Marriott School Professors Receive One of Four National Research

PROVO, Utah — May 20, 1999 — Two professors at Brigham Young University's Marriott School were recently awarded a $20,000 grant by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA).

The grant will be used by Steven Glover and Douglas Prawitt, assistant professors of accounting at the Marriott School, to explore the obligations auditors have to ensure that financial statements are not fraudulent.

Glover and Prawitt will conduct their research with Joseph J. Schultz of Arizona State University and Mark Zimbelman of the University of Oklahoma. Zimbelman will join the Marriott School faculty this summer as an assistant professor of accounting.

The Auditing Standards Board, created by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the AICPA, establishes standards for independent auditors of public companies. Three years ago, the board issued Statement on Auditing Standards (SAS) No. 82, "Consideration of Fraud in a Financial Statement," which clarifies the auditor's role in detecting financial statement fraud.

The professors' study was one of four selected from more than 25 proposals received by the AICPA this year to research fraud in financial statements. The AICPA, founded in 1887, is the largest professional association for certified public accountants in the nation.

A member of the AICPA selection committee said, "the AICPA received proposals from many well-known and highly respected researchers from around the country, so BYU should be very proud of receiving one of only four proposals granted."

The project, entitled, "A Multi-Method Research Proposal for Assessing the Effectiveness of SAS No. 82," should be completed early next year. According to Professors Glover and Prawitt, they and their colleagues submitted the proposal because "the issues involved are interesting from a theoretical as well as a practical perspective."

Professor W. Steve Albrecht, a renowned fraud expert and associate dean of the Marriott School, added that this study represents "a high profile project nationally, and the awarding of the grant speaks very highly for the qualifications of those involved."

The Marriott School is located at Brigham Young University, the largest privately owned, church-sponsored university in the United States. The school has nationally ranked programs in accounting, business management, organizational behavior, and entrepreneurship. The mission of the Marriott School is to educate men and women of faith, character and professional ability who will become outstanding managers and leaders throughout the world. Approximately 5000 students are enrolled in the Marriott School's graduate and undergraduate programs.