GVSU's new School of Accounting to hold celebration

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Eastern Michigan University President Susan Work Martin will help celebrate Grand Valley State University's Seidman College of Business' new School of Accounting on Thursday, October 16, during an inaugural reception.

COVERAGE OPPORTUNITY: Martin is the former chair of Grand Valley’s Accounting Department, which became the School of Accounting in August. The event runs from 5-8 p.m. in the Hager-Lubbers Exhibition Hall, DeVos Center, 401 West Fulton in downtown Grand Rapids. Refreshments will be served. The event is open for media coverage. Martin will have a brief media availability at 4:45 p.m. in the Regency Room, adjacent to the exhibition hall. Contact Brian J. Bowe at (616) 331-2221 for more information.

The school was created to better represent the scope and intensity of the former Accounting Department within the Seidman College of Business and help it to respond to enrollment growth and the job opportunities for accountants.

Enrollment has grown to 431 undergraduates majoring in accounting, 104 in the Master of Science in Accounting and 40 in the Master of Science in Taxation programs. According to School of Accounting Director Steve Goldberg, job opportunities for students have been strong, reflecting continued career opportunities for accountants and solid growth of public accounting firms in the region and country.

The School of Accounting’s relevance is increased by the troubles plaguing the U.S. economy. “The current financial crisis is largely the result of a breakdown in governance, risk management and ethics in our financial institutions who originated, securitized, insured and invested in mortgage loans,” Goldberg said. “Increasingly in our accounting programs, we emphasize governance, including responsibilities for risk management, and ethical expectations of professional accountants.”

Direction and support has come from the School of Accounting’s advisory board, including new president Dan Carter of Hungerford, Aldrin, Nichols & Carter PC. Other board members include Rob DeGroot of Crowe Horwath LLP; Greg Johnston of Stryker Corp.; consultant Ron LaMange; Mike Lamfers of Deloitte; Dan Lynn of the Rehmann Group; Jason Marvin of Plante & Moran; Larry Oberst of BDO Seidman, LLP; Christopher Rosmarin of Ernst & Young; Jacqueline Schafer of Fifth Third Bank; Wayne Smith of Mercantile Bank; and student representatives Melissa de la Rosa, Emily Fitzgerald and Laura Strong.