Students Undertake Forensic Accounting Challenge

WATERBURY — Newtown resident Ann Meehan was among four students who recently participated in Naugatuck Valley Community College’s “fraud finders” academic challenge, sponsored by the Waterbury chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA).

Students tracked the illegal activities of a fraud perpetrator within a fictitious minor league baseball team’s organization. After investigating the case, the students reported their findings to a review team during the fall semester. The FBI’s White Collar Crime division in Meriden then evaluated the reports.

The project was coordinated through two advisors, IMA board member and officer Patricia Poli and Leonard Romaniello, Jr, respectively.

Dr Poli is an associate professor of accounting at Fairfield University. She is also president of the Northeast Region of the American Accounting Association, treasurer for the Connecticut Society of Certified Public Accountants and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. She holds a Bachelor of Science in accounting from the University of Connecticut and earned her PhD in accounting from New York University.

Mr Romaniello is partner in the Waterbury CPA firm of Lenkowski, Lonergan and Company, LLP. He holds a Bachelor of Science in accounting from Bentley College and an MST from the University of Hartford. He also holds two associates’ degrees from Naugatuck Valley Community College. He is a member of the Connecticut Society of Certified Public Accountants and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Most recently, Gov John Rowland appointed Mr Romaniello to the State Board of Accountancy.