PCAOB Announces 84 Scholarships for the 2015-2016 Academic Year

Washington, DC, Jul. 20, 2015

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board today announced the recipients of $10,000 merit scholarships intended to encourage students to pursue a career in audit.

The scholarship program, created by Congress in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, provides an award to one student at each of the 84 colleges and universities listed below.

"We are proud of the role this scholarship program plays in recognizing student achievement," said PCAOB Chairman James R. Doty. "We hope to inspire students to become future thought leaders in auditing for the benefit of investors."

This is the PCAOB's fifth year granting scholarships through the PCAOB Scholarship Program.

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires that monetary penalties imposed by the PCAOB in its disciplinary proceedings be used to fund a merit scholarship program for students in accredited accounting degree programs. The PCAOB Scholarship Program was created to identify eligible students for scholarships and award funds through the students' educational institutions.

Each participating educational institution nominates a scholarship recipient from students enrolled in its accounting degree program. To qualify, students must:

  • Be enrolled in a bachelor or master degree program in accounting
  • Demonstrate interest and aptitude in accounting and auditing
  • Demonstrate high ethical standards

In addition, applicants may not be a PCAOB employee or a child or spouse of a PCAOB employee.

The PCAOB scholarship program is merit-based, and educational institutions are encouraged to give consideration to students from populations that have been historically underrepresented in the accounting profession.

A description of the program, along with information on the nomination process, the selection of nominating institutions, and other details can be found on the scholarship program page of the PCAOB website.

2015-2016 Academic Year PCAOB Scholarship Recipients

Institution

Student*

Appalachian State University

Jeffrey Cox

Auburn University

 

Baker College of Flint

 

Bentley University

Douglas Schmid

Boston College

Brittany Stefano

Brenau University

Paula Ramirez

Brigham Young University

Ren Ruiz

Bryant University

Joseph Messina

City University of New York: Baruch College

Muhammed Ceesay

DeVry Institute of Technology: New York

Frank Zanghi

Drake University

 

East Carolina University

 

Fairleigh Dickinson University: Madison

 

Florida International University

Maidelys Ruiz

George Washington University

Ian Robinson

Georgia State University

Prawira Yap

Golden Gate University

Katelyn Kimmons

Howard University

Taylor Benford

Illinois State University

Montserrat Sanchez-Garcia

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis

David Wheeler

Indiana Wesleyan University

Roxana Vilchiz

James Madison University

Dillon Rudnicki

Lebanon Valley College

Joshua Lytle

Liberty University

 

Louisiana State University

 

Michigan State University

Aishat Akinwale

Missouri State University

Brandon Smith

Morehead State University

 

Niagara University

Alicia Sowinski

North Carolina State University

Kelsey Isaacs

Northeastern University

Jihun Kang

Northern Illinois University

Erik Noriega

Northwestern University

Edward (Teddy) Schreck

Nova Southeastern University

Paola Barrera

Ohio State University: Columbus Campus

Betsy Tucker

Penn State University Park

Rachel Bove

Radford University

Bryan Yunchulis

Regis University

Tessa Daly

Roosevelt University

 

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey: Newark Campus

 

San Diego State University

Tina Thi

Santa Clara University

Jaclyn Kavanaugh

Southern Methodist University

Andrew Cates

St. John's University

Mary Frances Caiazzo

SUNY College at Fredonia

Breonna Henningham

SUNY University at Binghamton

 

Syracuse University

Scott Longworth

Texas State University: San Marcos

 

Texas Tech University

Nia Pierce

Tulane University

Cory Cacamo

Universidad Metropolitana

 

University of Arizona

 

University of Arkansas

 

University of Baltimore

Muhammad Owais

University of Central Arkansas

Melissa McDowell

University of Connecticut

Matthew Zalewski

University of Denver

 

University of Houston

Megan Iselin

University of Illinois at Chicago

Geraldine Deliva

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

 

University of Iowa

 

University of Kentucky

Julia Ellis

University of Maryland University College

 

University of Michigan

Melanie Betel

University of Mississippi

 

University of Missouri: St. Louis

Paul Moritz

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Roberto Rosario

University of North Carolina at Charlotte

 

University of Notre Dame

Kelsey Amarosa

University of Phoenix

Angela Ogletree

University of Southern California

Adedamola Fashokun

University of Tennessee: Knoxville

Robert Billings

University of Texas at Arlington

Kristen Scott

University of Texas at Austin

Alex Bryan

University of Texas at Dallas

 

University of Utah

 

University of Virginia

 

University of Washington

Nahom Stephens

University of Wisconsin-Madison

Sam Lebewitz

University of Wisconsin-Whitewater

 

Utah State University

Chelsea Hepworth

West Virginia University

 

Western Michigan University

Rainie Quang

Wright State University

Megan Fullwiler

* This year, for the first time, students had the option of being named alongside their school. Those who chose this option are named above.