Charles H. Smith, currently KPMG professor of Accounting at Penn State University, is the recipient of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants’ (AICPA) Distinguished Achievement in Accounting Education for 2005. The award recognizes full-time college accounting educators for excellence in teaching and national prominence in the accounting profession.

“Throughout his career, Charles Smith has emphasized the importance of all three dimensions of university education – teaching, research and service,” said AICPA Chair Robert Bunting when he presented the award to Smith at the Spring meeting of the AICPA’s Governing Council in Washington, D.C. “Over the years, his work has influenced a broad spectrum of accounting professionals.”

Smith joined the faculty of Penn State’s Smeal College for Business Administration in 1987. From 1987 to 1991 he served as Chair of the Accounting and MIS Department. In 1991 he became Chair of the Accounting Department, a position he held until 2000. He has been published in numerous domestic and foreign journals and received several awards for teaching excellence, including the 2004 Outstanding Educator award from the Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs (PICPA).