibility.”  Nolan’s “dream board” captured the imagination of many students.  This poster depicted quotes and pictures that inspire Nolan and motivate him to achieve his goals.

Nolan started his first business, Trumascape LLC, a landscape design and construction company by the end of his freshman year at Truman.  Under John’s direction, Trumascape reached a quarter million dollars in sales in its second year of operation and expects to break the half a million mark in 2011.  Trumascape employs more than a dozen Truman students and was recognized as a top-five finalist in the 2010 Missouri Dreamscapes Competition for Landscape Design and Construction.

While at Truman, John became involved in sustainability and served as Chair of the Student Senate’s Environmental Affairs Committee. John was the first student representative to the President’s Sustainability Action Committee (PSAC), a committee organized to advise the administration on sustainable practices and promote environmental, social and financial responsibility at the university.  He was also the first student director of the Sustainability Tracking Assessment and Rating System (STARS) program.

Master of Accountancy student, Matt Venemann, encouraged students to take every opportunity to develop themselves personally and professionally.  Venneman offered time management advice and explained how active participation in student organizations enhanced networking skills.

As an undergraduate, Venneman served as President of Delta Sigma Pi and as a Peer Mentor in the School of Business. Venneman was named Delta Sigma Pi Regional Collegian of the Year during his senior year.

Following faculty and peer mentor introductions, the new students dispersed into small groups to play a School of Business version of Jeopardy. Question and answer sessions concluded the day’s activities.

Major Day Participants