Michael Newman: A professor you need on your team

When it comes to interesting people, Michael Newman has to be at the top of the list. A man who has the blessed life with family, friends, and students, also saw a change in it when he walked away from what should have been a fatal car accident.

He earned his Bachelor's Degree in management, and got out of college in early 1970's with no job prospects, and ultimately decided that he needed to make some money. He eventually started up a company, which would later merge with and become an international company. After that sale, he had the chance to get involved with a non-profit group, which would make his heart feel good, but his wallet feel empty. It was during this time, in his life, when the car accident happened, and as he says, "I needed to be able to protect my family financially. I didn't want to pass and leave them nothing."

Michael then decided to go for a Master's and eventually earned a PhD in Accounting. He had a chance to teach classes like Accounting, Finance, and several others, and he fell in love with working with students.

Today, Professor Newman sits down to talk about issues in education, business, and just why everyone needs to understand the importance of accounting.

What has gotten your "hot button" pushed lately? Anything that really has grabbed your attention?

I want to make sure students have the best opportunities possible. Able to have a good life, and are well prepared to enter the work force and do well. I also want to be sure that the companies I work with also get the best employees, and that five years down the line you can ask them who is giving you the best employees, and they say,'The University of Houston.'

I want them to have the best opportunities to avoid things like poverty. Sarbanes Oxley Act has opened up new opportunities and created new jobs that will give students the opportunity to grow. My passion is education, and this is based off the wanting them to avoid poverty. I see them as my kids, and I want them to find jobs that will make them happy down the line. I want them to stay in it because they like it.

Why is Accounting such a growing education field, especially given the current business climate?

Accounting is the language of business. If you don't' understand the language, you don't understand what you're doing. So many people believe accounting is auditing. That's not true. It's looking at both the past and the future. It's about working with numbers that help make good business decisions.

We are teaching you what is garbage and what is not. You're looking at what is best for the stakeholders, and the business. You are looking to create long term business and wealth for the people involved. If you make good decisions, you will contribute to society. It is the language that makes that happen.

What do you tell students about the Enron scandal? It literally took place down the road from you, and the fallout is still hurting Houston.

I was asked to help create an ethics in accounting course, and Enron has become one of the topics of this course. The good news is that Sarbanes Oxley Act is making people aware that fraud is not going to be accepted. The public has already started to see that steps have been taken to make sure this type of situation doesn't happen again. Accountants have accepted responsibility, and surveys have shown that the public are viewing accountants more positively today.

I tell students that they must prevent the next Enron from happening. They have to go in and watch for any illegal activity. Enron has highlighted the things that shouldn't have happened, however the aftermath is starting to look good.

What advice can you give based off the saying, "If I knew then what I know now, I would have done... what?"

I would never have gotten a degree in management and marketing. I would have taken the hard courses in accounting, and the other skill sets that would have helped me in business. I want students to think of accounting as skill sets that can help you get into marketing (such as major medical sales), management or starting your own company. You should be able to understand the numbers in order to figure out what the company needs, or use your accounting knowledge to make profitable decisions.

The best way to get there is getting an accounting degree coupled with whatever else you want to do. Take the challenging courses now instead of taking the easy way out.

Any final thoughts for the readers?

Dean Warga and Gerald (Gerry) Lobo, about five years ago, wanted to have one of the best accounting programs in the nation. Since then we have created several tracks at the Master's level, which has created courses all of which can lead them to degrees like a CPA.

At the undergraduate level, we have a CPA track program, as well as, offering an internal audit track. We are trying to create a learning environment which recognizes the needs of both students and companies, and we want to get their needs met. Administration backs this program, and together we have made the UH Bauer School of Business one of the best in the nation, not only in accounting, but in many of the business programs we offer.

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