University Advancement

Public Relations and Strategic Communications

MEDIA RELEASE

CSUN Launches Initiative to Foster Leadership Skills in Future Accountants

(NORTHRIDGE, Calif., Nov. 14, 2007) — Cal State Northridge”s Department of Accounting and Information Systems has received a $151,000 grant from professional services firm Ernst & Young for a new initiative to develop professional leadership and business skills among undergraduates.

The Ernst & Young Seminar in Professional Leadership, which began this fall, provides junior and senior accounting and information systems majors the opportunity to learn professional leadership and communication skills as well as business ethics and etiquette, often in small group settings led by professionals from Ernst & Young.

"What we hope to do with the seminar is to provide our students with those intangible skills that are so essential to their professional success—the skills to navigate a corporate or business culture that is very different from the one they experience while they are in college," said Paul Lazarony, associate chair of the Department of Accounting and Information Systems, who will be leading the seminar next semester.

Lazarony said up to 90 students a year will take part in the two-hours-a-week sessions that include the Northridge students giving presentations to business students enrolled at local community colleges.

The presentations have a two-fold purpose: to encourage the community college students to consider continuing their education at CSUN and pursuing careers in accounting and information systems as well as to give the Northridge students an opportunity to practice what they are learning in the seminar. Lazarony said the CSUN students also may hold personal finance and computer workshops at the community colleges.

Lazarony said the seminar is specifically targeting those Northridge students who already have the technical skills and knowledge required in the fields of accounting and information systems, "but may need just a little bit of polish.

"They may not have yet had the experience of speaking in front of a group or being interviewed or a variety of other things," Lazarony said. "The skills we will be covering in the seminar go beyond what we normally teach in the classroom to things that will help these students become true professionals in their field."

Ernst & Young Vice Chair Peter Griffith said he has been "extremely impressed" by the CSUN students he has met and that this initiative "fits who we are as a firm."

"It’s critical for organizations like Ernst & Young to provide leadership and financial support so that CSUN can continue its high level of academic and professional excellence for these students and attract high-caliber students to business careers," he said.

William Jennings, interim dean of CSUN’s College of Business and Economics said the university was grateful for the gift.

"We believe it will have a significant impact on the students enrolled in the program, as well as in our community college outreach initiatives," Jennings said.

Ernst & Young, a global leader in professional services, is committed to enhancing the public’s trust in professional services firms and in the quality of financial reporting. Its 120,000 people in 140 countries pursue the highest levels of integrity, quality, and professionalism in providing a range of sophisticated services centered on their core competencies of auditing, accounting, tax, and transactions. Further information about Ernst & Young and its approach to a variety of business issues can be found at www.ey.com/perspectives. Ernst & Young refers to the global organization of member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, a U.K. company limited by guarantee, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited does not provide services to clients. Ernst & Young LLP is a U.S. client-serving member firm of Ernst & Young Global Limited.

California State University, Northridge has 35,200 full- and part-time students and offers 62 bachelor’s and 50 master’s degrees as well as 28 teaching credential programs. Founded in 1958, CSUN is among the largest single-campus universities in the nation and the only four-year public university in the San Fernando Valley. The university serves as the intellectual, economic and cultural heart of the Valley and beyond.