USC School of Accounting Presents BPS’s Thomas Pietras with the 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award

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COLUMBIA, S.C. – As far as Bauknight Pietras & Stormer, P.A. (BPS) shareholder Tom Pietras knew, he was simply attending the University of South Carolina (USC) School of Accounting’s Annual Advisory Board Fall Kick-off Event on September 14th at the Hall at Senate’s End. He was stunned when he was presented with the group’s highest honor, the Bubba Fennell Lifetime Achievement Award.

“I had no idea; I was totally shocked,” says Pietras, a USC alumnus and one of the original shareholders in BPS, a nationally recognized accounting firm headquartered in Columbia, South Carolina.

The award is given annually by the USC School of Accounting to an alumnus who has a long, distinguished career in accounting and has dedicated themselves to supporting the advancement of the accounting profession and the USC School of Accounting. Pietras was nominated and selected by a committee on the school’s advisory board.

Pietras graduated from USC in 1979 with a B.S. in Accounting. He earned his CPA license in 1981 and launched his career in public accounting with global accounting firm Ernst & Young (Arthur Young). After rising to senior manager, he joined a new accounting firm of six people in Columbia, BPS, in 1992 as a shareholder who would help lead the firm’s audit practice. Today, the BPS team of nearly 100 audit and tax professionals serves a stellar international, national and local client portfolio.

As if building a CPA firm wasn’t enough, Pietras served as an adjunct professor at the USC School of Accounting for 15 years, from 1996-2011, teaching a graduate level accounting course. He also served as a guest lecturer for USC’s entrepreneurial program. For many years, Pietras was also the point person for BPS recruiting efforts at Carolina.

Pietras is particularly proud of his recruiting duties. “I can’t count the number of USC accounting graduates and interns BPS has hired over the years. Some incredible people have come to BPS from Carolina and have helped drive our growth.”

Mark Cecchini, chair of the USC School of Accounting and associate dean of Executive Education at the Darla Moore School of Business, presented Pietras with the award and a framed print of the USC Horseshoe. “Tom was an easy choice for the Bubba Fennell Lifetime Achievement Award. He’s had a stellar career, making us look good! He has also been a boon to the City of Columbia, founding what is now the largest CPA office in the area. Tom’s also very easy to work with. Although he’s no longer teaching, he’s always ready to step in and help the School of Accounting and our students. Tom and his firm BPS are selling points for students considering whether or not to major in accounting.”

About Bauknight Pietras & Stormer, P.A. (BPS)
Established in 1991, BPS is among the Southeast’s premier accounting and consulting firms and among the largest locally owned public accounting firms in South Carolina with nearly 100 Certified Public Accountants and professional staff. BPS is a strategic, trusted partner to clients in the insurance, construction and real estate, trusts and estates, hospitality, manufacturing, distribution, professional services, telecommunications, and technology industries. BPS is a member of Prime Global, an association of private accounting firms. The firm was recognized among America’s 50 Best of the Best Firms in 2020 by INSIDE Public Accounting, a top three advisory firm in the U.S. by Captive Review in 2023, and named among the top recommended tax and accounting firms in America by Forbes. In 2023, BPS was named among the Top 10 Best Places to Work in South Carolina. Learn more at www.BPS.CPA.