For Immediate Release:
September 6, 2022
Primary Media Contact:
Sally Voth
Public Relations Specialist
[email protected]
Phone: 540-868-7134

High school and college students interested in careers in accounting are invited to Accounting Student Night Thursday, Sept. 22, at Laurel Ridge Community College’s Middletown Campus. The event, which starts at 6 p.m., will be in the Carl and Emily Thompson Conference Center in the Corron Community Development Center.
The event, which will feature networking, speakers, door prizes and refreshments, is geared to high school juniors and seniors, as well as college students.
“This is our first student night, and we chose Laurel Ridge because it’s a central location in our chapter region,” said Virginia Society of CPAs (VSCPA) Shenandoah Valley Chapter President Dr. Cindy Vance, who is an associate professor of accounting at Shepherd University. “In addition to having a panel of employers from government, industry, public accounting and the financial services industry, we’re going to have speakers to talk about the profession.”
She said the speakers will be representatives from the following organizations: the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Skyline Chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants, and the VSCPA.
The Shenandoah Valley chapter of the VSCPA serves the Shenandoah Valley, including Winchester, Woodstock, Luray, Front Royal, Harrisonburg, Staunton, Waynesboro and Middleburg, as well as the eastern panhandle of West Virginia.
There is a high demand for students with accounting degrees, said Vance.
“There’s not a lot of students in the pipeline, so employers are having trouble finding accountants; hence this is a great opportunity to pursue a career in accounting,” she said. “The demand is there, job security is there, and the dollars are there.”
The median salary for accountants and auditors is $80,377, according to Career Coach powered by Lightcast. The median salary for budget analysts is $97,339, and for treasurers and controllers it’s $143,073.
Friday, Sept. 9 is the deadline to register for the student night. To register, please visit https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/cu/XF9hLRS/studentnight. For more information, email Vance at [email protected].
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Founded in 1970, Laurel Ridge Community College is a multi-campus public institution of higher education. With four locations — Middletown, Warrenton, Luray-Page County and most recently, Vint Hill— the College serves eight localities in the Shenandoah Valley and northern Piedmont regions. The localities are the counties of Clarke, Fauquier, Frederick, Page, Rappahannock, Shenandoah and Warren and the city of Winchester. Laurel Ridge offers more than 75 associate degree and certificate programs in a wide variety of disciplines, in addition to providing access to bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs offered on site by a four-year institution. Laurel Ridge also serves the business community by offering workforce preparation programs for employees and employers. Laurel Ridge serves more than 9,000 unduplicated credit students and more than 11,000 individuals in professional development and business and industry courses annually.
Laurel Ridge Community College (Laurel Ridge) is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award associate degrees. Contact the Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30033-4097 or call 404-679-4500 for questions about the accreditation of Laurel Ridge Community College. Laurel Ridge Community College is an equal opportunity institution providing educational and employment opportunities, programs, services, and activities and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, age, religion, disability, national origin, marital status, political affiliation, sexual orientation, or other non-merit factors. Laurel Ridge also prohibits sexual misconduct including sexual violence or harassment.
Laurel Ridge Community College was known as Lord Fairfax Community College until June 2022. For consistency purposes, the college will be referenced as Laurel Ridge going forward.
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