Summer is over and school has started across our region. The start of school for the students also marks the start of school audits for our audit teams. There is always an exciting buzz around this audit season as we arrive to start audit fieldwork as students arrive to start a new year. Many of our school districts have administrative offices located near or within school buildings so we have an opportunity to see firsthand how those first few days go. Our nonprofit clients also seem to get extremely busy as summer winds down. Whether they are planning fall appeals, working with programs in and around schools, or preparing for board meetings which might have taken a summer break, there is no denying how busy everyone is.

Summer at Barbacane Thornton & Company was full of activity. This is the time of year that we encourage everyone to take some time to spend with friends and family, nurturing good physical and mental health. We have a diverse range of interests, and our staff have traveled as far away as Europe and as close as the beach here on the Eastern shore. No matter where, they have returned well rested and motivated for our next audit season.

Summer is also the time that our team takes the opportunity to build on their technical skills. Over the past few months, our staff had the opportunity to travel to Las Vegas for conferences dedicated to the housing authority industry and ERISA plan audits. Both of these niche markets are significant to our practice and our staff put tremendous effort into development of their technical skills. We were also present at National conferences focusing on new and important changes to the non-profit and government sectors. Some of our junior associates traveled as far away as Atlanta and New York for specialized training on audit skills and techniques.

We will be working closely with all of our Government Accounting Standards Board (GASB) clients whose fiscal years end June 30 or later as they implement, for the first time, the new codification requirements relating to post-employment benefits. Our Partner, Tim Sawyer just attended the first finance committee meeting for a Delaware Charter School where he took the time to explain the reporting as well as the impact of the significant changes. This will continue throughout the next several months as the impact of the new requirements become evident in final financial statements.

We are planning a nonprofit conference to be held in Delaware on October 31st. Be on the lookout for more information.
Our firm is growing as we recently added three new staff to our team. Julia, Peter, and Carlton each join us ready to launch their CPA careers. We are thrilled to have them on board and look forward to their contributions.

Our personal family is growing as well. Our Partner, Jeff Kowalczyk and his wife Emily added to their family with the birth of John Daniel Kowalczyk. Welcome JD! We look forward to getting to know you. Bob Kaufmann will marry Samantha on October 12th. Our best wishes for a perfect wedding day and many happy years ahead!