OSU’s School of Accounting to honor five at Wilton T. Anderson Hall of Fame Banquet

Monday, February 17, 2020

Oklahoma State University’s School of Accounting will honor five outstanding alumni and friends of the school during the 2020 Wilton T. Anderson Hall of Fame and Awards Banquet April 30 at the ConocoPhillips OSU Alumni Center.

This year’s Wilton T. Anderson Hall of Fame inductees:

• Stephen (Steve) Jay, a two-time OSU accounting graduate with bachelor’s (1967) and master’s (1969) degrees, is a semi-retired CPA in Tulsa.

• Janet Kimbrell earned her doctorate in accounting from OSU in 1979 and taught accounting classes at OSU for 28 years until her retirement in January 2007.

• Jeff Ronsse, an OSU accounting and marketing graduate (1999), is the managing partner for the Colorado and Utah offices of BKD, a national CPA and advisory firm.

Distinguished Friend of the School of Accounting honoree is:

• Bob Sandmeyer spent 17 years (1977 to 1994) as dean of the OSU College of Business Administration (now the Spears School of Business) and led the effort for the OSU accounting department to be recognized as the School of Accounting.

The Early Career Rising Star is:

• Michael Madsen, a 2008 OSU accounting graduate, is a BKD director who invests significant times at his alma mater and other local colleges and universities as the recruiting director for BKD’s Oklahoma offices.

“It is an honor to recognize this group of individuals, who together have provided decades of accomplishments that reflect so positively on themselves and on the accounting program at OSU,” said Audrey Gramling, head of the School of Accounting. “I thank each of them for what they have done to provide the School of Accounting with a foundation of excellence. At OSU, we build the future of accounting. These individuals are impressive examples of how we do that, and have done that for 50-plus years.”

Stephen (Steve) Jay

Jay began his accounting career with Haskins and Sells in Houston after graduating from OSU. He was commissioned as an officer in the U.S. Army in 1969 and served one year in Vietnam, receiving the Bronze Star for Service.

He was hired by Arthur Young and Company in Tulsa in 1971 before becoming a partner in the firm of Lohrey and Jay in Tulsa. In 1988, he formed the firm of Jay & Associates, P.C., and Jay currently serves as an advisor to two CPA firms, owned by each of his two sons. S. Neil Jay, CPA (1996 OSU graduate), and Matthew Jay, CPA (2007 OSU graduate).

His professional experience includes accounting, taxation and auditing services for the petroleum, manufacturing, construction, banking and finance industries. He has been responsible for planning and supervision of tax engagements, compliance work, tax accruals and client representation before the IRS. Jay has served as an expert witness in federal and state courts and as a court appointed trustee.

A Stillwater native, Jay has supported OSU from a very early age. He served as president of the Tulsa Chapter of the OSU Alumni Association and as a member of the OSU Alumni Association. He and his wife, Nancy (OSU 1968), have been married or 51 years and have five children and seven grandchildren.

Dr. Janet Kimbrell

Prior to her career at OSU, Kimbrell taught mathematics in public school before pursuing a graduate degree in her first love – accounting. She received a master’s degree at the University of Texas at Arlington and a Ph.D. in accounting at OSU.

While an OSU faculty member, she received several awards and nominations, including Outstanding MBA teacher and Outstanding Business Faculty. She was the author of several articles in refereed journals and participated in the school’s Summer in London study abroad program.

Kimbrell is a member of Golden Key, Beta Gamma Sigma and Beta Alpha Psi honorary societies and also was a member of the American Accounting Association, American Institute of CPAs and Oklahoma Society of CPAs. While living in Stillwater, she was an active member of the Stillwater Lions Club, including serving as president.

Jeff Ronsse

Ronsse moved to Colorado in 2017 and leads the Denver and Colorado Springs offices of BKD. In 2019, he helped BKD acquire its Salt Lake City office. In almost three years of Ronsse’s leadership, the BKD Colorado-Salt Lake City practice has grown 70 percent.

He started his career in BKD’s Tulsa office, where he led a team that grew the Oklahoma offices’ commercial audit practice from a small segment to the largest portion of the overall revenue base for Oklahoma. In 2012, Ronsse was elected to BKD partnership and was appointed the accounting and audit director for the firm’s three Oklahoma offices (Tulsa, Enid and Oklahoma City).

Ronsse has received numerous recognitions over the years. He was presented the 2004 BKD PRIDE Award for exemplifying the firm’s PRIDE values, which BKD’s pinnacle award. He was recognized by the Tulsa Business Journal as one of the 40 Under 40 and is a graduate of Leadership Tulsa (Class 41). He also received a 2013 Oklahoma Society of CPAs Trailblazer award and a 2015 Spears School Outstanding Young Alumni award.

He is a member of the American Institute of CPAs, Colorado Society of CPAs and Oklahoma Society of CPAs. He also serves on the OSU School of Accounting Advisory Board.

Ronsse, his wife, Heather, and their three boys reside in Colorado.

Dr. Bob Sandmeyer

Sandmeyer earned both his master’s degree (1958) and Ph.D. (1962) in economics from OSU. In 1962, he joined the OSU economics faculty as a visiting assistant professor and was appointed an assistant professor in 1963. He served as the first director of Graduate Studies in Economics, and also served as the first director of the Office of Business and Economic Research.

He was appointed dean of the college in August 1977 and served until he retired in September 1994. Sandmeyer’s 17-year tenure is second only to Dean Raymond D. Thomas’ 28 years of service. The OSU School of Accounting first earned accreditation, separate from other college programs, from AASCB International while Sandmeyer was dean.

Sandmeyer received many awards and recognition over the years, including his induction into the Spears School of Business Hall of Fame, the Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame, and the Fort Hays State Award. In recognition of his distinguished international service, Sandmeyer was appointed a Henry G. Bennett Fellow in the OSU School of International Studies. 

He and his wife, Loretta, were married 68 years prior to her death in 2018. He has four grown children, four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

Michael Madsen

Madsen has more than a decade of experience in audit and assurance services, and he is a member of the BKD National Public Sector Group and the BKD National Not-for-Profit Group. He focuses on serving Native American tribes and their gaming and other business enterprises, including directing audits for several of the state’s largest tribes.

He is a member of the American Institute of CPAs and Oklahoma Society of CPAs, for which he serves on the Governmental Accounting & Auditing Committee and has presented at multiple conferences. The OSCPA honored him as a 2018 Trailblazer Award recipient. Madsen actively participates with the Native American Finance Officers Association, the Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association, the Oklahoma Tribal Gaming Regulators Association and the Oklahoma Tribal Finance Consortium. 

Madsen is currently a member of Leadership Tulsa, Class 62, and board chairman for Mental Health Association Oklahoma. He is a founding member of Tulsa Area United Way’s Emerging Leaders Society and a member with TYPros (Tulsa Young Professionals). He is a member of the OSU School of Accounting Advisory Board, the OSU Tribal Gaming/Casino Advisory Board and the OSU Spears School of Business Dean’s Council (2019). He has been an instructor for OSU’s Advanced Tribal Certificate Program and SOA Graduate Program Practicum Course.

He and his wife, Stephanie, have three boys.

Contact: Sarah Johnson | OSU School of Accounting | 405-744-8046 | sarah.johnson11@okstate.edu