Parker College of Business students receive $15K in scholarships

April 23, 2020

Two accounting students in the Parker College of Business at Georgia Southern University received individual scholarships totaling $15,000 to help with their academic careers.

Gabrielle Beasley, a junior accounting student from Powder Springs, Georgia, was awarded a $10,000 scholarship from the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), and Roy Willamson, an accounting major from Statesboro, Georgia, received $5,000 from the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) Foundation.

“Being the recipient of the PCAOB Scholarship has given me a true sense of accomplishment,” Beasley said. “To know that my hard work and dedication have garnered such an honor is breathtaking.”

Beasley was nominated by her professors for the PCAOB scholarship, which is awarded to a student with an overall GPA of 3.3 or higher or place in the top third of their overall class.

“Gabbie has an outstanding GPA, she’s a top student and has an impressive résumé,” said Assistant Professor Andrea M. Scheetz, Ph.D., who nominated Beasley. “She works part time as a leasing agent at a local apartment complex, will intern with Ernst and Young this summer and participate in Aprio’s Summer Leadership Program. She’s a wonderful student.” 

Beasley is also a member of the University Honors Program, the National Association of Black Accountants and the Minority Advisement Program. 

Williamson received the ACFE Foundation Scholarship through the Ritchie-Jennings Memorial Scholarship. Students who receive this scholarship have displayed academic achievement in accounting, finance, business administration or criminal justice and have a desire to pursue a career in fraud examination or similar anti-fraud profession. Additionally, the scholarship recipients receive a one-year ACFE Student Membership.

“It is a great honor to receive this scholarship,” said Williamson. “The Association of Certified Fraud Examiners is comprised of those on the front lines fighting against fraud, and, as reflected in the naming of the Ritchie-Jennings Memorial Scholarship, those who have given everything in the fight. 

“It is a sobering thought, but one that pays respect to Tracy Ritchie and Larry Jennings, who, in 1997, lost their lives while working in Pakistan as a result of a terrorist attack,” he continued. “The Ritchie-Jennings Memorial Scholarship represents the next generation of fraud examiners, a generation that I am proud to be a part of through my studies and career. I could not have gotten this far without the support of my family, friends, coworkers and professors.”