Kelley School honors 10 accounting graduates for their professional and community contributions

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Ten accounting alumni of the Indiana University Kelley School of Business were honored recently, recognizing them for their professional achievements and contributions to the field and their communities.

This year’s award recipients represented a broad cross section of firms and professionals and included John Hassell, an accounting professor at Kelley Indianapolis (who is profiled in a separate article).

“We are very proud of our alumni. I know we graduate hard workers with keen insight and innovative problem-solving,” said Patrick Hopkins, vice dean of the Kelley School in Bloomington, where he also a Conrad Prebys Professor in accounting. “We graduate professionals who understand the importance of teamwork and being of service, not just in your companies, but in your communities.

“Our alumni are the perfect role models for our current students and vital to the continued excellence of our accounting programs,” Hopkins added. “We appreciate your support and involvement with our accounting programs, and we celebrate your hard work and innovative practices as you continue to create momentum.”

The awards were presented at the annual Accounting Alumni & Friends Recognition Banquet on Nov. 2 at Presidents Hall. Here’s more information about those honored:

Four Under Forty

Four young accounting alumni were recognized for demonstrating a high level of excellence in their early careers and having the potential to make a lasting impact in their professional endeavors on an ongoing basis. They were:

Trevor Gregory, a 2011 Master of Science in Accounting graduate and certified public accountant in the Indianapolis office of PwC, where is a director helping lead the audit practice across the state of Indiana. He has a passion for diversity and inclusion and spends significant time attracting and retaining underrepresented people to the profession.

He has served as a board member for the National Association of Black Accountants and the University of Evansville, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting in 2010. He recently became the youngest person ever elected to the board of the Indiana CPA Society.

Brandon Joseph, a 2008 Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance graduate and a tax partner at Grant Thornton. In 2008, he began his career in Grant Thornton’s tax practice in Chicago and today serves many of the firm’s key accounts focusing on international cross-border tax planning and compliance.

As tax dean of the Grant Thornton Manager Leadership Academy, he mentors newly promoted managers and leads participant workshops. He also is a frequent speaker within the Grant Thornton Associate Experience Program.

Dan Laszlo, who earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance and a 3/2 MBA in 2005. He is chief executive officer of Millennium Trust Company, a leading provider of technology enabled retirement, wealth, health and benefits solutions for more than 85,000 employers and 7 million individual investors.

Headquartered in Oak Brook, Ill., the company has about 2,600 employees nationwide and revenues of $750 million. Laszlo previously had private equity and investment banking roles at Goldman Sachs, GTCR and William Blair.

Laura Price, a 2007 Bachelor of Science in Accounting, Business Information Systems and Business Operations graduate who is a director in Chicago at Protiviti, where she has been involved with several important initiatives.

She played a pivotal role in developing Protiviti’s Robotic Process Automation methodology to evaluate Sarbanes-Oxley controls and identify opportunities for advanced technology implementation. She also lead an initiative to help streamline contract and pricing systems, with the goal of reducing operational errors and saving money for clients.

Community Service Award

Tricia Mulcare, a 1999 Bachelor of Science in Accounting and 3/2 MBA graduate, received the Community Service Award, which recognizes Kelley accounting alumni who are making a tremendous impact on the world and who exhibit exemplary generosity through community service and philanthropy.

Mulcare was part of the Inaugural 3/2 MBA class graduating in 1999 and began her career as a senior tax associate at EY, where she obtained her CPA license. While at EY she led teams within the federal tax consulting group to determine research and development tax credits for major corporations throughout the Southeast.

In 2003, she joined Homrich Berg as a principal in wealth management and obtained a Certified Financial Planner designation. In 2015, she was named to the U.S. “40 Under 40” list of top financial advisers by Investment News for her service to clients, leadership, and contributions to the industry.

While Mulcare works with a wide range of clients, she has a particular passion for working with other women, and frequently speaks to groups about the lessons she has learned after years of working with women who have navigated a recent transition and find themselves “suddenly single.”

This includes her “Financial Planning 101” presentations to various women’s and student groups. She also has written many articles for Atlanta Woman magazine.

For many years, she served on the advisory board for Visions Anew, a local non-profit that empowers divorcing women to successfully create and achieve a new vision for their lives, as well as its radio show, “Divorce Resource.”

Mulcare graduated from the Georgia Society of CPAs Leadership Academy in 2007 and served on the leadership committee of its Estate and Financial Planning Section. After serving as president for several years, she serves on the advisory board of ProWIN, a women’s networking group in Atlanta.

She has served on the local March of Dimes’ executive leadership team, was treasurer for the Atlanta Chapter of the I.U. Alumni Association for 10 years. She is an active member of the Buckhead Chapter of P.E.O., a philanthropic education organization, and an active volunteer the Greater Atlanta chapter of Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

Outstanding Friend of Kelley

Wendy Luedike, a 2000 Bachelor of Science in Accounting and 2001 3/2 MBA graduate and product coverage leader at Cummins Inc., received the Outstanding Friend of Kelley Award. The award recognizes those who have made a tremendous impact on the Kelley School and its Accounting Department.

Upon graduating from the 3/2 MBA Program, she began her career at the Chicago office of KPMG working in the audit practice. As a student, she had worked for the firm in Switzerland through program’s international field study experience, calling it her most rewarding experience in the program, as it  exposed her to different cultures and the global mindset that has shaped her to this day.

Luedike left KPMG in 2004 to join Abbot Laboratories in their Internal Audit group. Four years later, she joined Cummins and has held leadership positions in warranty accounting, financial planning & forecasting, and technical accounting. She has provided cross-functional leadership within many areas of the company, primarily by developing creative solutions and adapting to rapidly changing conditions.

She has been a staunch supporter of IU, the Kelley School and Graduate Accounting Programs, routinely coming back to volunteer her time mentoring students. She has been the leader of the Cummins Finance & Accounting campus recruiting teams for many years. She also is an active member of the Accounting Advisory Group and routinely volunteers her time to help with the 3/2 MBA program, specifically with Orientation, the A319 workshop and the A509 Career Success Skills course. In 2003, she earned her CPA designation.

Professional Excellence

 Two alumni were honored for having demonstrated a high level of excellence in their careers and making lasting impacts in their professional endeavors on an ongoing basis. They were:

Greg Holland

Holland, a 2004 Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance graduate, is the audit practice leader at KPMG in St. Louis, where he’s been for 20 years. He has extensive experience providing financial statement audit and audit of internal control services to publicly traded and privately held clients in various industries including technology, telecommunications, industrial manufacturing, and chemicals. His client experience includes serving Fortune 500 public companies and multi-national corporations, with technical expertise in revenue recognition, business combinations, financial instruments and valuation and impairment matters.

Over the course of his career at KPMG, Holland has assisted clients in numerous public debt and equity offerings, totaling more than $40 billion in liquidity. A supportive leader and someone committed to the local community, he currently serves as the partner champion for the St. Louis office’s KPMG Network of Women, and as vice chair of the board of trustees for Loyola Academy of St. Louis, a non-profit school committed to breaking the cycle of poverty through education. He is also a past recipient of KPMG’s Award of Distinction, the highest honor KPMG awards to its employees, and in 2018 was awarded 40 Under 40 by the St. Louis Business Journal.

Jeremy Simons

Simons, a 1999 Bachelor of Science and Finance graduate, is deputy leader EY’s Technical Accounting Advisory Group (TAAG), part of the firm’s Financial Accounting Advisory Services practice. TAAG is comprised of about 120 professionals who support EY’s audit and non-audit teams and clients on technical accounting topics. He also leads the leases and tangible assets team within TAAG, providing thought leadership to EY’s largest audit and non-audit clients.

He began his career at Arthur Andersen in Indianapolis in 1999, working in the audit practice for three years, and then joined the EY practice in Indianapolis where he continued to do audits of both public and private companies in the manufacturing and retail and distribution industries.

In 2008, Simons moved to New York for an opportunity to be a resident in EY’s National Accounting practice. In this role, Jeremy was responsible for consulting with global engagement teams and clients, monitoring standard-setting activities and developing EY’s interpretive guidance. He focused on the consolidation and business combination accounting topics during his three-year residency.

In 2011, he was accepted into the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Professional Accounting Fellowship program in Washington, D.C., and spent two years in the Office of the Chief Accountant. In this role, Jeremy consulted with current and prospective SEC registrants and divisions within the Commission on accounting issues with particular focus on the topics of consolidations, business combinations, long-lived assets and debt and equity.

Following his time at the SEC, Simons returned to New York and EY’s National Accounting practice as an EY Partner. In his second stint in National from 2013-2016, Jeremy focused on the leases and income tax accounting topics. In 2016, Jeremy joined EY’s Financial Accounting Advisory Services practice as a member of TAAG. He also serves as a member of EY’s Americas Advisory Council and Partner/Principal Council.

Lifetime Achievement Award

Carl Bossung, a 1968 MBA graduate and founder of Senior1Care, received the Lifetime Achievement Award, which is presented to alumni who graduated at least 30 years ago who have shown extraordinary leadership throughout their professional careers and who have distinguished themselves by achieving a consistently high level of excellence in their endeavors.

Bossung was a partner in charge of the South Bend office of Crowe. He led Crowe’s national financial institutions practice – which represents about 30% of the firm’s revenue — for many years through the significant growth of both the firm and the development of the practice. At his retirement in 2008, the group had 450 full-time professionals — including 50 partners — in 16 offices.

He also played a significant role in the expansion of Crowe as a firm, having served for many years as chairman of the strategic planning/visioning committee. He was the first chairman of Crowe’s board of directors/executive committee, and he assisted in the development of many firm leaders, including being an advisor in the development of Crowe’s Women in Leadership Program. When he started, Crowe had approximately 20 professionals. When he retired, it had close to 3,000.

After retiring from Crowe, Bossung and his son, Kyle, founded Mishawaka-based Senior1Care, which is a home-care provider for seniors. It has offices in Elkhart, Fort Wayne and Carmel. It employs 500 people. It has been recognized for seven consecutive years by Inc. magazine as one of the nation’s fastest growing privately-owned companies.

He also helped to launch Legacy CNA Training in 2014. It offers educational programs for those who want to become certified nurse aides, qualified medication aides and personal care attendants. More than 5,000 people have been trained in the South Bend, Indianapolis and Fort Wayne areas. He is on the board of the Medical Education Foundation, which offers advice to the IU School of Medicine at The University of Notre Dame.

“Carl is the personification of the IU Kelley culture,” said Joe Schroeder, chair of graduate accounting programs and PwC Faculty Fellow at Kelley. “His career reflects that strong Hoosier work ethic, considerable ingenuity and an entrepreneurial spirit that has led to a lifetime of achievements making his community better. He’s a true inspiration to us all.”