Distinguished SOA Professor Receives National Mentoring Award

PROVO, Utah – Aug 20, 2020 – Doug Prawitt, director of the School of Accountancy at the BYU Marriott School of Business, was recently awarded the prestigious KPMG Mentoring Award from the American Accounting Association (AAA). The award was originally slated to be presented at the annual business meeting of the Gender Issues & Work-Life Balance Section of the AAA, held in Atlanta. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the award ceremony was broadcasted virtually on 11 August 2020. 
 
“I am honored to receive the KPMG Mentoring Award from the American Accounting Association,” says Prawitt, who is also BYU Marriott’s LeRay McAllister/Deloitte Foundation Distinguished Professor. “I often describe my work as both a teacher and mentor as helping people fulfill their potential and achieve their goals. I am grateful to receive this award because it acknowledges my efforts, as humble and simple as they may be, to be of service to my students.” 

The KPMG Mentoring Award recognizes a mentor who has significantly impacted the lives of accounting students for at least ten years. Prawitt has worked with students at BYU Marriott for double that length of time. “The most fulfilling aspect of my career has been mentoring my students,” he says. “I’ve assisted more than 150 students in preparing for and entering high-quality PhD programs in accounting for the past twenty years.” 

The successes and accomplishments of an individual’s former students is an important part of the criteria for this award. Prawitt asserts that many of his students have led notable and impressive careers. “Many of the students I mentored are now professors at universities all over the country. At the end of the day, what puts a smile on my face is to think of my students and their successes, and to know that I have had a small part in their accomplishments,” he says.

“Doug is well deserving of this recognition,” says Brigitte Madrian, dean of the BYU Marriott School of Business. “His dedication to BYU Marriott's School of Accountancy, and specifically his awareness of and support of our students, is outstanding. He truly represents BYU Marriott faculty who are both exemplary scholars and inspiring teachers. He is incredibly generous with his time and efforts in behalf of our students. We are grateful for all that he does for the school."

The BYU Marriott School of Business prepares men and women of faith, character, and professional ability for positions of leadership throughout the world. Named for benefactors J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott, the school is located at Brigham Young University, the largest privately owned, church-sponsored university in the United States. BYU Marriott has four graduate and ten undergraduate programs with an enrollment of approximately 3,300 students.