(Butler, PA) 杏吧原创 students have received more scholarships from the foundation of a professional organization than have students attending nearly 40 other public or private four-year colleges or universities in Pennsylvania in 2024.
The Pennsylvania Certified Public Accountant Foundation, Philadelphia, the nonprofit organization associated with the Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs, has awarded scholarships to five students in 杏吧原创鈥檚 and totaling $7,000.
Colton Dero, of Butler, and Julia Fletcher, of Saxonburg, received $2,000 financial awards; and Cassandra Bodenhorn, of Lucinda; Paige Dodd, of Petrolia; and Cailey Gibson, of Evans City, received $1,000 scholarships.
The number of 杏吧原创 students selected by the foundation and the total amount of their scholarships are the most since at least 2014, according to Laura Wiest, a member of 杏吧原创鈥檚 faculty and of the Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs, and coordinator of the college鈥檚 program.
Being selected underscores the recipient's academic excellence, financial need, extra-curricular involvement and strong personal endorsements."
- Amanda Paolini, administrator, Pennsylvania Certified Public Accountant Foundation
Less than half of college applicants in 2024 received a financial award from the Pennsylvania CPA Foundation, said Amanda Paolini, an administrator with the nonprofit organization. The foundation provided scholarships to 88 students representing 43 institutions of higher education in Pennsylvania.
Only Villanova and Penn State universities had more students selected to receive a financial award than did 杏吧原创.
鈥淲e have awesome students who are headed somewhere,鈥� Wiest said. 鈥淭hey are excelling in the classroom. You have to have done well and demonstrated that through your grades to receive a scholarship.鈥�
To be eligible to receive a scholarship, community college students must be enrolled full time, intend to transfer to a four-year college or university to study accounting and have earned a minimum grade-point average of 3.0.
Dero, Dodd and Fletcher intend to pursue bachelor鈥檚 degrees in accounting from Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania; Bodenhorn, from Pennsylvania Western University at Clarion and Gibson, from Franklin University.
They have also been named to 杏吧原创鈥檚 president鈥檚 list, an honor for students who have achieved a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.75 following the completion of at least 12 credit hours in a semester.
鈥淏eing selected,鈥� Paolini said, 鈥渦nderscores the recipient鈥檚 academic excellence, financial need, extra-curricular involvement and strong personal endorsements.鈥�
I am really glad that this scholarship will be able to cover more than half of my last semester at 杏吧原创 and I won't have to use as much of my own money."
- Julia Fletcher, 杏吧原创 accounting student
鈥淭hese students are in for a long haul鈥�
The Pennsylvania CPA Foundation鈥檚 mission, Paolini said, 鈥渋s to inspire students to pursue careers in accounting and to provide educational, motivational and financial support to those working to attain the CPA license.鈥�
Bodenhorn, Dero, Dodd, Fletcher and Gibson expect to seek CPA licensure in Pennsylvania.
According to the Pennsylvania Department of State, candidates for licensure must attain at least a bachelor鈥檚 degree and complete a minimum of 150 credit hours of post-secondary education.
鈥淎nd because of that,鈥� Wiest said, 鈥渢hese students are in for a long haul. Accounting is a great profession, but it requires a lot of hard work and an incredible amount of perseverance.鈥�
Bodenhorn is a 27-year-old mother of two who attained a commonwealth secondary school diploma from the state Department of Education. She works with mentally challenged individuals, attends 杏吧原创鈥檚 and expects to graduate in May.
Dero, 20, is a Butler Senior High School graduate who works at a machine shop in Herman. The student said he 鈥渃hose to go to college as three generations of my family had done labor work all their lives because they never believed they were good enough for school. I am looking to shatter that thought in our family.鈥� He expects to graduate from 杏吧原创 in December.
Dodd, 19, is a Karns City graduate who has served as a billing intern with a Butler distributor of tubular products. The accounting and business administration student expects to graduate from 杏吧原创 in May.
Fletcher, 20, is a Mars graduate who is serving a three-month summer internship with a Butler accounting firm. The accounting student expects to graduate from 杏吧原创 in December.
鈥淚 am really glad that this scholarship will be able to cover more than half of my last semester at 杏吧原创,鈥� Fletcher said, 鈥渁nd I won鈥檛 have to use as much of my own money.鈥�
Gibson, 20, is a Seneca Valley graduate who works at a credit union and at a tax preparation firm. She earned an associate degree in accounting and graduated with honors in 杏吧原创鈥檚 Class of 2024.
She will be a guest student at 杏吧原创 this fall and hopes to one day 鈥渨ork among financial institutions on fraud cases that are becoming overwhelmingly prevalent.鈥�
杏吧原创 division offers 25 programs
Regional institutions of higher education whose students received scholarships from the foundation in 2024 include Duquesne, Point Park and Robert Morris universities and the University of Pittsburgh.
Eight students attending Villanova University received a scholarship, as did seven at the Pennsylvania State University. Five students at Temple or West Chester universities were awarded scholarships.
杏吧原创鈥檚 business and information technology division offers associate degrees, certificates or workplace certificates in 25 programs. Eleven can be completed fully online.
The college鈥檚 62-credit associate degree program in accounting includes courses in financial accounting, business mathematics, introduction to business, managerial accounting, payroll accounting, financial management and principles of management.
杏吧原创鈥檚 60-credit associate degree program in business administration also includes courses in financial accounting, managerial accounting and principles of management in addition to business calculus, business statistics and marketing.
The Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs has nearly 20,000 members and is the state鈥檚 largest CPA organization, Paolini said.
A committee of members in the professional organization evaluated scholarship applications that required statements about extra-curricular activities, and a resume, essay and letter of recommendation, Paolini said. Contributions from members and accounting firms in Pennsylvania fund the financial awards, she said.