COAP Program Expands as It Celebrates Sixteenth Anniversary

COAP Program Expands as It Celebrates Sixteenth Anniversary

While toasting its sweet sixteen birthday this year, the Career Opportunities in the Accounting Profession program added yet another residential program for 2004.

Tim O’Connor, Northeast Chapter president-elect, was pivotal in negotiating a five-day summer residential program at the College of St. Rose in Albany. This new program will include financial and recruitment assistance from the city of Albany.

With the addition of the program at the College of St. Rose, four of COAP’s seven programs, including those at Pace, Hofstra and Long Island universities, are now residential. Commuter programs in 2004 will be held at Westchester Community College, Le Moyne College and, for the first time, SUNY Brockport.

To help support COAP’s expanding agenda, Roy Weathers and Patricia Wright have stepped up to cochair the Long Island University program. And Don Kiamie will join Frank Pellegrino as cochair of the Westchester Community College program. Kari M. Dalton will chair the Le Moyne College advisory committee.

Whether residential or commuter-based, the five-day summer programs are held at college campuses across the state as part of COAP’s effort to recruit minority students into the accounting profession. High school students have a chance to attend courses taught by CPAs and interact with undergraduate accounting students and high school peers with similar interests, getting a glimpse of what being an accounting major in college might feel like.

The NYSSCPA has launched several new recruitment initiatives to boost enrollment in COAP. For one, the Society’s Manhattan/Bronx Chapter joined forces with the Association of Latino Professionals in Finance and Accounting and the National Association of Black Accountants. This alliance will target New York City high schools to arrange classroom visits regarding accounting as a career. The outreach effort doubles as a pitch opportunity for COAP.

In addition, close to 1,000 packets of applications and information on the COAP program have been sent to high school guidance counselors. About 40 New York City counselors specifically requested applications after the Society’s initial recruitment mailing.

COAP program coordinators, who say about 150 students were enrolled in COAP programs across the state in 2003, have an ambitious goal of recruiting 1,000 students annually in the future—a tall order that will be achieved only with increased funds and manpower.

Principal funding for COAP comes from a combination of Society funds, a dues checkoff, which last year raised $35,000, and a handful of individual and organizational donations. The Society recently formed a Fundraising Committee to support COAP’s various expansion efforts. The committee initially drafted a fundraising letter to send statewide to CPAs in public and private industry. Chaired by Frank Fusaro, the committee planned to meet on Jan. 8 to lay groundwork on its approach to fundraising.

The COAP program has also updated its website with 2004 information and applications. These are available at www.nysscpa.org/futurecpas/coap_description.htm.