During fall 2018, the Department of Accounting and Management Information Systems welcomed Kelly Pope, associate professor of accounting at DePaul University, to campus.

In addition to “Dr.” and “CPA,” Pope boasts another impressive title: film director.

Pope produced and directed the award-winning documentary, All the Queen’s Horses, which focuses on the largest case of municipal fraud in American history. Pope presented the film to accounting students, faculty and staff at Fisher, spoke to MAcc students about the film and also attended a Q&A session with AMIS faculty and undergraduate students.

The screening coincided with a renewed effort at Fisher to focus on fraud detection. This spring, the department introduced a fraud examination class for undergraduates. The course, taught by Senior Lecturer Stephanie Lewis, educates students on how and why individuals commit occupational fraud, as well as introduces techniques used for fraud protection, detection and investigation. The department also offers a fraud examination course for MAcc students, which is taught by Ohio State’s Chief Risk Officer Douglas Huffner.

The courses are designed to address an issue that is alarmingly prevalent in the business world: In 2017, companies worldwide lost in excess of $7 billion due to occupational fraud, according to the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.

“Accountants have the opportunity to bring value to their clients by helping organizations prevent and detect fraud,” Lewis said. “My hope is that students will leave the course with a greater awareness of how to help their future clients or employers design strong policies and procedures to prevent them from falling victim.”

Lewis hopes to expand the course in the future by bringing in speakers and partnering with small local businesses and nonprofits that could potentially benefit from a review of their internal controls.