Kris D. Allee and Zac Wiebe, accounting faculty members and researchers in the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the U of A, recently attended an exclusive conference at the Financial Accounting Standards Board headquarters in Norfolk, Connecticut.

Allee and Wiebe were among approximately 50 global academic researchers invited to collaborate with the FASB on critical accounting standards and emerging financial reporting challenges.

“Dr. Allee and Dr. Wiebe exemplify the importance of faculty impact on campus and beyond our campus borders,” said Gary Peters, senior associate dean at Walton College. “Within our department, Dr. Allee is instrumental in revealing the expansive nature of accounting to our freshman, honors students and M.B.A. students. Likewise, Dr. Wiebe is well-known for steering the direction of our accounting majors by emphasizing high expectations amongst our accounting majors and master's students. This also reflects their willingness to spend time with our department’s constituents and serve our obligations as the flagship university in Arkansas.”

Global Impact

The two-day conference focused on two primary objectives: discussing academic research insights to prioritize the FASB's future agenda and examining the increasing prevalence and complexity of key performance indicators.

"In academia, it can be difficult to connect research with practice," Allee said. "This conference provides a direct connection between our academic research, teaching and real-world accounting practices and practitioners."

 The conference addressed topics that included business combinations, intangible assets and financial measures that haven’t yet come within the “generally accepted accounting principles,” or the GAAP.

Allee and Wiebe were tapped to engage in these discussions due to their close relationship with the FASB and their combined decades of accounting research and working knowledge in the field. They both noted that because accounting standards are ever-evolving, it’s crucial to standardize financial communication so investors can make informed decisions and ensure aligned financial reporting practices across companies.

"Accounting is the language of business," Wiebe explained. "Financial reports communicate a company's performance, position and future prospects to capital providers."

Classroom Integration

The impact of the discussions will extend far beyond FASB’s headquarters into both businesses and classrooms worldwide.

“I discuss these issues in my M.B.A. class. When teaching financial statement analysis to M.B.A.s, all the conference topics come up. For example, my next class covers a Pepsi versus Coca-Cola case study about their different approaches to non-GAAP metrics,” Allee said.

Wiebe also incorporates the standards discussed this year at the FASB into his lessons: “I teach master’s students and include this material in our accounting research and regulation courses. This helps us stay current and adds value to both our teaching and research. We're also working to place our first student in the FASB's postgraduate technical assistantship program, which is highly competitive.”

International Accounting Recognition

The U of A’s representation at this exclusive conference underscores Walton College's commitment to bridging academic research and professional accounting practice for the most wholistic education for its students.

"Students need to be aware of what is going on with the FASB and accounting standards, as accounting is an ever-evolving profession,” Allee noted. “This is a direct connection between us as academics, our research, what we teach and what goes on in practice."

Wiebe agreed, "We're proud that we are viewed as researchers at an institution where the quality of our work and our background as technical experts gives us the opportunity to put Arkansas on the map with respect to contributing to bridging the gap between accounting research and accounting practice."

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About the Sam M. Walton College of Business: Founded in 1926, the Sam M. Walton College of Business stands as one of the largest colleges at the University of Arkansas, serving over 9,800 students across undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral programs. The college holds AACSB accreditation and consistently ranks among the top business schools in the United States. Walton College ranks 25th for its undergraduate business program among public colleges in the U.S. News & World Report’s 2025 national rankings. In addition, its undergraduate supply chain management program is recognized as the No. 1 program in North America by Gartner. In 2024, The Princeton Review included Walton’s M.B.A. program in its Best Business Schools list for On-Campus M.B.A. Programs.  

About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas' flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $3 billion to Arkansas’ economy through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the few U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research and Economic Development News.