Al Arens, professor of accounting for 39 years and a tremendous supporter of the university and its students, passed away on Dec. 6 at the age of 75.
"Al was my mentor, colleague and friend," says Sue Haka, the Ernst & Young Professor of Accounting and associate dean for Academic Affairs and Research at the Broad College. "He taught me the importance of being (MSU) green, educating students and thinking about the bigger picture. The world has a hole in it without Al."
Arens, the former PriceWaterhouseCoopers Auditing Professor in the Accounting and Information Systems department, graduated with a Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota and served MSU from 1968-2007. He won numerous teaching awards, was a MSU University Distinguished Faculty awardee, AICPA Educator of the Year, 1990-91 president of the American Accounting Association, member of the AICPA Auditing Standards Board, and member of National Association of State Boards of Accountancy, among other awards and honors.
He co-authored, "Auditing; An Integrated Approach," one of the most significant auditing textbooks in the world. He lectured internationally in China, Jakarta, Indonesia, Singapore, Bangkok, Thailand, Malaysia, Denmark, Norway, Taiwan and the Netherlands.
"I owe it to him that I did so well on the auditing section of the CPA exam," says former student Elizabeth Cawrey. "(He was) a very good professor and he definitely will be missed."
Arens and his wife, Irene, established The Arens Scholarships in 2006 to support students in the colleges of Education, Business and Nursing. Their preference was to support single parents with financial responsibility for their children and candidates who are among the first generation in their family to attend college.
The Eli Broad College of Business also established The Arens Teaching Excellence Fund to support the use of teaching assistants in introductory accounting classes – classes that Arens taught for many years with the help of many teaching assistants. Consistent with his dedication and generosity to the Broad College and its students, he pledged to match the first $125,000 contributed to the endowment.
A memorial service is planned for Saturday, Dec. 11, at 4 p.m. at Okemos Community Church. His family will receive visitors an hour beforehand at the church and welcome anyone who would like to join them back at the house after the service.
In recognition of Arens, donations can be made to the Arens Teaching Excellence Fund, 300 Spartan Way, East Lansing, MI 48824; Okemos Community Church Building Renovation Fund, 4734 Okemos Rd, P.O. Box 680, Okemos, MI 48805; or Sparrow Hospice, C/O Sparrow Foundation, P.O. Box 30480, Lansing, MI 48909.