As we are just a couple weeks out from the end of the Spring ’25 term, we are already starting to celebrate our pending graduates!
This past week, the College of Business hosted the Outstanding Student Awards event where we honored our departmental award recipients. Our faculty selected one undergraduate Accounting student and one Master of Professional Accounting (MPAcc) student to recognize their outstanding academic achievement before they complete their degree this May. It was a wonderful night to celebrate all of our College of Business winners along with their family and friends!
Check out our Accounting Roadrunner Community recipients:
Accounting recipient: Charissa Jensen
“Charissa is an exceptional student who is currently taking my online course. I have enjoyed Charissa’s sparkling personality in our class. When most students hide behind their computers with their cameras off, Charissa is there, front and center, showing her eagerness to participate. I can always count on Charissa to start or join into the class discussions and ask my guest speakers follow-up questions. I appreciate her initiative to speak to avoid the awkward silence we sometimes experience in synchronous classes. A pet lover, Charissa often has her cat “join” our online class. Her cat may be right in front of the camera blocking her view, but that doesn’t stop Charissa from continuing to engage and participate.
Her work experience as a paralegal and enjoyment of jigsaw puzzles confirms that her attention to detail will serve her well in the accounting profession. Charissa is determined to graduate next month by finishing her academic work this semester with a full course load and a high GPA. Congratulations Charissa!” – Sheri Betzer, Lecturer
MPAcc recipient: Rory Yonts
“Rory was one of my Accounting Theory students in Spring 2024. From the first seminar, I knew he was different – years of relevant industry and consulting experience, extremely confident, an excellent communicator, and focused on learning. Rory is awesome, as both a student and as a person. He challenges his professors, willing to share his hard-won professional experience and examples, and a true team player. While always serious about his craft, he also brought humor to our classes and discussions. One night, I recall Rory’s group having a humorous debate as to whether rail grinding was a repair expense or an enhancement to an asset. To this day, I don’t know why they were discussing it or why it was funny! In my class, Rory’s claim to fame was memorizing and reciting the FASB’s conceptual definition of an asset so that the rest of the class didn’t have to, which was a noble sacrifice.
As well as running a successful consulting firm, Rory has a wonderful young family. Despite these demands on his time, his academic work was always outstanding, and I sometimes wondered whether he had time to sleep. Congratulations to Rory on winning this award and his forthcoming graduation. Upon graduation, I hope he gets more time to read for pleasure but never forget the FASB’s definition of an asset.” – Dr. Andrew Holt, Professor