Jun 12, 2023 - Forvis Mazars, a leading accounting and consulting firm, awarded a pair of $10,000 college scholarships to two outstanding accounting students during NABA Inc. 2023 National Convention & Expo in New Orleans. NABA Inc. is a national organization advancing Black accountants and business professionals.
The scholarship winners include:
Sierra Wilder, a student at High Point University in High Point, North Carolina. Wilder is expected to graduate in spring 2025 with a bachelor’s degree in accounting and minors in economics and healthcare management. She is a Presidential Scholar and Business Fellow at HPU.
Brett Bauer, a student at the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland. Bauer is expected to graduate in spring 2025 with dual bachelor’s degrees in accounting and information systems and a minor in sustainability.
The scholarships were awarded during a ceremony and luncheon at the NABA conference on Thursday.
“This scholarship will allow me to be a resource to young Black women and help me be someone they can look up to; someone who comes from a background that they are familiar with,” Wilder said.
Both recipients are highly impressive and have bright futures ahead, said Kevin Price, chief inclusion and sustainability officer with Forvis Mazars.
“It’s an honor for our firm be able to spotlight these two future leaders,” Price said. “This is a part of meeting our obligation and responsibility to help grow, expand, and improve the profession with diverse talent and be a leader in the industry.”
Connecting at NABA
Forvis Mazars’ commitment to NABA was evident throughout the week, with more than 30 team members attending the conference to learn, network, and actively recruit future team members from college ranks. Forvis Mazars was also a diamond-level sponsor of the event.
Several firm leaders, including CEO Tom Watson, along with partners Christina Howard and Angie Dunlap, and Senior Manager Mike Stallworth, led a presentation about thriving in a rapidly changing business landscape.
Howard said she relished the opportunity to talk about “the transformative power of forward vision,” which extends not only to what Forvis Mazars does for clients but also the firm’s people and its communities. Watson took note of NABA’s outreach at the college level to grow awareness of and access to the profession among Black students, which is critical given the growing need for accounting talent.
“I also think it’s great to be with the group of Forvis Mazars leaders we have here at NABA to reflect on some of our inclusion and diversity initiatives, and to better understand their goals and objectives as they work to continue moving our firm forward,” Watson said.
Stallworth said the conversation and camaraderie taking place at the convention are invaluable for accounting professionals at all levels.
“NABA provides great opportunities to meet, discuss, challenge, and network with other individuals with similar backgrounds,” Stallworth said. “Working together, we can help make the profession and our firm more inclusive and more diverse.”
