草莓社区’s recipients of the annual Excellence in Teaching Awards for 2021 are:

• in the Tenured Faculty category, Martha Greene Eads, PhD, professor of English,
• in the Pre-tenure Faculty category, Leah Kratz, assistant professor of business and leadership,
• in the Adjunct Instructor category, Robert Curry, adjunct music faculty and director of the jazz ensemble and wind ensemble. 

The award honors the gifts of faculty across all the positional categories of employment. Criteria include impact on students, effective teaching practices, subject knowledge and continual growth, including a commitment to professional and pedagogical development.

The selection process began with nominations from the campus community. A committee appointed by the Faculty Senate reviewed the nominations and selected the honorees.  

“Much gratitude was expressed by the selection committee to these educators  for the ways they go above and beyond in their service to students and this learning community,” said Professor Tim Seidel, who chaired the committee. “It was such a privilege to read through all of the nominations and get just a small glimpse into all of the incredible work our teachers are doing at EMU.”

Tenured Faculty: Martha Greene Eads, PhD

Eads joined the EMU faculty in 2003, after teaching at the North Carolina Correctional Center for Women and at Valparaiso University in Indiana, where she held a Lilly Fellowship in Humanities and the Arts from 2001-03. 

She’s introduced a number of innovative literature courses during her time at EMU, getting students out into the community to experience the themes they’re studying, and collaborating across disciplines to co-teach with music and physical education faculty. 

(For a few examples, read up on her students’ pilgrimage to a local graveyard of enslaved persons, her sabbatical work studying historic harms and trauma, and a bibliotherapy program Eads started with a nearby retirement community.)

Even through online learning, “she was also so cheery and interactive, encouraging us to speak up and get to know our classmates,” wrote one student-nominator. “I can confidently say that the class which allowed me to build the deepest relationships was Marti’s class. She gave us so many opportunities for group discussions and made sure that none of us felt lonely because of online learning.”

Another noted how much extra effort Eads puts into her students “to make them better readers, writers, and scholars. She leads by example and her enthusiasm for education and literature is infectious.”

Eads earned a doctoral degree in English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a master’s degree in English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a master’s degree in religion from Wake Forest University, and a bachelor’s degree in English from Wake Forest University. 

Pre-tenure Faculty: Leah Kratz

Kratz began teaching accounting courses at EMU in 2007. Previously, she was the assistant fiscal director of Woodrow Wilson Rehabilitation Center in Fishersville, and worked in public accounting.

Both student and faculty nominators noted the deep relationships Kratz forms with her students.

“Before COVID, she regularly had students over to her house for meals, and develops a community, family-like feel to the accounting major,” wrote a colleague. “She arranges visits with people in industry so that her students are set up with internships, ready for graduate school, and for the standardized exams.”

“She makes it so we become an accounting family, not just classmates,” wrote a student.

She’s introduced several specialized accounting courses to the program, including classes on nonprofit and governmental accounting. 

“I absolutely love teaching accounting. I feel like God put me on this Earth to spread the good news of accounting,” Kratz said. “Being a small major, we really become a close-knit group. We spend a lot of time together. Watching students from the beginning of the process when they are discovering what accounting is, to seeing them make connections and eventually excel in the major and profession excites me every day. It is why I love coming to class.”

Kratz earned a master of business administration degree from James Madison University and a bachelor’s degree in accounting from EMU.

Adjunct Instructor: Robert Curry

Curry began teaching studio lessons at EMU about eight years ago, but he said the “real work” began in 2016, when he was asked to reinvigorate the Jazz Ensemble that had lay dormant for 12 years. He brought 41 years of experience teaching public school music, as well as performing, conducting, and arranging symphonic, jazz, and orchestra music. 

He retired at the end of the spring semester, and was independently nominated by five students and three colleagues for the Excellence in Teaching Award.

“He has gone above and beyond to get us to have the best experience that we can get in our ensemble. He is very knowledgeable in his field as well as in life,” wrote one student.

“He often goes above and beyond the call of duty in mentoring students and helping them gain a practical working knowledge of important information they will need as music teachers 鈥� he is in many ways a reliable and tireless ‘utility infielder’ for our department,” wrote a colleague.

“I cannot say enough wonderful things about Robert Curry,” said another student, who also studied under his tutelage in high school before coming to EMU. “He truly cares about the lives and well being of each of his students and wants them to become the best versions of themselves.”

Curry, in turn, had praise for his proteg茅s. 

“One thing I always enjoyed at EMU was that the students were willing to try anything I threw at them, whether it be in the Jazz Ensemble or Wind Ensemble,” he said. “With COVID especially, I had to find unusual music for the Wind Ensemble to perform because of how the disease affected enrollment. They rose to the occasion. Students in the Jazz Ensemble were always willing to try a new or different improvisation technique to enhance their performance.”

Curry earned a master’s degree in music education from Brigham Young University and a bachelor’s degree in music education from Butler University.

This year鈥檚 Selection Committee members were Carrie Bert, athletics representative; Shannon Cooper, Student Government Association representative; Micah Shristi, Student Life representative); Daniel Showalter, faculty, 2020 awardee; Bonnie Yoder, faculty, 2020 awardee; and Timothy Seidel, committee chair, Faculty Senate representative. 

The committee received 74 nominations for 42 different teachers this year, with 75% of nominations coming from students. 

La`akea Fujita is a sophomore at 草莓社区 with an impressively varied resume. She is an associate in her mother’s public relations business, plays violin in her home church, and has worked as a baker and ebay entrepreneur. To add to that list, Fujita recently received the Minority Accounting Scholarship from the Virginia Society of Certified Public Accountants (VSCPA).

The society’s educational foundation awards the $1,500 scholarship to one undergraduate or graduate minority student each year who has a minimum GPA of 3.0.

When she heard the news, “I was happy and incredibly thankful,” Fujita says. “It relieves some of the burden of paying for college and instead allows me to focus on the subject I love. Receiving the scholarship made me feel even more affirmed in my decision to pursue accounting.”

She hopes to work in an accounting firm after finishing her degree and earning certification as a CPA. Fujita entered college interested in forensic accounting, which, in a nutshell, describes financial crimes to the court system. But after she began studying under Professor Leah Kratz, she fell in love with financial accounting.

“I thoroughly enjoy my coursework and find myself working ahead without realizing it,” Fujita says.

Fujita already has work experience tracking advertisers and clients for Fujita & Miura Public Relations. She also writes some of their website copy, surveys customers, and does promotional photography. 

She now hails from Coopersburg, Pa., but was born and raised in Hawai`i. She travels there to visit her dad, family and friends 鈥� and to enjoy a favorite activity: surfing. 

Berg joined Pixo, which develops user-focused custom software and web applications, in 2015. He is the of the company, based in Urbana, Illinois.

We want everyone to be real when they鈥檙e here, both because it makes our work environment a lot of fun and because it makes the work we do for our clients the best it can be. Everyone brings not only their skills, but also their unique perspectives to the table, which leads to better ideas, better problem solving, and more empathy for each other and for our clients.

Jason Berg ’01, on

His Longacre Seminar was titled 鈥淭iming is Everything: When Waiting Makes Sense and When it Doesn鈥檛 in our Businesses, in our Communities, and for Ourselves.鈥�

Berg also visited classes on management of information systems, quantitative decision making, introduction to business, organizational behavior and principles of management.

鈥淗e connected really well with our students and shared some interesting stories,鈥� said Professor Leah Kratz, who teaches quantitative decision-making for business. 鈥淚 appreciated how encouraging and receptive he was to the students鈥� questions.鈥�

After an internship with a digital strategy company and graduating with a degree in business administration, Berg worked for nine years as a manager with Precision Graphics, which provides media services such as illustration, composition and design for the publishing industry. He then worked as an account executive and in marketing management with several tech companies before coming to Pixo.

Berg is also currently a board member of UC2B Community Benefit Fund, focused on improving digital inclusion and digital equity for individuals with low- to moderate-resources in the Champaign-Urbana area.

The Longacre Seminar Series is named after and endowed by Horace W. and Elizabeth G. Longacre, with the goal of supporting and inspiring worthy, aspiring entrepreneurs through the series and an endowed scholarship.聽

Each year, a few EMU graduates typically apply and are selected for JMU鈥檚 accounting program, which recently waived the GMAT requirement for applicants from EMU in acknowledgement of their consistently high level of preparation.

Dozens of employers also recruit from the graduate program at JMU 鈥� a public university with an enrollment of nearly 20,000 students 鈥� making it an even more attractive option for EMU graduates looking for a first job opportunity.

JMU鈥檚 nearby location and the rigor of its program attracted all three grads, they said.

Tomlin, who wants to specialize in auditing and is also considering teaching college-level accounting, said his EMU education has been great preparation for the future. 鈥淢y success as an accounting major is 100% due to professors Tammy Duxbury and Leah Kratz,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey helped me develop a passion for the field.鈥�

Peachey plans to return to the Lancaster, Pa.-area to work as a CPA after graduation. Kingsley is also considering moving back to to his home state of Kansas, possibly to work alongside his grandparents at their tax accounting firm.

鈥淥ver the years we have developed a great relationship with JMU and many of our students have gone to graduate school there,鈥� said Kratz. 鈥淲e give them a good foundation, while JMU has the resources to offer graduate-level training in taxes, auditing and other aspects of accounting. We really feel the combination is the best of both worlds. Students get small class sizes and individualized attention while at EMU and then they can expand on that knowledge at JMU.鈥�

Graduate school is part of a necessary path to becoming a professional accountant. In most states, including Virginia, the boards that regulate the accounting profession have adopted policies requiring prospective CPAs to have completed 150 collegiate credit hours 鈥� basically a year of academic credit beyond the usual four undergraduate years 鈥� before they can be licensed as a CPA, even if they pass the CPA exam.

Providing this year of further coursework is the primary goal of JMU鈥檚 MS in Accounting program. Its grads also have a high successful pass rate on the CPA exams. In 2015, students had a 95.6% pass rate, according to the department website.

The senior accounting and business administration double major and economics minor has received a $1,500 scholarship from the Virginia Skyline Chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants and the Blue Ridge Chapter of the Virginia Society of Certified Public Accountants. The award for local college students recognizes academic achievement, evidence of leadership and future promise. 聽

Gore 鈥渘ever imagined鈥� herself going into business. However, the first-generation college student enrolled in several business courses, and then an accounting course taught by Professor Leah Kratz that inspired her to learn more.

In the process, she realized, she found a passion for the accounting profession 鈥� in large part thanks to Kratz鈥檚 enthusiasm for the field.

鈥淎lyssa is an exceptional student with extraordinary tenacity,鈥� Kratz said recently, noting that Gore declared her accounting major at a time that could have necessitated a fifth year of school. However, Kratz said, together they created a schedule of independent studies that allowed Gore to catch up, even though it afforded her few breaks over a 12-month period.

鈥淚t really was a sink-or-swim approach,鈥� Kratz said. 鈥淲hat I learned about Alyssa through that process was that not only can she swim, she can soar.鈥�

That said, Gore is grounding her studies in the real-world experience of internships 鈥� three of them: This semester Gore is doing taxes as an intern for YNBP, a small accounting firm in Harrisonburg. In the summer, she will intern with auditors at Cherry Bekaert in Virginia Beach. Next fall will find her at the Washington Community Scholars鈥� Center in Washington D.C., again interning.

By the time she graduates next May, she will also have earned 150 credit hours, thereby earning eligibility to sit for the CPA exam, without the typical additional year of graduate school. And in less than a decade, she hopes to be working for a mid-sized public accounting firm as an auditor 鈥� and 鈥渙n my way to becoming a partner.鈥�

鈥淢y accounting and business professors have really helped prepare me for what to expect post-graduation,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ecause of EMU’s accounting program, I am ready and excited to take on the future.鈥�

The local scholarship is offered annually to one student each from EMU, Bridgewater College and James Madison University. Recent recipients include Austin Sachs, 2018, and Becca Hardy, 2017.

The Virginia Skyline Chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants provides continuing education programs and networking opportunities for accounting and finance professionals in the region. The Blue Ridge Chapter of the Virginia Society of Certified Public Accountants is dedicated to professionalism of, advocacy for and strategic partnership among its members.

EMU鈥檚 candidates passed the sections at a 72.2 percent rate, according to the 2011 NASBA Data and Trends Report, issued in 2012. The University of Virginia (UVa) had an 84.7 percent pass rate in the category of candidates without an advanced degree.

Close behind EMU were the students of James Madison University, with a 70.2 percent pass rate, and the University of Richmond with a 68.8 percent pass rate. Nationally, first-time candidates pass the sections at 49.8 percent. The average pass rate for all bachelor-degree-holding students in Virginia was 53.9 percent.

NASBA also reported that EMU ranks 18th in the nation in the 鈥淰ery Small鈥� category. This category includes 239 institutions with five to nine candidates taking the exam.

The accounting program at EMU is headed by聽聽’75, who holds a PhD in accounting and is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). He has overseen the program since 1984. Other faculty members teaching accounting are聽, a 2000 EMU grad who holds a CPA and MBA, and聽, with a CPA and an MS in accounting.

鈥淭he five graduates from EMU who took this exam in 2011 were a small group of test-takers compared to the test-groups of accounting graduates from much-larger universities in the state, such as Virginia Tech, James Madison, and William & Mary,鈥� noted Stoltzfus. 鈥淏ut I don鈥檛 think our size diminishes our achievement. In fact, it may point to the advantages of the one-on-one attention that our students get.鈥�

In a mark of accomplishment in 2012, a four-student EMU team competed against accounting teams from university programs around the United States in a contest sponsored by the聽. EMU made it into the final round of 20, from which three winners were chosen. AICPA judges ranked the EMU team, along with the other finalists, on its ability to present solutions in 1,000 words or less to the difficulties this nation faces with Social Security, the national deficit and taxes.

In the fall of 2010, EMU accounting majors also proved themselves in a regional competition. The EMU team tied for fourth place in the final round of competition with a team from UVa in the ninth annual Goodman & Company Accounting Challenge.

The team was one of 33 teams from colleges and universities from Virginia and Maryland. To advance to the final round, the EMU team completed two sets of grueling six-hour business exams. Another team from UVa finished first in the contest, followed by teams from William & Mary and James Madison.

To become licensed as a CPA, state licensing bodies typically require 150 hours of coursework. EMU graduates aiming for a CPA typically gain this coursework by enrolling in a master鈥檚 program. Over the last 10 years, their favorite next step has been James Madison University鈥檚 highly ranked MS program in accounting, but some students have enrolled in similar programs at Virginia Commonwealth University, the University of Notre Dame and Indiana University-South Bend, among others.聽 鈥� Bonnie Price Lofton, MA ’04

EMU鈥檚 candidates passed the sections at a 72.2 percent rate, according to the 2011 NASBA Data and Trends Report, issued in 2012. The University of Virginia (UVa) had an 84.7 percent pass rate in the category of candidates without an advanced degree.

Close behind EMU were the students of James Madison University, with a 70.2 percent pass rate, and the University of Richmond with a 68.8 percent pass rate. Nationally, first-time candidates pass the sections at 49.8 percent. The average pass rate for all bachelor-degree-holding students in Virginia was 53.9 percent.

NASBA also reported that EMU ranks 18th in the nation in the 鈥淰ery Small鈥� category. This category includes 239 institutions with five to nine candidates taking the exam.

The accounting program at EMU is headed by , who holds a PhD in accounting and is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). He has overseen the program since 1984. Other faculty members teaching accounting are , an EMU grad who holds a CPA and MBA, and , with a CPA and an MS in accounting.

One-on-one attention

“The five graduates from EMU who took this exam in 2011 were a small group of test-takers compared to the test-groups of accounting graduates from much-larger universities in the state, such as Virginia Tech, James Madison, and William & Mary,鈥� noted Stoltzfus. 鈥淏ut I don’t think our small size diminishes our achievement. In fact, it may point to the advantages of the one-on-one attention that our students get.”

In a mark of accomplishment in 2012, a four-student EMU team competed against accounting teams from university programs around the United States in a contest sponsored by the . EMU made it into the final round of 20, from which three winners were chosen. AICPA judges ranked the EMU team, along with the other finalists, on its ability to present solutions in 1,000 words or less to the difficulties this nation faces with Social Security, the national deficit and taxes.

Vying with UVa

In the fall of 2010, EMU accounting majors also proved themselves in a regional competition. The EMU team tied for fourth place in the final round of competition with a team from UVa in the ninth annual Goodman & Company Accounting Challenge.

The team 鈥� consisting of Brittany S. Snyder, Raphine, Va.; Heidi A. Boese, Hesston, Kan.; Eric B. Yoder, Narvon, Pa.; and Jason D. Ropp, Iowa City, Iowa 鈥� was one of 33 teams from colleges and universities from Virginia and Maryland. To advance to the final round, the EMU team completed two sets of grueling six-hour business exams.

Another team from UVa finished first in the contest, followed by teams from William & Mary and James Madison.

Pipeline to JMU grad program

To become licensed as a CPA, state licensing bodies typically require 150 hours of coursework. EMU graduates aiming for a CPA typically gain this coursework by enrolling in a master鈥檚 program. Over the last 10 years, their favorite next step has been James Madison University鈥檚 highly ranked MS program in accounting, but some students have enrolled in similar programs at Virginia Commonwealth University, the University of Notre Dame and Indiana University-South Bend, among others.