This group of alumni all graduated in 2019 and were classmates together. From left to right: Lenny Williams (BS accounting), life insurance agent, Arias Agencies; Alec Martin (BS accounting and finance), audit and assurance senior assistant, Deloitte; Dominique Sgobba (BS human resources management), contract professional, Bechtel Plant Machinery; Anthony Maticic (BS accounting, BA economics), senior consultant, Gleason; and Matt Miller (BS accounting), senior associate, HBK CPAs and Consultants.
On July 28, 2022, the IUP Student Accounting Association hosted a networking event for accounting alumni at City Works in downtown Pittsburgh. The event began at 5:30 p.m. and was attended by 36 alumni and two IUP accounting majors interning in Pittsburgh, and concluded at 8:30 p.m. The SAA faculty advisor, Professor Kim Anderson, organized the event, and 29 of the alumni were former students of hers.
Alumni with a wide range of experience levels participated, including alumni with graduation dates in the mid 1980s to early 1990s as well as several who graduated within the past three years. A broad range of industries was also represented, including Big 4, national, regional, and local public accounting firms; banks, insurance companies, a utility company, Fortune 500 companies, and more. Many of the alumni knew one another from either their time at IUP or from working together as colleagues in the past.
"Everyone seemed to have a great time and said they hoped the SAA would hold this event again in the future," Anderson said. "One alumnus mentioned that the event made him want to give back to IUP. Another offered to speak at an SAA meeting, and one other expressed an interest in registering for our fall Accounting and Finance Career Fair."
Joey Zanoni (senior accounting and finance major), internal audit intern, TriState Capital Bank; Professor Kim Anderson, IUP Department of Accounting; Rich Wisnewski (BS accounting, ‘94), deputy director, SOX compliance and controls, BNY Mellon. Rich was a student in Anderson’s fall 1992 Intermediate Accounting class, and Zanoni will be in Anderson’s upcoming fall 2022 Intermediate Accounting class.
These three alumni worked together at Schneider Downs from 1997 to 1999. Chris Kashak (BS accounting and MIS, ‘97), owner, Galaxy Beyond Villas; Eugene DeFrank (BS accounting, ’85), shareholder, Schneider Downs; and Kimmie Tilley Cavrak (BS accounting, ’96), director, global financial reporting, Drive DeVilbiss Healthcare.
Kelly Kumetis (BS accounting, ’19), assurance staff, EY, and Anne Katchmarchi (BS accounting, ’19), senior consultant, income tax compliance, Ryan.
Ryan Hudson (BS human resources management, ’06), senior talent acquisition manager, Schneider Downs; Anderson; and Aaryn Hogue (AA accounting, ’04; BA-criminology, ’03), director of operations, Gleason.
Susan Michael Maloney (BS accounting and MIS, ’85), director, Baker Tilley; Anderson; and Heather Hughes Albert (BS accounting,’95), tax director, Baker Tilley.
Joe Zovko, on the right (BS accounting, ’89), partner, Louis Plung & Company, recently hired Cory Alexander, on the left (BS accounting, ’22), as an audit associate. Anderson, center, had connected the two through an email introduction.
Sean Rollman (BS accounting, BA economics, ’92), VP and CFO, ZOLL LifeVest; and Nicole McCourt (BS accounting and marketing, '17), senior accountant, financial transaction and policy, Arconic.
Matt DeCesare (BS accounting and finance, ’20), credit risk officer, PNC; Anderson; and Pat Connell (BS accounting, ’14; MBA, ’17), senior manager finance, Aimmune Therapeutics. DeCesare and Connell both served as SAA presidents while at IUP.