Employee-driven campaign at Kaufman Rossin results in $100,000 gift to School of Accounting

Incredible results happen when those who have “made it” help those who are starting out.

The employees at Kaufman Rossin, one of Florida’s largest independent accounting firms, and the firm itself pledged $100,000 to the School of Accounting and the College of Business at Florida International University (FIU). A 2008 campaign at the firm raised $50,000.

“FIU’s College of Business and School of Accounting have been great sources of talent for us,” says campaign organizer Steven Berwick (BBA ’74), principal of Assurance, Advisory Services and Litigation Consulting at Kaufman Rossin. “We interview candidates from all over the country, but the students coming out of FIU’s School of Accounting are consistently some of the brightest and most industrious professionals that we hire.”

Berwick worked with FIU’s Office of Advancement and championed the internal campaign to encourage the FIU alumni at the firm to commit to a five-year gift to the university. The campaign resulted in $50,000 in donations from our employees via payroll deductions and another $50,000 in firm-matched funds.

“Many of the FIU alumni said they would like to see their donation go to scholarships for graduate students in the School of Accounting,” said Berwick. “So we decided to split Kaufman Rossin’s donation, with $50,000 for scholarships and $50,000 going toward general operating support for the College of Business.”

Nearly one-third of Kaufman Rossin employees are FIU alumni. The firm has hired approximately 15 to 20 FIU graduates per year in the past five years.

“We look forward to continuing our relationship with the university and helping develop students who will shape the future of public accounting,” said Berwick, one of the first graduates of FIU, who now serves on the FIU Foundation Board of Directors, the FIU President’s Council and the School of Accounting Advisory Board.

Room will be named for Kaufman Rossin.

In appreciation for the gift for FIU graduate students in accounting, Room 221 in MANGO will be named for Kaufman Rossin. The room will be dedicated in a ceremony this fall.

“We are deeply appreciative and want to thank the employees of Kaufman Rossin for supporting our graduate students.” Ruth Ann McEwen, senior associate dean of the College of Business and director of the School of Accounting.