OSU accounting student Bethanie Cannon receives $10,000 PCAOB scholarship
Monday, July 20, 2020
Recent Oklahoma State University accounting graduate Bethanie Cannon is the recipient of a $10,000 scholarship awarded by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB). The merit scholarship benefits students who are likely to become accountants and auditors.
The 23-year-old daughter of Christie and Cornell Cannon of Stillwater graduated in May with her undergraduate degree and is now pursuing a master’s degree in accounting.
“Since I was 12 years old, my dream has been to graduate from college debt free without my parents having to pay anything out of pocket,” Cannon said. “Receiving this scholarship means that I am able to make that dream a reality. Furthermore, it means that I will be able to take part in a university-sponsored study abroad trip to Japan next year, which otherwise would have been financially impossible. Overall, this scholarship represents both an academic and a personal blessing and I am honored to have been selected for this award.”
Cannon was nominated by the School of Accounting scholarship committee in the Spears School of Business.
“I’ve had the privilege of knowing Bethanie since she took my Ethical Issues in Accounting course during the spring of 2019,” said Rachel Cox, instructor of professional practice in the School of Accounting. “She was an excellent student, not afraid to ask questions in class and illustrated a true desire to fully grasp the material that was covered. Bethanie serves as a tutor for our department and has received excellent feedback from students for her patience and helpfulness. Bethanie truly goes above and beyond in her responsibilities and I see a very bright future ahead for her as a CPA one day.”
She is pursuing her master’s degree in accounting from OSU with intentions of graduating in August 2021, and she plans to sit for the CPA exam and then begin her career with Ernst & Young.
“The OSU accounting program has provided me with not only a high academic education but with leadership and networking experiences that have led to significant professional growth,” Cannon said. “These experiences have also contributed greatly to my employment opportunities, including three internships and two job offers currently.”
Cannon was active in a number of organizations during her time as an OSU undergraduate, including performing in the Shakespeare On the Lawn’s production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” serving in the Retention Initiative for Student Excellence Program and as a New Student Orientation Program leader, participating in the Deliotte Audit Innovation Competition and serving as a peer mentor for Spears Business. She also served for a year as the reporter for OSU’s Beta Alpha Psi chapter.
The PCAOB Scholars Program awards funds to outstanding undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in an accounting degree program at accredited U.S. colleges or universities. It has awarded $13.7 million in scholarships to 1,370 students from 473 different institutions from 2011-2020.
The PCAOB is a nonprofit corporation established by Congress to oversee the audits of public companies in order to protect investors and the public interest by promoting informative, accurate, and independent audit reports. PCAOB was formed following the infamous corporate meltdowns of Enron and WorldCom and the scholarship was created from fines imposed on those companies.
MEDIA CONTACT: Terry Tush | Director, Marketing and Communications | 405-744-2703 | terry.tush@okstate.edu