Recognizing his commitment to education and the professional and personal development of underrepresented students at Ohio State and throughout the region, David Harrison was recently honored by the National Association of Black Accountants (NABA).

Harrison, senior director of Fisher’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion Student Services (OD&ISS), received the 2018 Central Region Outstanding Service Award at NABA’s national convention in Orlando, Florida.

“I am a lifetime member of the NABA Professional Organization, and my experiences with NABA over the years have been truly remarkable,” Harrison said. “I recall attending the 27th Annual NABA National Conference in San Francisco in 1997 where the Ohio State student chapter of NABA received its charter.

“Joe Joiner, a Fisher undergraduate accounting student (and former U.S. Marine like myself) was its founding president at the time, and together, with the support of Ohio State, Joe and I attended the conference and were presented with the charter. Joe, a valued alumnus, now resides in Chicago with his family, and he continues to give back and support our students through generous financial gifts.”

Under his leadership, Fisher’s OD&ISS team has served as a key differentiator and a strong advocate for underrepresented students at the college and throughout Ohio State. Harrison has helped secure more than $6 million in grants, fellowships, scholarships, assistantships, programming and administrative support for a wide range of diversity and inclusion programs at Fisher.

Among these is the Accounting Careers Awareness Program (ACAP-Ohio), which has been held at Ohio State for 20 of the past 22 years. The weeklong residency program has provided hundreds of minority high school students with opportunities to explore career options in accounting and business. NABA’s Columbus Chapter serves as one of ACAP-Ohio’s sponsors.

“It has been a privilege to serve as a chapter advisor for the last 21 years and an honor to support hundreds of NABA student officers and members such as Joe,” Harrison said. “To be recognized at the national level for my years of service and successes in making a difference in the lives of our NABA students was an honor.

“I am excited that Cynthia Turner, the first African American to receive a PhD in accounting at Ohio State, will assume the role as advisor of the university’s NABA student chapter this fall. I look forward to supporting Cynthia in her efforts.”

NABA’s Central Region comprises chapters in Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Indianapolis, Louisville, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, northwest Arkansas, Omaha, St. Louis and Wichita.