2008 PRESIDENT'S REPORT

Teresa Beed — School of Business Administration

Sometimes it takes a fluke to find one’s calling. That’s how Teresa Beed found her career when, as a UM graduate student, she was asked to teach a class one semester. At first she was nervous. But as the class progressed, she enjoyed it so much she decided to get a doctorate degree so she could teach college classes full time.

That was 30 years, numerous awards and thousands of students ago. “It clicked,” she says. “It’s a hard job, but it’s a fun job. If you’re a good teacher, you bring energy and knowledge to the classroom. Not just knowledge – that’s boring.”

Now the director of the Master of Accountancy Program at UM, Beed uses her skills as an educator and professional accountant to ensure her students are properly prepared for their careers. “The No. 1 goal in our graduate program is to get people ready for the profession,” she says. Fortunately for her students, even in an economic downturn, businesses, governments and nonprofits all need help with their numbers. “There are always jobs for accountants,” Beed says.

The Master of Accountancy Program that Beed helped create at UM now turns out students who pass the CPA exam at rates that far surpass the national average. Many are offered jobs before Thanksgiving of their final year by state and regional recruiters who recognize the program’s excellence.

Over the years Beed has turned down several opportunities to go into administration. “I knew what I wanted, and it was to teach,” she says. Now, Beed’s ever-expanding network of connections helps keep her and her students abreast of developments in the field. “When you’ve been around as long as I have, your students are all over the country,” she says. “They’re everywhere.”

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