For nearly two decades, Stanford’s commitment to learning, research and scholarship left a lasting impact on faculty, staff and students at TCU and the Neeley School of Business.
November 15, 2021
By Bill Wempe
Duncan Fellow and TCU Professor of Accounting Mary Stanford retired on May 31, 2021. After earning her PhD from the University of Michigan, Stanford’s academic career included working at Penn State and Syracuse prior to arriving at TCU in 2002.
Throughout her near 30-year career, Stanford established an outstanding record of scholarship, publishing highly-regarded papers in The Accounting Review, The Journal of Accounting and Economics, Journal of Accounting Research and other premier journals. She also served as editor of Contemporary Accounting Research and received prestigious TCU awards for her outstanding research in 2007 and 2012.
Students in TCU Neeley’s Executive MBA, Master of Accounting (MAc) and undergraduate programs benefitted from Stanford’s deep knowledge of financial reporting issues and her commitment to student learning. In her 19 years at TCU, Stanford was a top accounting professor and strong advocate for business students and academic programs.
From 2014 to 2021, Stanford served as chair for the TCU Accounting Department. She maintained a personal commitment to scholarship and students, while broadening her impact across the TCU campus. Perhaps most noteworthy during her tenure, the department further developed a state-of-the-art MAc curriculum, including well-designed concentrations in taxation, assurance and advisory services. Moreover, ten of the department’s current 22 faculty members came to TCU under Stanford’s leadership, establishing the Neeley School as a national leader in both accounting research and teaching.
Daniel Pullin, the John V. Roach Dean of the TCU Neeley School of Business, noted Stanford’s success in attracting and developing top faculty, achieving outstanding CPA pass rates, and infusing data analytics and global perspectives into our curricula.
In gratitude for all of her contributions to TCU and the profession throughout her career, the Accounting Department and Neeley School wish Stanford all the best in her well-deserved retirement.
