The IRS brings Project Adrian back to campus, including a mock Grand Jury
Faculty
The College of Business is proud to be AACSB accredited, as is the School of Accountancy. Only 30% of the colleges in the U.S. maintain this level of excellence in higher education, and within those colleges maintaining this accreditation, only 10% of the accounting programs reach this level.
The Fraud and Forensic Accounting program is proud to have the following mix of faculty members, who have varied and distinguished backgrounds in education and professional experience:
Don Berecz
Director Center for Forensic Studies in Accounting and Business Instructor
Office: BA 2200 B
Phone: 912-478-0259
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Don Berecz joined the faculty at Georgia Southern University in 2007, after 23 years of government service with the FBI. He was agency-certified as a financial investigator, police instructor, and polygraph examiner. During his career as a Special Agent, he was assigned to the Seattle, Illinois, and Washington, DC field offices, and was responsible for a wide variety of criminal investigations. He also participated in undercover operations, foreign counterintelligence matters, and recruiting for the FBI.
Mr. Berecz, a licensed polygraph examiner, is a CPA and CFE. He belongs to numerous professional organizations to include the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, and the American Association of Police Polygraphists.
Education:
MBA, Western Illinois University, 1981
B.B., Western Illinois University, 1978
Office: 3301
Phone: 912-478-7142
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Thomas Buckhoff is an associate professor at Georgia Southern University. He is also a partner with Forensic Solutions, LLC, - forensic accounting firm specializing in fraud detection, investigation, and prevention consulting services. Dr. Buckhoff received his Bachelors and Master of Accountancy degrees from Brigham Young University and his Ph.D. in accounting from the University of Kentucky. He is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE). Previously, Dr. Buckhoff worked as a senior forensic accountant for Eide Bailly, LLP - Fraudwise Division, and as the Eide Bailly Professor of Forensic Accounting at North Dakota State University. He frequently conducts anti-fraud continuing professional education (CPE) seminars for organizations including the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, American Accounting Association, Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, Institute of Internal Auditors, Institute of Management Accountants, CPA Australia, various state CPA societies, law enforcement agencies, and various Fortune 500 companies. Dr. Buckhoff has also published a variety of anti-fraud articles in the Journal of Forensic Accounting, Journal of Accountancy, Advances in Accounting Education, Journal of Financial Crime, The CPA Journal, Strategic Finance, New Accountant, Issues in Accounting Education, and The Fraud Magazine. He is on the editorial board for The CPA Journal, served as Editor of Expert Witnessing in Forensic Accounting (2005), and served as Associate Editor for the Journal of Forensic Accounting (1999-2003).
Education:
Ph.D., University of Kentucky, 1995
M.Acc., Brigham Young University, 1989
B.S., Brigham Young University, 1986
Office: 3341
Phone: 912-478-5688
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Leslee N. Higgins, CFE, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Accounting. She joined the faculty in 1997 after completing her doctorate in accounting at the University of Cincinnati. Dr. Higgins teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in both accounting information systems and financial accounting. She is a member of the American Accounting Association, the Georgia Association of Accounting Educators, and the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners. Dr. Higgins’ research interests include computerized accounting information systems, cash balance pension plans, and other pedagogical issues. Dr. Higgins has received numerous awards for distinguished research, including the First Coast Systems Faculty award and the M. Albert Burke Faculty award and two Excellence in Research awards from the School of Accountancy at Georgia Southern.
Education:
Ph.D., University of Cincinnati
MBA, University of Louisville
BA, University of California, Santa Barbara
Areas of Expertise:
• Computerized Accounting Information Systems
• Cash Balance Pension Plans
• Anit-Fraud Education
Course Instruction:
• ACCT 4632 - Micro Fraud Examination
• ACCT 4130 - Accounting Information Systems
• ACCT 6130 - Accounting and Control
• ACCT 7530 - Seminar in Accounting Information Systems
Dr. Cheryl Metrejean
Assistant Professor of Accounting
Office: 1128
Phone: 912-478-5274
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Cheryl Metrejean is an assistant professor of accounting at Georgia Southern University. Dr. Metrejean received her Bachelors degree from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, her Master of Accountancy degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her Ph.D. in accounting from Texas A&M University. She is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE). Previously, Dr. Metrejean worked as a senior tax accountant at Ernst & Young in Houston, Texas and Washington, DC. In addition, she has taught Accounting and Taxation at the University of Mississippi, the University of Texas at Austin and Texas State University at San Marcos. Dr. Metrejean has also published a variety of education and taxation articles in the ATA Journal of Legal Tax Research, Journal of Accountancy, the Oil, Gas and Energy Quarterly, Accounting Education: An International Journal, The Tax Adviser, Petroleum Accounting and Financial Management Journal, Taxes – the Tax Magazine. She is on the editorial board for the ATA Journal of Legal Tax Research.
Education:
Ph.D., Texas A&M University, 1997
MAC, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1988
B.S., University of Louisiana at Lafayette, 1986
Areas of Expertise:
• Taxation
Course Instruction:
• ACCT 3530 – Tax Aspects of Business Decisions
• ACCT 3330 – Income Tax
• ACCT 7330 – Taxation of Corporations and Partnerships
Mr. Robert Newman
Lecturer
Information Systems
Office: CIT 3142
Phone: (912) 478-7563
Fax: (912) 478-7751
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Mr. Newman has held numerous technical positions at University of South Carolina. He retired from Bellsouth Broadband operations, and has worked as a WebMaster. He has also programed in numerous languages. In his spare time, Mr. Newman is a downhill skier, hiker, camper, dirt biker, photographer.
Education:
MBIS Georgia State University, 1985
BS/BBA University of South Carolina, 1979
Areas of Expertise:
• Computer and Network Security
• Data Communications
• Network Administration
• Advanced Business Applications
• Systems Analysis and Design
Dr. Debra Sinclair
Assistant Professor of Accounting
Office: 2210
Phone: 912-478-0379
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Debra Sinclair is an assistant professor of accounting at Georgia Southern University. Her research interests include earnings management, director compensation, and corporate governance. Dr. Sinclair received her Bachelor’s in accounting from the University of South Florida, her Master’s of Business Administration from Drexel University and her Ph.D. in accounting from Temple University. Debra is a Certified Management Accountant (CMA) and worked for several years as a corporate accountant before entering academia. Dr. Sinclair has received several awards including the 2006 Accounting Association Professor of the Year award and the 2006 Bank of America Faculty Award.
Education:
Ph.D., Temple University
MBA, Drexel University
BBA, University of South Florida
Areas of Expertise:
• Earnings Management
• Corporate Governance
• Director Compensation
Dr. Stephanie Sipe
Associate Professor of Legal Studies
Office: 3355
Phone: 912-478-0193
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Stephanie R. Sipe is an associate professor of legal studies at Georgia Southern University. She received her Bachelors degree from Wake Forest University, her law degree from University of Georgia, and a Masters Degree in Adult Human Resource Development from James Madison University. She practiced law in Virginia for 9 years before transitioning to academia. As an attorney, Dr. Sipe developed an expertise in employment law and litigation. She advised business clients on employment policies and practices, and represented the interests of both employees and employers in state and federal court. Her case of O’Brien v. Kluge, which received national press attention, was a case of first impression in the federal courts on a particular issue under the Fair Labor Standards Act concerning the executive exemption to overtime. She also had the privilege of arguing another case of first impression concerning hostile environment and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act before the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. Dr. Sipe has taught at the university level for 8 years. She was an adjunct professor at James Madison University in the College of Business, and also an assistant professor at Eastern Mennonite University in the School of Business and Economics, before coming to Georgia Southern University in 2005. She has given numerous seminars on topics such as Legal Aspects of Employee Management, Sexual Harassment, and the Family and Medical Leave Act, and currently is researching and writing on topics such as management education and students perceptions of gender issues in the workplace. She is a member of the American Bar Association, the Academy of Legal Studies in Business, the Southeastern Academy of Legal Studies Education, Allied Academies, and the Association for Business Simulation and Experiential Learning.
Education:
J.D., University of Georgia, 1990
M.Ed., James Madison University, 2005
B.S., Wake Forest University, 1987
Areas of Expertise:
• Legal Environment of Business
• Legal Aspects of Employee Management
Course Instruction:
• BUSA 2106 - Legal Environment of Business
• LSTD 7230 - Law & Ethics for Accountants
Dr. LeVon Wilson
Professor of Legal Studies
Office: 2200-D
Phone: 912-478-5262
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LeVon E. Wilson joined the Georgia Southern University faculty in 2005 as a Professor of Legal Studies in the School of Accountancy. He came to Georgia Southern from Western Carolina University, where he was a tenured Professor of Business Law. He also served as Head of the Department of Marketing and Business Law at Western Carolina from 1996 to 2002. He taught both undergraduate and graduate courses in law, including online delivery as part of the Master of Project Management Online Degree Program. His research interests focus on education, employment, and constitutional law issues. Dr. Wilson is a two-time recipient of the College of Business Professor of Excellence Award at Western Carolina and was the 2005 recipient of the University Of North Carolina Board Of Governors’ Award for Excellence in Teaching. This is a system-wide award that recognizes teaching excellence among the 16 constituent universities of the University of North Carolina. Dr. Wilson is a former Assistant County Attorney for Guilford County, North Carolina. He is a member of the North Carolina Bar as well as the bars of the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, the United States Tax Court, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court. He is the subject of biographical note in Who’s Who in American Law, Who’s Who in American Education, and Who’s Who in America. Dr. Wilson is a lawyer, a mediator/arbitrator, a law educator, a public speaker, and trainer/consultant.
Education:
Ed.D., North Carolina State University
J.D., North Carolina Central University, School of Law
B.S.B.A, Western Carolina University
Areas of Expertise:
• Higher Education Law
• Constitutional Law
• Small Business Development
Course Instruction:
• BUSA 2106 – Environment of Business
• LSTD 3631 – Fraud and the Law
