Blending a passion for accounting with entrepreneurial energy, Kelsey Gruber ’27 is already making her mark. During her first year at the Farmer School of Business her team won the First Year Integrated Core (FYIC) client challenge, where their plan was chosen as the best one to increase revenues for the solar technology company Terrasmart.
Her momentum continued at Startup Weekend that November, where she and her team earned second place for their pitch of DiaSolve (now called Hero), a rapid-dissolving glucose formulation for diabetic emergency situations. “It was a crazy 72 hours of working on our prototype and business plan that we then had to pitch to a panel of judges,” Gruber recalled.
They took this pitch further, participating in competitions such as Texas Christian University’s Values and Ventures International Pitch Competition and Baylor University’s New Venture Competition, winning cash prizes along the way. She and her co-founder currently hold a provisional patent for their product.
Gruber’s Miami journey began with the encouragement of her parents, Miami Mergers Jennifer (Mikesell) Gruber ’97 (communications) and Brian Gruber ’97 (finance). She had always been interested in business and has worked for her father’s company for several years, taking on project management, marketing, and financial roles. She remembers her dad wishing that he had taken accountancy, which swayed her decision to make this her major: “He said, you can always go into finance as an accountant, but you can’t do accounting with only a finance degree.”
With her keen business interest, Gruber began at Miami intending to major in both accountancy and entrepreneurship. She had to reprioritize when she decided to pursue the combined BS/MAcc 3+1 program, keeping entrepreneurship as a minor instead. “My entrepreneurship professor, Mark Lacker—even though he was in entrepreneurship—assured me I was making the right decision. It really speaks to how Miami professors care about your personal growth and career path, even after college,” said Gruber. “This is something that my favorite professors—Anne Farrell and Dale Stole in accounting, as well as Justin McGlothin in FYIC—had in common.”
Her academic achievements have also been recognized through her induction into Beta Gamma Sigma, an international business honor society that recognizes only the top 10% of business students worldwide. The recognition reflects both her academic excellence and leadership potential.
Describing her “brand” as an outgoing, driven, creative, yet detail-oriented problem-solver, Gruber sees a future career in audit. She stressed that learning entrepreneurship is a great way to think creatively as an accountant. “Understanding the way a business is built from the ground up, and how a company owner might think, gives you a creative lens when problem-solving,” she explained.
This year, Gruber is excited for new opportunities, including her first trip abroad with FSB Global Studies in Spain during the winter term. She’s eager to gain a global perspective while continuing to grow on campus through her advanced accounting classes. She’s looking forward to participating in Women in Business and her sorority, Alpha Delta Pi, where she hopes to serve in a finance role. And when it’s time to recharge, she can be found running, playing pickleball with friends, or enjoying her favorite treat from Graeter’s.
Gruber has accepted summer internship offer with PwC in Toledo, Ohio, in the Digital Assurance & Transparency (DAT) program.
