February 18, 2025
COB accounting department hosts monthly meeting of NC CPA board
The North Carolina State Board of Certified Public Accountant (CPA) Examiners held its February meeting in East Carolina University’s Black Box Theater, providing an opportunity for students in the College of Business’ accounting department to observe the board’s operations firsthand.
As an independent, self-funded occupational licensing board, the board oversees the certification of CPAs in North Carolina, ensuring candidates meet the necessary statutory requirements. While the board has numerous responsibilities, the CPA licensing process was of particular interest to the 30 Master of Science in Accounting (MSA) students in attendance.
“The role of the board is to regulate the use of the CPA title in North Carolina,” said Lynne Sanders, the board’s deputy director, in welcoming students to the proceedings. “We’re really glad that you’re here today and hope that you enjoy watching the action that the board will take today.”
In addition to witnessing the board’s regular business, the students received an overview of its role, the makeup of the board, and its approach to overseeing North Carolina’s nearly 23,000 licensed CPAs.
“The accounting department has had a long-standing relationship with the N.C. State Board of CPA Examiners,” said Dr. Cal Christian, chair of ECU’s Department of Accounting. “Having the board on campus was an honor, and we were glad to be able to provide this valuable experience for our MSA students to participate in a board meeting.”
The students also received some encouragement from David Nance, the board’s executive director, who encouraged them to focus on the exam.
“If you are dedicated and you want to pass that exam, you will pass it,” Nance said. “East Carolina has a great program. You can be a CPA if you choose to do that.”
Two MSA students, Jordan Anderson and Ashley Jata, spoke to the board about their experiences in ECU’s program. Anderson, who earned her Bachelor of Science in business administration at ECU and will graduate with her MSA this spring, credited the accounting department not only for preparing her for the CPA exam, but also for giving her the confidence to speak to the members of a state regulatory board.
“I’ve been known to talk people’s ears off about ECU accounting, and I just really appreciate the program,” she said.
Jata, a non-traditional student from Beulaville who is completing the MSA program online, said she sees the CPA license as a marketable skill and plans to stay in eastern North Carolina to help people in her community. As a teacher, she said she works to inspire her students to have a love of learning, and in doing so she realized she wanted to pursue her own continuing education.
“When deciding what school to choose, there really was no question,” she said. “The online pathway to obtaining this degree makes it possible for someone like me to become a CPA.”
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