Iowa Ledger (2019) - Tippie College of Business

LEFT: Collins, surrounded by his “academic children.”
RIGHT: Collins thanks his mentor, Bill Kinney.
Many of Collins’ former doctoral
students—now leaders in financial
accounting research and industry—
were on hand to celebrate his legacy.
“A pantheon of faculty and doctoral
students have wandered through the
corridors of Iowa, with Dan welcoming
them and bidding them good-bye.
But Dan has been the high priest and
guardian of the culture that has been
the embodiment of his selfless service
to the profession,” said S.P. Kothari
(PhD86), professor of accounting and
finance at MIT. (Kothari is currently
on leave serving as chief economist
and director of the division of economic
and risk analysis for the Securities and
Exchange Commission.)
In his remarks, Kothari said economics
has a simple theory of output: it is the
result of the combination of labor and
capital. But when Kothari reflected
on his time as a PhD student in the UI
Department of Accounting, he realized
culture has a role to play in output as well.
“Iowa was a modest place in its
financial and physical resources, but
with Dan there, it had boundless energy,
aspiration, team spirit, discipline, and
compassion,” said Kothari.
“It personified a ‘can do’ culture that
was high in morale. Dan was central to
creating this culture that was palpable
at the time I joined the program.”
Collins’ dissertation advisor and
former UI Accounting faculty member
William Kinney spoke of Collins’
coming of age during a time when
accounting research was entering a
new frontier and Collins’ brilliance
as a young academic.
“Many have said to me ‘I didn’t
know you were Dan’s chair,’” says
Kinney, now professor emeritus
at the University of Texas. “More
than once, people have asked ‘So
Bill, after Dan, why didn’t you quit
chairing dissertations—while you
were way ahead?’”
When honoring Collins, Edward
Maydew (PhD93), professor of
accounting at the University of North
Carolina, focused on the legacy of
Collins’ mentorship of graduate
students over his 40+ year career.
“I submit that teaching PhD students
is a little bit like teaching kindergarten.
How so? Both enter not knowing much,
but eager to learn,” said Maydew.
“Kindergarteners learn how to tie their
shoes, where PhD students learn how to
interpret regressions. Kindergarteners
learn how to get along well with others.
Doctoral students learn how to work in
teams, as most research is team-based.”
Maydew went on to chronicle
Collins’ “academic children,”
the women and men he mentored
who went on to academic roles
where the process was repeated for
“Dan’s academic grandchildren.”
“That’s quite a legacy, Dan, and
something to be proud of,” remarked
Maydew. “Your teaching, ways of
approaching research, and ways of
thinking will persist for years to come.”
As Collins steps down as DEO of
the department, we congratulate
him on this lifetime achievement
award and for the many thought
leaders in the academic profession
that he has mentored. •
Nicole Thorne Jenkins (PhD02), president
of the FARS section of the American
Accounting Association, presents Collins
with his Lifetime Achievement Award.
UNIVERSITY OF IOWA TIPPIE COLLEGE OF BUSINESS 11