Kansas State University

Welcome from the Department Head 

It’s been an exciting Fall semester on campus and we’re delighted to share with you some updates from K-State Accounting. Our program continues to develop the highest quality graduates who are serving in Kansas, the US, and across the globe. We emphasize and promote experiential learning, including our summer and spring internships, and our global study opportunities. Below are updates on several areas of activity this semester: 

Faculty news 

• This past year we bid farewell to three retiring faculty members: Dr. Mark Linville, Dr. Kinsley Olibe, and Mr. Fred Smith. We were honored to have them as faculty colleagues for many years and we wish each of them the very best in their retirement. 

• We welcomed back Dr. Stacy Kovar, who returns to us after serving as Associate Dean of the College of Business for the past 10 years. And we were delighted to welcome a new faculty member, Dr. Amy Garman, who joined the faculty in August as an assistant professor. Amy is new to the faculty, but not new to K-State, having previously been a successful K-State student-athlete and undergraduate student. 

Global opportunities  

• This past summer, we were finally able to get back to running our international study trip, after a prolonged COVID hiatus. We sent three faculty members and 34 graduate students to Ireland. The trip was a remarkable success and we have recently opened registrations for our 2023 program, which will visit Australia. 

Online opportunities 

• Although COVID created many frustrations, it held a silver lining in that it gave us the impetus to create a new online Master of Accountancy program, which is already attracting students from across the nation, and we are now close to launching a fully online undergraduate major. 

School of Accountancy 

• We already have an amazing program but it’s time for us to join some of the top programs around the country and distinguish ourselves as a professional school, much like law schools and medical schools. Our dream is to become the first named school of accountancy in the state of Kansas.  
• The SoA will be built upon four pillars and this past year we constructed the first pillar, the Vern and Joan Herbel Accounting Academy. This academy engages directly with future potential Wildcats and provides an online accounting class for high school students that transfers for credit at K-State.  
• The Academy also reaches K-State freshmen students through a CAT community, where pre-Accounting majors can engage with each other and with the accounting program from their very first week on campus, rather than waiting until their sophomore year. Many thanks to Vern & Joan Herbel for their generous endowment, which created the academy and laid the first foundations of the future School of Accountancy!  

We sincerely appreciate the ongoing support from each of you. This year, we were able to celebrate over $400k in scholarships, made possible by the generosity of our alumni and donors. Thanks for allowing us to serve students effectively and for making it possible for more students to access the Wildcat Accounting experience. 

My very best wishes to each of you for the upcoming Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons and the holiday period. 

Go ‘Cats! 

~ Brett Wilkinson, Department Head, Accounting

 

Vern & Joan Herbel Accounting Academy

In its second year, the primary goal of the Herbel Accounting Academy is to work on building the K-State Brand among high school students as we continue to expose them to the benefits of a degree in accounting.

At the start of the K-State fall semester and in our second year of offering the Accounting CAT Community, we are excited to announce that 33 students enrolled in our three communities!

This year we have three sections being taught by Dr. Brett Wilkinson, Dr. Amy Hageman, and Ms. Sheila Coomes. We recently returned from our Washington, D.C. tour where we visited the Tax Court, Senate Russell Building, the Capitol, along with Deloitte and PwC. Out students were also able to experience many cultural opportunities in D.C., including visiting several Smithsonians and touring the Monuments by Moonlight.

In the time leading up to the trip, we had several class periods together focusing on building community in the accounting major, networking, and working on personal development.

In September, we kicked off the third offering of our Accounting course for high school students. We saw a tremendous increase in enrollment since our pilots with the help of the CBA recruiting team. We are very appreciative of Paula Coellar Quezada, who helped us make new high school connections.

We have 48 students enrolled from five different states, with the majority being from Kansas high schools. We are excited to see the progress of these students and see those that choose to come to K-State in the future.

~ Sheila Coomes, Director of the Herbel Accounting Academy

 

Meet the Firms

Beta Alpha Psi is an honors organization for financial information students and professionals. Each fall, Beta Alpha Psi presents “Meet the Firms.”

In 2022, the event was held in the Main and West ballrooms at the K-State Student Union. This event gives accounting students at all levels an opportunity to meet with both public and private employers.

~ Jane Bloodgood, Beta Alpha Psi Advisor

 

For more information about Beta Alpha Psi, please visit their website.

 

 

 

Ireland International Trip

This May 2022, 34 Master’s of Accountancy (MAcc) students traveled to Ireland with Dr. Terry Mason, Mrs. Sarah Mason, and Dr. Amy Hageman for a two-week study-abroad trip. Highlights included visits with Wayfair, the University of Limerick, Deloitte, and Edwards Lifesciences.

The trip also included time at cultural attractions such as the Cliffs of Moher, Blarney Castle, the Book of Kells, and the Guinness Storehouse.

Overall, students came away from the study abroad trip with an increased understanding of the tax structure in Ireland, accounting issues present with the manufacturing cycle, the effects of Brexit on business in Ireland, issues of both immigration and emigration, and an enhanced global mindset.

~ Dr. Amy Hageman, Accounting Professor

 

New Faculty Spotlights

“I originally graduated from KSU with my undergraduate degree after competing in cross country and track and field for the university. I completed my master’s degree in accounting at Boston College while running professionally. Following my retirement from athletics, I worked in accounting for 7 years in the Manhattan area before starting my PhD in accounting at the University of Kansas. I’m very pleased to be back at Kansas State as an assistant professor.”

~ Dr. Amy Garman, Accounting Professor

 

 

Retired Faculty

This past year we bid farewell to Dr. Mark Linville, Dr. Kingsley Olibe, and Mr. Fred Smith. Please join us in congratulating each of them and thanking them for their many years of service at K-State. We wish them the very best in their retirement pursuits.

Dr. Mark Linville

Dr. Kingsley Olibe

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Fred Smith

 

Accounting Hall of Fame Recipient

In 2022, we inducted Ms. Shannon Stites into our Accounting Hall of Fame.

Shannon Stites currently serves as Senior Vice President and CFO for Huhtamaki North America, a manufacturer of food and drink packaging with nearly 4,500 employees across 18 manufacturing facilities.

A native of Enterprise, Kansas and graduate of Chapman High School, Shannon earned a B.S. in Business Administration and Master of Accountancy from Kansas State University.

Prior to joining Huhtamaki, Shannon served as EY assurance partner in Minneapolis, MN, the EY National Office in New York, and the Kansas City office, where she was the Central Regional Global Delivery Services Leader. Shannon has also served as the EY Talent Development and Deployment Leader and the Diversity and Inclusion Leader for the KC Office.

Shannon has been active in her community in many leadership roles, including the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors of both Big Brothers Big Sisters of Kansas City and Central Exchange. She also completed the selective year-long Kansas City Tomorrow Leadership and Civic Development program in 2010.

Shannon and her husband, Ross, also a graduate of Kansas State University, reside in Overland Park, Kansas and have two children.

~ Riley Jacobson, Student Accounting Assistant

 

 

Thanks for your Support

We continue to appreciate and value your generous support. We invite you to consider making a gift to our program via the following link: https://giving.ksufoundation.org/campaigns/17390/donations/new