A New Year

By Melody Thornton, CPA

I would like to express my thanks to Joe Forlenza and the terrific group of individuals who served on the chapter’s 2009–10 board of directors. Through Joe’s vision and outreach, the chapter gained the invaluable recommitment of several chapter past presidents to be leaders and mentors. Throughout the year, chapter members enjoyed quality CPE at affordable prices and accessible locations due to the diligent efforts of the committee chairs. As we start the 2010–11 year, keep an eye out for even more relevant, quality continuing education opportunities to be held at local venues.

Professor Sharon Lightner, director of the Charles W. Lamden School of Accountancy at SDSU, worked with our chapter’s board of directors this past year and made us aware of the serious challenges facing California accounting educators at state universities. These accounting professors seek to educate the next generation of accountants and keep up with changing accounting standards, while facing the biggest budget cuts in more than a generation. Sharon’s vision to increase collaboration between the accounting educators and CalCPA inspired the chapter to pilot an educator grant for applied research. The inaugural grant was awarded to John C. Anderson, Ph.D., and Damon M. Fleming, Ph.D. for their research into auditors’ evaluations of clients’earnings management behavior. I look forward to the completion of the research project and the CPE that these professors will provide to CalCPA.

I had the privilege of participating in the Southern California Accounting Research Forum presentation at Cal State San Marcos April 16. Sharon and I were part of a panel that discussed “Future Challenges and Developments in Accounting Education.” The economic difficulties that exist across our state and country affect our profession, as well as the education of future accountants. It is a difficult task for academic institutions to hire and retain faculty when there is a shortage of accounting professors, due in large part to salary inversions and the cost of living in Southern California. Also of note is that some academic departments have cut funds for travel to professional conferences and continuing education events. Because of the importance of educators keeping current with the profession, I encourage you to join me in identifying opportunities to include local accounting professors in the life of our chapter. I believe that the support of educators is vital to strengthening our profession and our future leaders.

I echo what Joe said in his last message regarding the vital importance of renewing your CalCPA membership. CalCPA’s strong and committed staff in Sacramento and throughout the state advocate for our profession on our behalf and provide quality continuing education. Because of their work, we are able to focus our attention on our work and clients. Please make it a priority to renew today!

Finally, I want to remind you to register for our upcoming events, which include: New Member Event (May 5); La Jolla/Life’s a Beach Discussion Group (May 6); YEP Networking Event (May 6); Accounting Day (May 10); Chapter Installation (May 12); La Mesa Discussion Group (May 14); U.S.-Mexico Conference (May 21); and the Ready-for-Summer Networking Reception (June 2).

I look forward to seeing each of you in the coming weeks.

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 29th, 2010 at 2:51 pm and is filed under President's Message. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.