Active and experiential learning is an important part of the education of LSBE students.
Accounting Instructor Karen Salmela emphasized this major point as one of the reasons why seniors Ginny Anderson and Allison Fanta were offered the opportunity to attend the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) 13th Annual Student Leadership Conference this past November.
As conference attendees, Anderson and Fanta joined other students from around the country to learn of opportunities available to students who are interested in using their accounting skills in leadership roles that will directly impact a company's bottom line. Salmela also attended the conference, which was held in San Antonio, Texas.
The students attended presentations and networked with professionals, other students, and educators. They learned about industry trends, employment opportunities, the CMA (Certified Management Accountant) certification, ethics, and career management.
"Our experience at the IMA Student Leadership Conference helped us make a real world connection with what we have learned as students in LSBE,” said Anderson and Fanta.
“One of the most valuable lessons came from the CEO of NatureSweet Tomatoes (Bryant Ambelang), who addressed the importance of finding people with the right skills and continuously making those people feel important,” Anderson and Fanta continued. “Since he has become CEO, profits have risen significantly, and the company is one of the most successful in its industry.”
The students added, “We have learned much of the knowledge we will use in our careers from LSBE, but these presentations reinforced the idea that we need to know how to utilize our skills and the skills of our coworkers to be successful.”
"Terrific career opportunities exist in management accounting,” said Salmela. “We came back home excited about passing the word along!"
Anderson and Fanta were selected from the pool of accounting majors who applied for an award to go to this conference. Applicants were asked to write an essay about why they wanted to attend the conference and the benefits they expected from it. Anderson and Fanta’s strong essays and individual overall academic performance led them to be chosen. Each received $750 toward the cost of the trip — $500 each from the Department of Accounting, and $250 each from the Lake Superior Chapter of the IMA.
“It was a pleasure to take Ginny and Allison to the conference,” said Salmela. LSBE has terrific students, and it's great to be able to provide them with opportunities like this.”
The timing of this experiential learning opportunity was perfect, said Anderson and Fanta, as they are graduating at the end of the Fall Semester and starting their careers; Fanta at Cargill and Anderson at McGladrey.