By ELLIOT HARRIS

Staff Writer

The Shreveport Chapter of the Society of Louisiana Certified Public Accountants recognized nine accounting students in the School of Professional Accountancy March 15. Four of those students are from Tech.

Seniors Wade Beane and Kristin Caston, and graduate students Joseph Coats and Matthew Woodard were acknowledged for their outstanding academic and extracurricular involvement.

Woodard said he received a letter in the mail informing him of his selection and was somewhat stunned to have been chosen for the award.

“You apply and forget about it," he said. "Then you get a notification that you’ve won and are surprised.”

Woodard said receiving the award was very beneficial for him.

“[The scholarship] helps with tuition costs,” Woodard said. “You don’t have to be in as much debt when you get out [of college].”

Caston agrees with Woodard about receiving the scholarship.

“I was surprised and glad because it’s good to have extra money,” Caston said.

She said her award will go toward tuition for the summer.

The Society of Louisiana CPAs is a non-profit professional association with more than 6,600 members statewide.

Established in 1911, the society works with CPAs in public practice, industry, government and education. The organization offers scholarships annually to accounting students in Louisiana through the LCPA Education Foundation and through the LCPA chapters

Annually, the Shreveport chapter offers two or three scholarships of approximately $1500 to local students.

The Education Foundation was established to further the development of accounting education and the accounting profession.

The Foundation also maintains an endowment to sustain the scholarship money for students in the future.

Woodard said in addition to the award, the winners were honored at a luncheon.

“They treated us to a luncheon in Shreveport at the University Club,” Woodard said. “All the winners were invited. We got to hear [Congressman] Jim McCrery speak.”

Dr. Thomas J. Phillips Jr., a member of the Board of Directors of the Shreveport Chapter of LCPA and director of the School of Professional Accountancy, said the university is pleased with the students.

“All four are excellent," Phillips said. "We have many other excellent students at Tech. I think it is great that the Society of Louisiana CPAs is willing to recognize some of our students.”