University of Scranton Accounting Dept. Ranked No 2 in Education Research Productivity The University of Scranton Accounting Department ranked No. 2 (tied) internationally for accounting education research published in peer-reviewed accounting journals during the most recent six-year period, according to the 2024 Brigham Young University Accounting Rankings just published. The 2024 report also ranked Douglas M. Boyle, D.B.A., professor and chair of the Accounting Department and director of the Ph.D. program, No. 2 in the world for accounting education publication volume in the past six years, and No. 91 (tied) for Accounting Information System Research. Accounting faculty members James F. Boyle, D.B.A., associate professor and director of the Master of Accountancy program, was ranked No. 10 (tied); and Amanda Marcy, Ph.D., assistant professor, and Ashley Stampone, Ph.D., assistant professor, were ranked No. 79 (tied) worldwide. Dr. Stampone was also ranked No. 91 (tied) for Accounting Information System Research. The Brigham Young University Accounting Rankings are considered to be the gold standard in accounting disciplines. “The international recognition for education research published by our Accounting Department faculty is a testament to their steadfast commitment to not only teach accounting students at Scranton but to advance further learning and knowledge for the betterment of the accounting profession,” said Mark Higgins, Ph.D., dean of the University’s Kania School of Management and professor of accounting, who noted that all four professors recognized are graduates of The University of Scranton. “It is also a testament to the University’s commitment to excellence in teaching, research, and service, which is embodied in each of these outstanding professors.” This is the fifth consecutive year the University’s Accounting Department was ranked among the top research publishers in the world in the prestigious Brigham Young University Accounting Rankings. The report ranks accounting programs and faculty throughout the world based on their success in publishing in top-tier, peer-reviewed accounting journals. The report is updated annually and includes ranks for specific categories of research and for specific time periods. Dr. Douglas Boyle is a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Management Accountant with more than 30 years of industry executive experience. He joined the faculty at Scranton in 2009. An award-winning researcher and teacher, Dr. Boyle has received the Institute of Management Accountants’ (IMA) Committee on Ethics and Strategic Finance Curt Verschoor Ethics Feature of the Year Award three times and was also selected as the IMA Research Foundation Distinguished Scholar in 2022, among numerous other awards. At Scranton, Dr. Boyle earned Provost Excellence Awards for University Service and Leadership, Scholarship of Teaching and Scholarly Publication; and the Faculty Senate’s Excellence in Graduate Teaching Award. He was named the Kania School of Management’s Alperin Teaching Fellow for 2015 to 2018 and received their Advisory Board’s Award for Curriculum Innovation for 2017-2018. He was twice recognized as the KSOM Teacher of the Year. He is the founder and director of the University’s Ph.D. in Accounting and Nonprofit Leadership Certificate programs. He earned a bachelor’s degree from The University of Scranton, an MBA from Columbia University and a doctorate from Kennesaw State University. A Certified Public Accountant with significant professional experience working in public accounting and in internal auditing, Dr. James F. Boyle has taught part-time at the University since 2009 and full-time since 2012. He serves as faculty advisor for Accounting Internships at Scranton. He has co-authored articles published in many peer-reviewed academic and practitioner journals, including The Accounting Educators’ Journal, The CPA Journal, Strategic Finance, The Journal of Forensic and Investigative Accounting, and Internal Auditing. He received several publishing awards, including the 2015 IMA’s Lybrand Silver Medal and the 2016 IMA Certificate of Merit Award. He earned a bachelor’s degree and an MBA from The University of Scranton and a D.B.A. in Accounting from Kennesaw State University. A Certified Public Accountant, Dr. Marcy has twice received the Curt Verschoor Ethics Feature of the Year Award from the IMA’s Committee on Ethics and Strategic Finance. She was named assistant professor of accounting at Scranton in 2018 and previously served as a faculty specialist in the department. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the American Accounting Association and the Healthcare Financial Management Association. Dr. Marcy earned a bachelor’s degree, an MBA and a Ph.D. in accounting from The University of Scranton. An award-winning teacher, Dr. Stampone was selected by students of Scranton’s Business Club as the Kania School of Management Professor of the Year four of the last five years. Since joining Scranton’s faculty in 2016, Dr. Stampone has garnered numerous state and national awards and professional honors. In 2019, she was given the IMA’s Faculty Leadership Award, and in 2021, she won IMA’s Ursel K. Albers IMA Campus Advocate of the Year Award, which recognizes a campus advocate/student chapter advisor who has made significant contributions to the IMA and student members in particular. Dr. Stampone earned a bachelor’s degree, an MBA and a Ph.D. from The University of Scranton.
Marywood University: Summer 2025 Sessions Begins in January Marywood University is opening registration for its summer courses in January, to give both Marywood students and visiting students an opportunity to review courses and plan ahead for summer during the holiday season. Registration for Marywood students begins during the week of January 6. Enrollment opens for all students, including visiting students, on January 9. Registration for each session is open up until the start date of that particular session. Marywood University currently offers three summer sessions for students at all levels of study, consisting of undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral courses and featuring online, hybrid, and on-site formats. Session dates include: Summer I (May 19 – June 28) Summer II (July 7 – August 17) Summer III (May 19 – August 16); this is an extended, primarily cohort-based term. “Summer courses are an important part of each student’s educational experience, providing options to get ahead, as well as to take, or even to retake, courses that they need to stay on track and improve their grade point average,” said Leslie Christianson, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs & Strategic Initiatives. “In the summer, students can focus exclusively on one or two classes at a time and mitigate the stress that can sometimes accompany the full course load of a regular semester.” Visiting students are welcome to enroll in summer classes at Marywood, whether for enrichment or for transfer to their home institution. Students who are planning to transfer from another institution to Marywood University in the fall can speak with their advisor about getting a head start on classes in the summer. To get more information on course subjects/listings, session dates, pricing, and more, visit: marywood.edu/summer.
The Wright Center Receives Grant The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education was awarded a $3 million grant to train internal medicine residents and faculty to better serve patients living with limited English proficiency and/or physical, intellectual, and developmental disabilities. The five-year grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), will also be used to train internal medicine residents and faculty in best practices for patients who all too often experience disproportionate impacts to care access. The Wright Center is one of 18 programs around the country awarded a total of $8 million in grants as part of HRSA’s mission to improve access to health care for underserved and marginalized groups. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, up to 27% of adults in the United States live with some type of disability. The Wright Center for Community Health provides whole-person primary health services to patients in eight counties, including Carbon, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Monroe, Pike, Susquehanna, Wayne, and Wyoming counties. Nearly 16% of residents in Lackawanna and Luzerne counties are people with disabilities, while more than 16% of the population in Pike and Susquehanna counties and nearly 18% in Wayne County are people with disabilities, according to the American Community Survey. The state average, according to the same survey, is just under 14%. “The absence of professional training toward disability consciousness for health care practitioners is one of the most significant barriers that prevent people with disabilities from receiving appropriate and effective health care,” said Dr. Jumee Barooah, the senior vice president of education and designated institutional official for The Wright Center. Additionally, the communities The Wright Center serves are becoming increasingly diverse, with a notable influx of Hispanic, Indian, Nepali, and Bhutanese residents moving to the region within the last decade. More than 60 languages are spoken in the Scranton School District. Patients at The Wright Center speak more than 22 languages, including Spanish, Nepali, Mandarin, Krio, Gujarati, Hindi, Serbian, Ukrainian, and Vietnamese. Research has shown that when a patient’s primary spoken language differs from the primary language of the health system, worse health outcomes often result, according to Wright Center officials. Putting methods in place to aid communication with patients who are most comfortable communicating in a language other than English can improve their health and well-being. “We were so pleased to learn we were awarded this grant from HRSA,” Dr. Barooah said. “It is allowing us to increase the number of internal medicine physicians who are trained in these vital best practices through developing and implementing an enhanced curriculum, which in turn will have a positive impact on patient care for all of our community members.”
The Wright Center Launches New ‘Care Team’ Approach The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education have launched an innovative program to enhance patient care while nurturing the skills of tomorrow’s physician workforce. Medical residents at The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education are now members of “care teams” that provide whole-person primary health services to people of all ages, income levels, and insurance statuses. The novel initiative elevates the standard of care provided at The Wright Center’s nine community health center locations in Northeast Pennsylvania while providing a platform for residents to refine their skills as compassionate healers. By seamlessly integrating hands-on experience with comprehensive training, the program embodies The Wright Center’s mission to improve the health and welfare of communities through inclusive and responsive health services and the sustainable renewal of an inspired, competent workforce that is privileged to serve. “Patients get two sets of eyes – the resident and the doctor,” said Dr. Timothy Burke, a primary care physician at The Wright Center for Community Health – Mid Valley in Jermyn, Pennsylvania, and the associate program director of The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education’s Internal Medicine Residency. “Seeing the same resident and the same doctor each time means the patient doesn’t have to repeat their medical history over and over. Both know who you are, the care you’re receiving, and the obstacles you face.” Patients will benefit from building personal relationships with The Wright Center’s resident physicians, according to Dr. Erin McFadden, a primary care doctor who also serves as deputy chief medical officer and medical director of The Wright Center for Community Health’s locations in Scranton, North Scranton, and the Scranton Counseling Center. “That’s the beauty of primary care. It’s not just learning the medicine, it’s learning how to develop the relationship with the patient,” Dr. McFadden said. “It’s important to build that patient-doctor trust so you can see how their health is changing and, hopefully, improving.” Dr. McFadden, for example, said a resident physician will prescribe a patient with diabetes a particular drug to help with blood sugar levels. Now, as part of the patient’s care team, they can monitor how effective that medication is – and what side effects the patient may or may not experience – at subsequent appointments. “We’re giving an opportunity to our patients and our resident physicians to build a relationship,” she said. “If you want to take care of a disease and improve health, you need multiple pictures over time to watch cause and effect.” The care team concept is not new at The Wright Center for Community Health, which typically integrates medical, dental, and behavioral health care, as well as community-based addiction treatment and recovery services, at a single location for the convenience of patients. To ensure residents could become more involved in patient care teams, The Wright Center collaborated with its Electronic Health Record (EHR) vendor to redesign the scheduling of patient appointments to honor patient continuity. The program also means changing the way resident physicians are scheduled for rotations, which are completed at The Wright Center’s community health centers, local hospitals, and other medical settings in the region. Typically, resident physicians cycle through a number of assignments, each lasting a few weeks to a month. Now, the residents who are part of the new care teams are assigned to their doctor’s clinic location once a week. “That came from a buy-in across the medical residency program leaders that continuity was important and a priority, so no other rotations were going to supersede their regularly scheduled continuity clinics,” said Tiffany Jaskulski, vice president of health innovation and strategic initiatives at The Wright Center. First-year Internal Medicine resident Dr. Ketaki Pande sees patients at The Wright Center for Community Health – North Scranton on Fridays with Dr. McFadden. She’s enjoyed getting to know patients on a deeper level and says the team approach is helping her become a more effective physician. “One of the big parts of primary care is managing chronic conditions,” Dr. Pande said. “For example, not everyone responds to a particular medication the same way. So, I prescribe something, and now I can follow up weeks and months later, to see how it’s working and if something else is needed.”
Marywood University Sets Fall Admissions Events Prospective undergraduate and graduate students can attend designated Open Houses at Marywood University this fall to learn more about specific programs and educational opportunities. For additional details, go to the websites listed, or call the Office of Admissions at (570) 348-6234. Additionally, prospective undergraduate students can email YourFuture@marywood.edu and prospective graduate students can email GoGrad@marywood.edu for more information. Undergraduate Open Houses: Saturday, October 29, and Saturday, November 12, at 9 a.m. Two Undergraduate Open Houses are scheduled, including Saturday, October 29, 2022, and Saturday, November 12, 2022, for high school students and their parents. Registration for both events begins at 9 a.m. in the Fireplace Lounge at the Nazareth Student Center on the University’s campus. Prospective students can meet with current Marywood students, faculty, and coaches. There will be opportunities to explore academic departments, learn more about the admissions process, and tour campus. Information sessions with admissions and financial aid counselors also will be available. The event includes a continental breakfast and a complimentary lunch. To register, visit marywood.edu/openhouse. Graduate Open House: Saturday, November 5, at 10 a.m.-Noon Prospective graduate students can attend a Graduate Open House on Saturday, November 5, 2022, at 10 a.m., at Nazareth Student Center, for an overview of Marywood, a financial aid and scholarship session, and meetings with faculty. Optional tours of campus also are available. To register, visit marywood.edu/gradopenhouse.
Marywood University’s Graduate Art Therapy Program Earns Accreditation Marywood University’s graduate art therapy program was recently notified that it is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) upon the recommendation of the Accreditation Council for Art Therapy Education (ACATE). Marywood University’s graduate art therapy program is founded in artistic, ethical, and spiritual values within a tradition of service. The graduate art therapy program at Marywood provides a supportive framework for the enhancement of students’ capacity to utilize the therapeutic qualities of art making with a wide variety of populations. The master of arts degree in art therapy at Marywood University trains professionals in the mental health field to use art as a catalyst for healing and self-actualization. Art therapy aids human development through self-discovery, self-awareness, and personal growth. Marywood’s graduate art therapy program exposes students to a variety of theories and approaches related to the practice of art therapy and the field of psychology. The CAAHEP is the largest programmatic accreditor of the health sciences professions. In collaboration with its Committees on Accreditation, CAAHEP reviews and accredits more than 2,100 individual education programs in over 32 health science occupations. CAAHEP-accredited programs are assessed on an ongoing basis to ensure that they meet the standards and guidelines of each profession. For additional information about Marywood University’s graduate art therapy program, please visit marywood.edu/art/graduate-programs/master-art-therapy.html, or call the Office of Admissions, at (570) 348-6234. For additional information about the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs, please visit caahep.org.
