Messina named outstanding accounting educator by state association

Montgomery-based Alabama Society of Certified Public Accountants has named Frank Messina, DBA, its 2021 Outstanding Accounting Educator for his excellence in the classroom and on campus.The Alabama Society of Certified Public Accountants has named the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Frank Messina, Ph.D., Endowed Alumni and Friends Professor of Accounting in the Collat School of Business, its 2021 Outstanding Accounting Educator.

“In my short 10 years at UAB, I’ve found Frank to be a source of tremendous institutional knowledge,” said Eddie Nabors, who nominated Messina for the honor. “He really is the anchor for the department and is willing to stand up on issues he believes in. His impact on students cannot be overstated.”

ASCPA is a Montgomery-based statewide, professional membership organization representing more than 6,000 Alabama CPAs in public practice, industry, government and education. Each year, it recognizes an outstanding educator in Alabama based on nominations from its membership.

Messina was a natural choice for ASCPA’s honor, Nabors says. He has received the UAB Excellence in Classroom Teaching award four times, along with the UAB President’s Excellence in Teaching Award, the Loudell Robinson Excellence in Accounting Teaching Award, the NSAC Silver Pen Research Award, the Kinder Morgan/El Paso Energy Foundation Faculty Achievement Award, and many other teaching and research honors. Messina publishes and edits extensively in tax and accounting journals and has taught a variety of seminars and courses around the world over many years.

Messina was an instructor at Carr Riggs & Ingram’s annual firm-wide CPE Week for 10 years. Brian Barksdale, managing partner for Birmingham’s CRI office, recommended Messina teach for the tax courses.

“I knew he would bring not just knowledge, but that he would also have a wonderful way of sharing that knowledge,” Barksdale said. “Not everyone who’s a tax expert can relate to their audience in a way that is not only meaningful, but also entertaining. There’s a reason he’s won so many teaching awards.”

Messina has been a member of Collat’s faculty since 1993. He serves as UAB’s faculty athletics representative, acting as a liaison between athletic governing organizations and its programs. 

Messina has represented UAB and Conference USA numerous times within the NCAA structure. He is a former member of the Committee on Academics, has chaired the Progress Towards Degree committee, and has served on the Scholarships and Financial Aid Council, as well as other subcommittee appointments. He currently serves on the NCAA’s Division 1 Football Oversight Committee as the only faculty athletics representative appointed to the committee. Messina also serves on the National 1A FAR Board as vice president. 

Last year, Messina was honored with UAB’s 2020 President’s Award for Excellence in Support of UAB and Shared Governance. In 2019, he received the NSAC’s Silver Bowl Lifetime Achievement Award. Messina is a Birmingham, Alabama, native. He received his doctorate in accounting from Mississippi State University in 1993.