Associate Professor Supports Faculty Research With Estate Gift

Brian Daugherty has been a faculty member at UWM's Sheldon B. Lubar School of Business for 14 years, and during that time, he's learned that funds for research only go so far. That's why he and his wife, Cindy, decided to designate a gift in their estate plans for faculty research at UWM.

Their estate gift will create the Brian E. and Cindy H. Daugherty Accounting Faculty Development Fund, providing grants for research expenses, conference attendance, recruitment of research participants and research paper submission fees. The gift is also intended to foster cross-disciplinary research within the Lubar School.

"At UWM, we pride ourselves on being a top-tier research university, but state research funds are limited," Brian says. "I think it's critically important, especially for junior faculty, to be able to network with colleagues from other universities who have similar research interests, and this fund will help them do that."

Lubar School Dean Kaushal Chari is grateful for the gift: "The Daughertys' gift will be a game-changer for our faculty and our program, providing that extra support needed to advance academic and applied research in the field of accounting and other disciplines, and gain recognition for research achievements."

An associate professor of accounting at UWM, Brian earned his Ph.D. from the University of Texas at San Antonio and is also licensed as a Certified Public Accountant by the state of Texas. He specializes in auditing, and his research interests include experimental behavioral research on the professional judgments and decision behaviors of practicing auditors, and the registered firm inspection process of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB). He served as an academic fellow with the PCAOB's Office of Research and Analysis in Washington, D.C., from 2011 to 2012.

Cindy spent many years in the financial services industry prior to retirement and is a Certified Financial Planner, Chartered Financial Consultant and Chartered Life Underwriter. She received a bachelor's degree in accounting and finance from the University of Texas at San Antonio.

The couple's most recent New Year's resolution was to update their estate plans to benefit family and causes they believe in. They decided to leave the remainder of a pre-tax savings account (such as a 401K or 403B) to the UWM Foundation.

"If we leave our pre-tax savings account to our heirs, they will pay taxes on it, but if we give it to a nonprofit entity, such as the UWM Foundation, there are no federal or state taxes to be paid," Brian explains. "We can maximize dollars while supporting causes and organizations we care about."

You, too, can support UWM with a gift that provides benefits in return. To find out how, contact Gretchen E. Miller, J.D. at gemiller@uwm.edu or (414) 229-3067.