NEWS

Accountancy student part of winning team at national competition

Nov 7, 2016 | Business

Darrian Carr, a graduate student in the College of Business’ School of Accountancy at Louisiana Tech University, recently participated in the annual Beta Alpha Psi (BAP) Honor Society’s “Project Run With It” competition and was part of the winning team that analyzed and assisted the Ulman Cancer Fund.
Carr, who is from Benton, Louisiana and is the Louisiana Tech BAP chapter president, was selected through a highly-competitive process to participate in PRWI on behalf of Louisiana Tech.  Attendee selections are based on service to BAP, grade point average, research, ability to work well in groups and strength of presentation skills.  This is the second consecutive year that a Louisiana Tech student has been selected.
Darrian Carr (third from left) with his winning team at the Beta Alpha Psi (BAP) Honor Society’s “Project Run With It” competition.

Darrian Carr (third from left) with his winning team at the Beta Alpha Psi (BAP) Honor Society’s “Project Run With It” competition.


After talking with fellow student Jordon Collis, who represented Louisiana Tech in 2015 and was part of the 2015 PRWI winning team, Carr decided to try for a spot in the 2016 competition.  “According to Jordon, the competition was high intensity and required a lot of hard work,” said Carr.  “Being a part of a winning team is a huge honor for me and for our chapter because only 72 BAP representatives are selected each year.  This project required my teammates and me to provide a real-world solution to a real-world problem.  I feel the knowledge that I have gained in the Louisiana Tech College of Business really helped prepare me to be successful in this competition.”
Carr and his team were assigned the Ulman Cancer Fund as their not-for-profit organization.  The Ulman Cancer Fund’s goal is to make sure that no young adult has to face cancer alone.  Carr’s team worked to provide the Ulman Cancer Fund with a method of calculating their return on investment and creating the framework for a procedures manual that would ensure the proper usage of organizational resources.
The “Project Run With It” competition brings together 72 selected BAP students to analyze and recommend solutions to problems faced by three real not-for-profit organizations, over a three-day period.  Student teams are formed with four students per team and are given two days to gain further understanding of the assigned organization, and to develop their recommendations.  Teams will present their recommendations on the third day to a panel of judges.  Winners of the PRWI competition are announced at the closing ceremonies of the National BAP Annual Conference with each winner’s chapter receiving a $1,000 award.
“It was great for Darrian to be selected to participate in this competition,” said Carol Shaver, Burton Risinger Endowed Professor in the School of Accountancy and faculty advisor for BAP.  “To have one of our Louisiana Tech students participate on the winning team two years in a row is awesome.”
Each year, Moss Adams, LLC, one of the largest public accounting firms in the nation, partners with BAP to offer the “Project Run With It” competition at the annual meeting.  Beta Alpha Psi is a premier international honor and service organization for accounting, finance, and information systems students. Its mission is to encourage the study and practice of accounting, finance, and information systems while providing opportunities for service, professional development, and interaction among members.  Louisiana Tech’s chapter was founded in 1956 as the nation’s 54th chapter.