Paul Bahnson, Ph.D.

Professor, Accountancy
pbahnson@boisestate.edu • (208) 426-2190 • Mail Stop: 1610
Office Number: MBEB 3253

Paul has 30 years of experience as a full-time faculty member and has served as both department chair and associate dean during his years at Boise State University. He teaches financial accounting courses at the graduate and undergraduate level. Paul’s research focuses on limitations in the financial statements provided to public company shareholders. This research includes two books and more than two dozen published journal articles. He is best known for the feature column he coauthored with Professor Paul Miller for Accounting Today. The column, running under the banner “The Spirit of Accounting,” appeared in every monthly from 1999 through 2017. Both Pauls were included on the list of the 100 Most Influential People in the Accounting Profession in 2011 for their critical perspective on international convergence of accounting standards. Before completing his Ph.D, Paul worked as an auditor with a Big Four firm and served a one-year postgraduate internship at the Financial Accounting Standards Board.

Education

Ph.D., Business Administration – Accounting, University of Utah

MBA – Managerial Finance, Indiana University

B.A. – Accounting, Augustana College

Teaching Areas

Financial reporting

Areas of Expertise

Financial reporting and financial statement analysis

Featured Publications

“Improving Income Statement Reporting of Debt Extinguishments.” with Troy Hyatt and Dave Koeppen. CPA Journal, November 2017, pp. 48-51.

“The FASB: the People the Process and the Politics,” with Paul Miller and Rodney Redding. Fifth edition, Sigel Press. 2016.

“A Penny for Your Thoughts: Sizing Up Manipulative EPS Rounding and What It Means.” with Paul Miller and Greg Martin. Strategic Finance, July 2012, pp. 35-39.

Awards/Accomplishments

2014 Little Morris Outstanding Teaching Award

2012 College of Business and Economics Advisory Board Research Award.

2011’s Top 100 Most Influential People in Accounting (as selected by Accounting Today).

2010 Deloitte & Touche Research Award

2009 Lawler Award for best article in the Journal of Accountancy in 2008.

2008 Lybrand medal for outstanding article published in Strategic Finance in 2007.