Dave Szymanski, associate professor and chair of the Natural & Applied Sciences department, was elected a 2020 Fellow by The Council of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). A lifetime honor first bestowed in 1874, the Fellows distinction honors individuals for their contributions to STEM disciplines, including pioneering research, leadership within a given field, teaching and mentoring, fostering collaborations, and advancing public understanding of science. Past recipients have included such luminaries as Thomas Edison, W.E.B. DuBois, Maria Mitchell and Margaret Mead. 

Szymanski was honored specifically for his “distinguished work in professional societies on policy, and preparing future business leaders to address the complex challenges of sustainability through systemic change.”  

Computer Information Systems professor Jennifer Xu and senior lecturer Mark Frydenberg received a Meritorious Paper Award for research presented at EDSIGCON, the ISCAP Conference on Information Systems and Computing Education. In “Python Programming in an IS Curriculum: Perceived Relevance and Outcomes,” the pair explore how undergraduate business students learning Python — a programming language widely used for data analytics — regard this skill set as a way “to better position themselves for future career opportunities.” 

A new book edited by Geography Professor Joel Deichmann will be published by Springer Nature in January. Foreign Direct Investment in the Successor States of Yugoslavia offers a comparative analysis of the political and economic structuring of seven Balkan countries — Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Slovenia — over the past 25 years. The book explores how foreign direct investment in the region was affected by the dissolution of Yugoslavia in the 1990s, as well as more recent events such as the Global Financial Crisis and COVID-19. 

Five Bentley students collaborated with Catholic Health Services of Long Island, a national leader in cardiac care, for their Liberal Studies Major (Health and Industry) culminating project. Advised by Helen Meldrum, associate professor of Natural and Applied Sciences, Lea Guldemond ’20, Joe Cohen ’20, Jason Ma ’21, Andrew Donabedian ’21 and Joe Aiello ’22 conducted research to help the healthcare organization identify ways to reduce its preventable readmission rate. According to Dr. Tom Bigda-Peyton, chief learning officer for the New York-based provider, “The Bentley students pulled together a thorough review of a challenging issue and provided a clear set of recommendations for addressing these factors.”

Three Bentley alumni have been recognized for their impressive performance on the CPA exam. They are among the winners of this year’s Elijah Watt Sells Award, given out by The American Institute of CPAs. To qualify for the award, CPA candidates must have a cumulative average score above 95.50 across all four sections of the Uniform CPA Examination and pass all four sections on their first attempt. The winners who graduated from Bentley are Benjamin Brayton ’18, who is employed with BDO USA, LLP; Joseph Coupal ’18, who is employed with PwC; and Brian Mascaro, ’18 MBA, ’19 MST, who is employed with Grant Thornton LLP. Nearly 75,000 individuals sat for the CPA Exam in 2019, and just 137 candidates met the criteria for receiving the Elijah Watt Sells Award.

Associate Professor in Accountancy Scott Boss and Lecturer in Accountancy Joy Gray were named 2020 Effective Learning Strategies Award recipients by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA). Each year, the AICPA recognizes educators from across the country who are developing innovative teaching tools across all levels of higher education accountancy curricula. Boss and Gray were awarded the George Krull/Grant Thornton 2019 Teaching Innovation Award for their case studies titled “Cybersecurity isn’t just for Techies: Incorporating Cybersecurity into the Accounting Curriculum.” This series of six case studies provided students with an opportunity to learn how to address a number of cybersecurity issues impacting the accounting industry.