Retirees Reflect, Anticipate
Three faculty members close their academic careers while looking forward to a new chapter
Professors Lisa Koonce, Michael Clement, and Steve Limberg have more than 100 years of combined service to Texas Accounting. They reflect on their circuitous paths to accounting and academia, and their plans for retirement, including board memberships, travel, and pickleball.
LISA KOONCE
Deloitte Endowed Chair in Accounting
Lisa Koonce was drawn to the field of accounting as an undergrad at Southern Illinois University after taking a job as a student worker in the accounting department. “Where I grew up — a very rural area in Illinois — it wasn’t a big thing to go to college,” she says. “I almost didn’t go at all.” At McCombs, Koonce taught auditing before switching to financial accounting.
Q: What’s a favorite memory from a class you taught?
LK: I once hired two students as teaching assistants. One went on to be a partner at an accounting firm, the other a Catholic priest. But when they were my assistants and they ran review sessions before exams, the one who became a priest would break out into song, going over accounting problems. It was so much fun.
Q: What types of leadership and service roles did you take on while at UT?
LK: The Financial Accounting Standards Board asked me to be part of an advisory council group of business executives and academics. The research I do involves issues the board is concerned about as it sets accounting rules. For example, a recent study of mine has to do with how investors perceive a new accounting standard around how banks estimate how much they’ll fail to collect on loans.
Q: What will you miss about being a professor?
LK: The social aspect, the students and the faculty. Also, the intellectual stimulation of talking about interesting accounting issues. You can’t have a conversation about accounting with just anyone.
Q: What are you most looking forward to in retirement?
LK: My husband and I will enjoy time in Wisconsin near Lake Michigan, and I’m planning to do everything I didn’t have time to do as an academic — pickleball, tennis, golf. I’ll donate my time and read nonfiction books I didn’t have time to read. I’ve already added a bunch to my Kindle.
MICHAEL CLEMENT
Clark W. Thompson, Jr. Professor of Accounting
The son of a business school professor, Michael Clement grew up in Washington, D.C., and New York. His father thought everyone should earn a Ph.D., but Clement wanted to follow his own path. After college, he took a job in internal audit at Citibank, then earned an MBA and worked for the bank’s CFO. After 10 years in the private sector, he recalls, “One day, I woke up and thought to myself, I really think I am best suited to be a professor.”
Q: What’s a favorite memory from a class you taught?
MC: In my financial statement analysis class, students need to be able to decompose and analyze the return on common equity. Once they understood this concept, I would always have this sense of relief. It would remind me of when my own children learned to read: After they got that concept, I felt like they were going to be alright.
Q: What types of leadership and service roles did you take on while at UT?
MC: My two biggest service activities were as department chair and as the University’s Faculty Athletics representative, mentoring student-athletes. I told one first-generation college student-athlete it was important to finish his degree before playing professional sports. I joked that if he didn’t, I’d follow him to arenas with a sign that read, “Finish your degree.” He ended up leaving early, and we kept in touch. At age 38, he came back and finished his undergraduate degree. Our relationship stretched over many years, and it is one of the most rewarding experiences I had as a professor.
Q: What are you most looking forward to in retirement?
MC: Part of what prompted my retirement was that I was serving on two corporate boards, and I was offered the opportunity to join the Financial Accounting Foundation Board. I did not think I could serve effectively on three boards and fulfill my responsibilities as a faculty member. So, I’ll be doing board work. My wife and I will also travel while we have our health. We’ve been to five continents, but we’re still missing Africa and Antarctica.
STEVE LIMBERG
PricewaterhouseCoopers Centennial Professor in Accounting
Steve Limberg had several diversions before starting his academic career. He was a self-professed “ski bum” for a year, then worked in Hollywood, shooting Walt Disney TV shows. “It was a great adventure but not for a lifetime,” he says. A relative who worked as a professional accountant sparked his interest in the field. He received an MBA, worked for Arthur Andersen, started teaching, then earned a Ph.D. He has been at UT for 41 years, first teaching taxation, and then financial reporting.
Q: What’s a favorite memory from a class you taught?
SL: When Ross Jennings was department chair, he had the idea for a unique Accounting Practicum class in collaboration with Foundation Communities, a nonprofit that provides a variety of services for Austin’s low-income community. I developed the class and taught its inaugural offering. Students receive relevant IRS tax return training from guest speakers, and then — with supervision — help community members complete their returns. Students say it opens their eyes to new worlds, enhancing their empathy and awareness.
Q: What will you miss about being a professor?
SL: It all starts with the people. I’ll miss the colleagues I worked with — sometimes late into the evening — on papers, curriculum, and initiatives. And of course, the students — they’re so sharp and energetic. Also, the remarkable staff, leadership, and alumni and friends of the department and school. I’ll miss them all.
Q: What are you most looking forward to in retirement?
SL: I view the early stages of retirement a bit like a self-discovery journey — a rewiring after decades of career focus. I look forward to more time with family and friends. Increased personal enrichment will be part of the journey, whether exploring new areas of interest, like a foreign language; expanding relatively recent interests, like contributing to health care transformation; or delving more into long-standing interests, such as history, through reading and travel. I aim to expand my well-being activities to augment a regular swimming habit. One thing I am quite sure about is the abundance of gratifying time ahead.
