The Center for Audit Quality and EVERFI Announce National High School Curriculum Designed to Attract More Diversity Into the Accounting Profession

Washington, DC, September 13, 2022 – The Center for Audit Quality (CAQ), a nonpartisan organization serving as the voice of U.S. public company auditors, and EVERFI, Inc., the nation’s leading social impact education innovator, today announced a new accounting education initiative for high school students. This innovative curriculum, announced during back-to-school season, will expose students to careers in accounting, attract greater diversity and representation within the profession, and address barriers to entry from underrepresented and underserved groups. This program will play an important role in helping to encourage greater diversity in the profession and building a more diverse talent pipeline.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 76.3 percent of the total employed accountants and auditors in the U.S. are white. While the accounting profession has made notable strides towards increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion – through programs like the CAQ’s Accounting+ and Bold Ambition – industry professionals increasingly recognize the gap in providing educational opportunities and resources about the profession to students from underserved communities. This education initiative formed from the strategic partnership between the CAQ and EVERFI will provide high-quality programming about careers in accounting in an accessible, digital format to encourage interest in accounting among high school students.

“We are focused on addressing the diversity gap that exists within our profession,” said Liz Barentzen, Vice President Talent Initiatives, CAQ. “Now with a national schools program, we are able to reach the next generation of accounting professionals and ensure that students can see themselves within this growing profession. We are committed to making accounting more approachable and cultivating equitable representation within the field.”

The program will begin this fall by delivering short-form resources on accounting careers for teachers and students with a focus on building a more diverse student pipeline and ultimately increasing the number of students choosing to major in accounting. During the spring term, the program will expand to an interactive digital experience for students nationwide. The digital, interactive curriculum will give students access to education that exposes them to careers in accounting through a lens that can help to attract a more diverse population into the profession. The first-of-its-kind national education initiative aims to be used in at least 1,000 schools across the country in the 2022-2023 academic year and 3,000 schools in the 2023-2024 school year.

As part of the commitment to help grow and expand interest in the accounting profession, the CAQ will also sponsor a scholarship contest for students, awarding $50,000 in college scholarships in the 2022-2023 academic year and $75,000 in the 2023-2024 academic year.
“It’s important for students to see themselves and feel represented in careers they can pursue,” said Ray Martinez, president and co-founder, EVERFI. “It’s critical to reach students before they leave high school with resources around career exploration. Accounting provides a highly desirable career track and one that can have long-term positive effects on an individual and their family. We look forward to working on this important initiative with the CAQ to ensure that students have access to dynamic, tailored education about all the accounting-centered professions that are available.”

To learn more about EVERFI’s financial education programs, visit https://everfi.com/financial-education/.

About the Center for Audit Quality
The Center for Audit Quality (CAQ) is a nonpartisan public policy organization serving as the voice of U.S. public company auditors and matters related to the audits of public companies. The CAQ promotes high-quality performance by U.S. public company auditors; convenes capital market stakeholders to advance the discussion of critical issues affecting audit quality, U.S. public company reporting, and investor trust in the capital markets; and using independent research and analyses, champions policies and standards that bolster and support the effectiveness and responsiveness of U.S. public company auditors and audits to dynamic market conditions.

About EVERFI, Inc.
EVERFI from Blackbaud (NASDAQ: BLKB) is an international technology company driving social impact through education to address the most challenging issues affecting society ranging from financial wellness to mental health to workplace conduct and other critical topics. Founded in 2008, EVERFI’s Impact-as-a-ServiceTM solution and digital educational content have reached more than 45 million learners globally. In 2020, the company was recognized as one of the World’s Most Innovative Companies by Fast Company and was featured on Fortune Magazine’s Impact 20 List. The company was also named to the 2021 GSV EdTech 150, a list of the most transformative growth companies in digital learning. Blackbaud, the world’s leading cloud software company powering social good, acquired EVERFI in December of 2021. To learn more about EVERFI please visit everfi.com or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, or Twitter @EVERFI.

Forward-looking Statements
Except for historical information, all of the statements, expectations, and assumptions contained in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties, including statements regarding expected benefits of products and product features. Although Blackbaud attempts to be accurate in making these forward-looking statements, it is possible that future circumstances might differ from the assumptions on which such statements are based. In addition, other important factors that could cause results to differ materially include the following: general economic risks and the other risk factors occasionally set forth in the SEC filings for Blackbaud, of which free copies are available at www.sec.gov or upon request from Blackbaud’s investor relations department. All Blackbaud product names appearing herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of Blackbaud, Inc.