At the end-of-semester Farmer School of Business meeting held May 9, faculty awards were announced. Yibo (James) Zhang was awarded the Richard K. Smucker Teaching Excellence Award for Outstanding Junior Professor, and Jon Pyzoha was given the Farmer School of Business Faculty Award for Service Excellence.
James Zhang, Outstanding Junior Professor
Photo by Jay Murdock
Professor Zhang teaches ACC 361 (Modeling Business Processes in Accounting Information Systems), a junior-level course focusing on accounting information systems, technologies, and business controls; and ACC 495/595 (Accounting Analysis), a capstone course that focuses on data analytics and emerging technologies in accounting. His teaching philosophy focuses on the following themes:
- Experiential learning in classrooms—hands-on exercises on accounting technologies (Alteryx, Gen AI, and Tableau), in-class role-playing transaction simulation games on understanding the transactions that produce the accounting journal entries, and client projects partnering with the PwC and inviting professionals to judge student presentations.
- Student advising—connecting students with recruiters and participating in student organization events (e.g., Meet the Firms and the Beta Alpha Psi events)
- Teaching-motivated research—published three research articles with Miami students to study the impact of emerging technologies in the accounting profession.
In addition, his research focuses on accounting information systems and emerging technologies in accounting, data visualizations in financial disclosures, and qualitative/interview research that explores professional insights on topics such as cybersecurity and enterprise risk management.
Jon Pyzoha, Service Excellence Award
Photo by Jay Murdock
Professor Jon Pyzoha firmly believes in the important and critical role of service in maintaining a high level of academic quality at Miami University, the FSB, and the Accountancy department. Beyond Miami, he also also takes a position of leadership to make a difference in the accounting profession. His notable service activities include the following:
Service to the Profession
- Chair of the American Accounting Association (AAA) Auditing Standards Committee
- Member of the AAA Education Committee
- Hosted an Ohio Society of CPAs career day conference with 75+ high school students from Southwest Ohio to promote Miami and accountancy
Service to Miami University and the Department
- Elected FSB representative on the University Senate
- Chair of the Department of Accountancy External Engagement Committee, shaping and implementing a new communications strategy targeted at college and high school students, parents, guidance counselors, alumni, and faculty through developing multimedia content for online communications
- Spearheaded development efforts during #MoveInMiami, implementing a new strategy and raising over $22k after the Farmer Family Foundation match
- Support faculty growth by serving as co-chair of TCPL and course coordinator search committees, and as member of the department’s faculty development committee
Student-Focused Service
- Chaired the FSB Quantitative Literacy Committee, which worked with the Math Department to address student success in calculus issues, leading to a proposed Quantitative Success Center in the FSB’s Innovation Factory
- Serving as Faculty Advisor for the Deloitte Audit Innovation Campus Challenge Case Competition since 2017
- Worked with students on seven independent studies and four published papers
- Developed guiding principles for use of AI in the classroom with two Accountancy professors
We’re very lucky to have these outstanding faculty members in our department. Congratulations to both!