New Prof Relishes Opportunity to Teach at WC

Al Beatty Brings Enthusiasm to Accounting Major As Allen “Al” Beatty moved to Wilmington and assembled his new office at Wilmington College this summer, he took the time to literally smell the roses. PICTURED: Accounting professor Allen Beatty chats with several of his students, from the left: Kaitlin Martin, a transfer student from Rio Grande minoring in accounting; Chris Howard, a senior who recently changed his major to accounting; and Brandon Ford, a junior accounting major. All plan to participate in this year's VITA program. The new assistant professor of accounting had no qualms about publicly proclaiming his excitement for teaching full time at WC via social media posts. He regularly expressed his appreciation for everything from the brunch he and his wife, Molly, enjoyed at a downtown restaurant to WC’s beautiful campus — including its summer flowers, the sun-drenched green space and even the rambunctious squirrels. Since classes started, he’s been back on social media, gleefully trumpeting successes surrounding his accounting majors — be they on the football field, in leadership positions with campus organizations or new recruits to WC’s acclaimed tax preparation service. “Wilmington College for me is a breath of fresh air,” Beatty said. “I love it, especially compared to several decades of corporate accounting work.” Beatty’s zeal doesn’t end there — he’s excited about accounting and wants that enthusiasm to be contagious to his accounting students — and potential ones. “Accounting for a lot of people can be very exciting, but you’ve got to make it exciting,” he said in stressing that career and employment forecasts for the field should generate interest and anticipation among his students. “There are so many people starting to retire from accounting positions — Baby Boomers are retiring. I heard 75 percent of current CPAs will be at least preparing to retire within the next few years,” he said. That means there are job opportunities for new college graduates. “Just yesterday, I was contacted through LinkedIn about whether I might be interested in an accounting position — even though they could see from my profile I have a teaching job.” While this is his first year as a full-time faculty member, Beatty is no stranger to Wilmington College. He was an adjunct faculty member both in 2014 and last year, while, in between, he was a guest speaker on taxes. He previously taught accounting at Southern State Community College, Gallipolis Career College and Rio Grande University. Indeed, he was a road warrior last year dividing his time between WC and Rio. “I love the extra time I now have to work with students,” he said. “Also, here students have the opportunity for SI (supplemental instruction) and personal tutoring. “I’ve never had that kid of support before,” he added. “It’s important because there’s a lot of information we’re throwing at them.” Beatty played a key role last year in what has become a point of pride for the College: the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) preparation site he supervised in which nine students prepared 82 tax returns on a voluntary basis for persons needing assistance. They ranged from those with disabilities or limited English-speaking skills to those with lower incomes, persons re-entering the work force after incarceration, and widows and widowers whose late spouse previously completed their tax returns. The IRS-certified, volunteer tax preparers offered this service free-of-charge as part of the Internal Revenue Service’s VITA program. Last winter, the IRS rated Wilmington College’s VITA site a perfect 100 percent and, in reviewing the site’s entire tax season this summer, gave a “great rating.” Beatty, who believes VITA is both part of WC’s “outreach mission” and an excellent hands-on learning experience, is recruiting students for the 2018 tax season with hope of having up to 15 who will engage in the training sessions and webinars later this semester. “The word is out there in the community we’re doing it again,” he said, noting how proud he is of all his students accomplished last year. “Students here seem to have those critical thinking skills more than some other places I’ve taught,” he said. “Maybe because it’s a Quaker-based college, the students seem to be, for the most part, dedicated to doing the work. “Back in 2014, I was scared to death at the thought of teaching students right out of high school,” he added, noting WC students quickly assuaged those fears. As Beatty continues to promote accounting to students on campus, he will have an excellent opportunity to help recruit high school students to the program when WC hosts Accounting Career Day Nov. 1. In addition to a panel discussion featuring alumni and others working in the field, Edmund Besong, Class of 2013, will present the keynote address. Besong was an accounting major at WC who earned a law degree and is working in New York City.