Firm Awards $400K In Minority Accounting Scholarships

 NEW YORK -- The KPMG Foundation a private firm that operates on donations, today announced it has awarded a total of $400,000 in scholarships to 40 minority accounting doctoral students for the 2011-2012 academic year.

The students include 10 new recipients and 30 students whose scholarships have been renewed. Each scholarship is valued at $10,000 and renewable annually for up to five years.

"The KPMG Foundation is proud of the very positive influence it has had in helping to increase the number of diverse faculty members at our nation's colleges and universities," said Jose Rodriguez, KPMG Foundation chairperson. "The Minority Accounting Doctoral Scholarship will play a critical role in transforming these 40 talented students into educators who will shape tomorrow's business leaders."

Since 1994, the KPMG Foundation has awarded over $10 million to 297 African-American, Hispanic-American, and Native American scholars pursuing doctorate degrees, as part of its ongoing commitment to increase the representation of minority students and professors in business schools. Today, 194 of those scholarship recipients have successfully completed their doctoral program and are professors at universities throughout the country.

KPMG Foundation also supports The PhD Project, a related program aimed at increasing the diversity of business school faculty. Since its inception in 1994, The PhD Project has increased the number of minority business professors from 294 to 1,084.

"Business leaders realize success by understanding the complexities of a global marketplace," says Stacy Sturgeon, KPMG LLP's national managing partner of university relations and recruiting. "These lessons begin in the classroom and diverse educational environments provide future leaders with the perspective that is necessary to thrive in their professions."