Jenkins MAC Program Honors Kim Bullard, Emily Wetsel at Annual Celebration

By Jess Clarke

Among the heroes of Poole’s Jenkins Master of Accounting (MAC) program are two women involved for years with crucial aspects of the program: professional development, student and faculty scholarships and fellowships, and recruitment of students for positions after graduation.

Kim Bullard and Emily Wetsel are part of MAC’s formula of success for students. They were honored for their longtime contributions at the annual Jenkins MAC program celebration, held in November at Carter-Finley Stadium.

Bullard, campus recruiting manager at accounting firm FORVIS, received the 2023 MAC Friend of the Program Award. Wetsel, a CPA and 2009 MAC graduate, received the 2023 Distinguished Jenkins MAC Alumni of the Year award.

“Kim and Emily help prepare students for careers in the accounting profession by continuing to be very involved with general campus recruitment activities such as feedback during mock interviews, attending Meet the Firms and socials, or participating in other campus recruitment events,” MAC Program Director Scott Showalter says. “They also continue to support classroom activities and student organizations.”

“Through Kim’s efforts, many MAC students received financial support and have been able to find a successful career in the accounting profession,” Showalter says.

“Emily has been an active and enthusiastic supporter of the Jenkins MAC program since graduating. Not only has she supported the program financially, but she has also significantly contributed to the MAC program with her time, talents and knowledge,” he notes.

About the Award Recipients

For about the past 20 years, Kim Bullard has made presentations to classes and student organizations and at MAC’s student orientation on professional development topics such as interviewing, resume writing and professional etiquette.

She engages with students in general career mentoring and has helped set up scholarships and fellowships for MAC students and faculty. She has established professional relationships with all networks across campus and within Poole College, including career advisors, faculty, department chairs and the dean.

She also participates in discussions to help the MAC program succeed in the competitive world of campus recruitment.

Emily Wetsel has devoted her career to the financial and accounting healthcare industry, with a focus on healthcare reimbursement. She began her accounting career at CLA in financial auditing and then moved into healthcare consulting full time. Now, as director of reimbursement services at PYA, she oversees the firm’s reimbursement service line and supports other service lines on reimbursement projects.

She has served multi-state hospital systems, skilled nursing facilities, rural health clinics, home health agencies, and hospice organizations with her expertise in Medicare and Medicaid compliance reimbursement. In 2019, she received the NCACPA Women to Watch award for her contributions and leadership in accounting.

For MAC, she has been an alumni panelist, and while at CLA, she helped lead the efforts of MAC’s fellowship program by attending networking and interviewing events and talking with prospective candidates.

This post was originally published in Poole College of Management News.