NASBA Center For Public Trust 
Ethics Matters
August 2021
From June 7 – 9, 2021, the NASBA Center for the Public Trust (CPT) hosted the 2021 StudentCPT Leadership Conference (SLC) via Zoom, from 12 p.m. – 2 p.m. (CST) each day. During these three days, SLC speakers shared information on relevant topics related to student leadership along with daily training for incoming StudentCPT leaders. With an average of 25 students registered for each general and StudentCPT specific session, CPT staff were excited about the participation in this year’s virtual conference.
Dr. Lisa Ordóñez, Dean and Stanley and Pauline Foster Endowed Chair, Rady School of Management, University of California, San Diego, shared a great presentation on decades of research on performance goals. Her topic, Goals Gone Wild: The Unintended Effects of Goal Setting on Employee Performance, introduced how goals can both increase productivity while also generating undesirable and unethical activities.
The second day, Ryan Hirsch, Senior Director for Surgent Accounting & Financial Education, discussed, Three Ways Technology Can Impact Ethical Decision-Making. It was great to have Hirsch back (he is a former CPT employee) to share his knowledge and engage with students on how technological advances can enhance ethical decision-making processes and how these skills are essential to developing long-term career success.
On the last day, Alfonzo Alexander, Chief Ethics and Diversity Officer, NASBA, and President, CPT, presented on Strengths Based Leadership, using the CliftonStrengths Assessment taken by the student participants. He shared leadership strategies and tips on how students can lead with their strengths.
Ashley Stoker, CPT Student Programs Manager, conducted the StudentCPT members-only workshops and officer trainings on topics including, Recruiting Lifelong Leaders and Meaningful Meetings. Her sessions inspired and prepared StudentCPT leaders to lead their chapters in the fall.