Six accounting majors participated in the Best Practices Competition and led a concurrent session during the international honor organization’s meeting.
Six members of Elon University’s chapter of Beta Alpha Psi participated in the 2016 Beta Alpha Psi Southeast Regional Meeting, held Feb. 26-27 in Birmingham, Alabama.
Two teams represented Elon in the Best Practices competition, which consisted of a written abstract and presentation of activities created and completed by a chapter to further specific goals identified by the board of directors of Beta Alpha Psi.
Seniors Jacob Orr, Caleb Newcomb and Colby Marvin presented to a panel of judges regarding the Lambda Xi Chapter’s leadership and philosophy. Special programs that Elon’s chapter has developed were highlighted, showing the emphasis that is placed on equipping members with the most adept leadership skills for their experiences in the workforce and beyond Elon.
“This year’s regional meeting trip was a perfect culminating experience for me as my time in Beta Alpha Psi and at Elon is coming to an end,” Orr said. “Through Beta Alpha Psi, I have traveled and competed at four different meetings across the country. In addition, I have gotten to know Professor [Patty] Cox on a much more personal level outside of the classroom, something that most students at larger institutions don’t have the opportunity to do.”
Juniors Nicholas Massey, Jonathan Cox and Ryan Shaw competed in the Good or Great category of the Best Practices competition. In their presentation, they explained how Elon’s chapter has taken steps to become a great chapter. The group highlighted the increase in the service requirement of members, while also providing many ways through Beta Alpha Psi they can obtain service credit. Specific service opportunities that were highlighted included the financial literacy presentations in area high schools, along with the Winter Term Burst the Bubble course on financial literacy.
“The competition was a great experience that offered our team an opportunity to examine our chapter and identify ways to improve,” said Massey. “One memorable quote that summarized the lesson of this competition was: ‘Excellent organizations don’t believe in excellence – only in continuous improvement.’ The competition also allowed us to hear other chapters explain what they are doing to improve, and I think we gleaned several ideas that we will try to incorporate into our chapter’s operations and organization.”
Additionally, the six students collectively presented about creative service projects in a session focusing on chapter operations. Their presentation highlighted the numerous opportunities for service that the Elon chapter provides its members, such as financial literacy presentations in local high schools, tutoring fellow students, Habitat for Humanity builds, and participation in Elonthon.
The meeting’s theme was “Unleash Our Potential.” Students had the opportunity to hear from some of today’s successful professionals, as well as participate in professional development activities. Although the Elon teams did not place in the competition, their presentations received praise from other faculty advisors.
Patty Cox, Elon’s Beta Alpha Psi faculty adviser and assistant professor of accounting, accompanied the students to the meeting. “I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to travel with such a wonderful group of students,” she said.
Beta Alpha Psi is an international honor organization for financial information students and professionals. Elon’s Lambda Xi chapter is one of over 300 chapters on university campuses across the U.S. and Oceania.