Summer is with us and that means most of us are finishing up the academic year, writing up our annual activity reports and getting ready for a month or so of research or other non-classroom activities. Similarly, my summer report will be the last one I will be writing as the Section’s President, and it seems appropriate to review some of the Section’s activities over the past year. I will also mention a few of the interesting auditing activities at the AAA Annual meeting and give a few reminders of important inputs that the Section needs from you.

The Past Year
In reviewing the past year, it is difficult for a Section President to not be extremely grateful for the hard work of so many people who contribute to the success of the Auditing Section. This report would be way too long if I mentioned every deserving person. However, I do want to acknowledge a few people who made huge contributions to our Section. First, Linda McDaniel and her Midyear Conference Planning Committee did an outstanding job. I think we all agree that the Houston meeting was the best ever. Second, our journal, AUDITING: A Journal of Practice & Theory, has been in the capable hands of Arnie Wright, editor, and his associate editors, Jane Mutchler and Ken Trotman. I know we all agree our journal has continued to contribute to auditing knowledge and grow in stature. Third, Rick Tubbs organized our second doctoral consortium and it was a great success. Fourth, I would like to thank Mark Taylor for serving as editor of The Auditor’s Report. Finally, I want to thank all of the Committee Chairpersons and Members for the hours of thought and work that you contributed to help make the Auditing Section so successful.

As I mentioned in my last report, one of the priorities of my presidency was to survey auditing/assurance services courses to find out what changes are taking place in our courses. The task of conducting this survey was given to the Education Committee chaired by Eric Johnson. The committee completed a survey of over 300 syllabi and presented preliminary results at the Midyear Meeting Forum in Houston. They now have finalized all of the results and expect to have a draft of a paper by the time this report is published. The Committee’s paper will be posted on the Section’s web site as soon as it is ready.

Over the past year we also surveyed current and past committee chairpersons to evaluate the Section’s committees. Based on this survey, the Executive Committee made a number of changes in the committee structure that we believe will both streamline and strengthen the work of committees. In another bit of “clean-up” work, the Executive Committee revised the Section’s Operating Manual to better reflect current operating policies and procedures. This activity was initiated and guided by our Historian, Jack Robertson.

2001 Annual Meeting
There are a number of interesting auditing activities at the Annual Meeting in Atlanta. I know we all look forward to the Auditing Section Luncheon, which will be held on Monday, August 13, 2001. Our speaker will be Connie D. McDaniel, who is Vice President and Controller of Coca-Cola Company. Connie has had a very diverse career with Coca-Cola, including several assignments in the company’s overseas operations. In her speech, Connie plans to discuss how information technology is affecting accounting and auditing at Coca-Cola. In particular she will talk about controls, security issues, and about the skill sets and expertise they need to deal with technology. It should be a very interesting and thought-provoking speech.

Robin Roberts has chaired the Annual Meeting program committee. Robin received 72 papers and has put together an excellent program of nine auditing paper sessions and two panel sessions. The Institute of Internal Auditors will present one panel session on e-Commerce. In the other panel session, four panelists will discuss “Auditing and the Quality of Earnings.” This panel session was put together by the Auditing Section’s Practice Advisory Council and Mark DeFond and includes an all-star group of panelists: Greg Jonas, Partner, Andersen LLP; Katherine Schipper, Duke University and incoming FASB member; Walter Schuetze, former SEC Chief Accountant and FASB member; and Zoe-Vonna Palmrose, University of Southern California. The Annual Meeting promises to be a thought-provoking experience for auditing teachers and researchers.

Some Important Reminders
The Winter issue of The Auditor’s Report, included a number calls for nominations. We will be giving a number of awards (Distinguished Service Award, Outstanding Educator Award, Notable Contribution to the Auditing Literature Award, and Outstanding Dissertation Award). It is very important that the selection committees for these awards receive nominations from the members of the Section. Please review the calls in the Winter issue of The Auditor’s Report and send nominations to the committee chairs. The nominations will close on July 1, 200l.

This fall, we will elect several new people to serve on the Auditing Section Executive Committee. This year we will elect a new Vice President–Academic (President-Elect) and new Treasurer. Please think about who you believe would do a good job in these positions and send me your nominations. This year we will conduct our vote for officers electronically via a ballot that will be posted on the Section’s web page. Please watch for an announcement of the election that will come early in the fall. The nominations for officers will close on July 1, 200l.

A Final Word
I would like to close by thanking all of the members for entrusting me with the opportunity to serve as the Section’s President. It has been an honor that I will always cherish and it has been a privilege to work with so many talented and dedicated people. I would especially like to thank the members of this year’s Executive Committee: Karen Pincus (Past President), Mark Beasley (Treasurer), Audrey Gramling (Secretary), Abe Akresh (Vice President–Practice), Mike Bamber (Vice President–Academic), and Jack Robertson (Historian). Their hard work and cooperation made my term as President much easier. We all owe Karen, Mark and Jack a special thanks as they leave the Executive Committee having served with distinction over the past few years. I also want to wish success to next year’s President, Mike Bamber, and to welcome three new officers to the next year’s Executive Committee, Joe Carcello (Vice President–Academic), Rick Tubbs (Treasurer), and Andy Bailey (Historian).

Stanley F. Biggs
University of Connecticut