T he AICPA announced the winners of the 2005 Elijah Watt Sells Awards, which are presented annually to the candidates earning the highest cumulative scores on the four sections of the Uniform CPA Exam. They are (in alphabetical order): Steven C. Anderson, a candidate from Ohio; Melissa Bylsma, Illinois; Mark Raymond Danielson Jr., Texas; Elizabeth A. Diehl, Virginia; Adina Mitnick Hollander, Maryland; William Harris Leder, Texas; Kristin Danielle St. Raymond, Arizona; Hazel M. Tucker, Utah; Steven W. Utke, Pennsylvania; and Peter E. Wick, Wisconsin. The awards were created in 1923 to honor Sells, who was among the nation’s first CPAs and active in establishing the AICPA. To be eligible to win, a candidate must have completed testing during the previous calendar year and passed each exam section on his or her first attempt.

The AICPA Foundation has awarded AACSB International—The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business—a $25,000 grant to fund scholarships to help experienced accounting professionals transition to university teaching positions.

The AACSB Bridge Program, a five-day intensive seminar to help senior business leaders prepare for faculty positions in business schools, was developed by the Paul Merage School of Business at the University of California, Irvine, and the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles.

“The AICPA Foundation is committed to helping address the shortage of accounting faculty at business schools and views the AACSB Bridge Program as an important step in addressing the issue,” said Bill Ezzell, the foundation’s president. “The scholarships will be focused on those interested in teaching audit and/or tax, where there is a severe shortage of faculty.”

To be eligible for the program, individuals must have a master’s degree and professional experience of significant duration and responsibility related to the assigned area of teaching. Candidates with a master’s degree in a nonbusiness field who have significant work experience in a business teaching area also may be eligible. For more information on the program and applications, visit www.bridgeprogram.aacsb.edu.