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  • Accounting degree leads to unexpected love for teaching

Accounting degree leads to unexpected love for teaching

Wednesday, February 26, 2020

Tsarai Chimhanda, of Zimbabwe, is a visiting lecturer in the School of Business at IU Kokomo. He has a seat in The Red Chair to talk about the impact around the world of African-American contribution.

KOKOMO, Ind. – When Tsarai Chimhanda speaks of the benefits of earning a degree at Indiana University Kokomo, he draws on his own experience.

“This is a gold mine. It positions you to compete at a high level. I know what I learned here prepared me to succeed out there,” he said. “Being able to go out into the accounting field and apply what I learned as a student confirmed what I knew, that this is a good, quality education.”

Now a visiting lecturer in business, he began a successful career as a certified public accountant after earning a graduate certificate in accounting, and then a Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.).

He wants his students at IU Kokomo to realize that when everybody contributes, everybody benefits.

“We become a better society by allowing everyone to contribute their skill sets,” he said. “Everybody has a gift to contribute. The starting point is realizing and appreciating the contributions others bring, and the benefits that come from allowing others to participate.”

Chimhanda – who grew up in Zimbabwe – had parents who were high school teachers. They emphasized the importance of education, sending their children to international schools, where their teachers and classmates came from all over the world. His teachers inspired him to leave his home country for college, which led him first to Houston, Texas.

While he hadn’t planned on becoming an educator himself, he was offered an opportunity to teach as an adjunct faculty member in 2015 and discovered a love for teaching, just like his parents.

“I did not plan it this way,” he said. “When I began teaching, I realized right away this was something I could enjoy. Now I understand why my parents were so passionate about it.”

In the classroom, he draws not only on his knowledge of accounting and experience as an alumnus of IU Kokomo, but also his experiences growing up in Zimbabwe, and his appreciation of contributions African Americans — and all people of color — have made in the world.

Black History Month is a time to make sure people understand the importance of those contributions, and how everyone benefits both inside and outside of his classroom.

“The positive message from Martin Luther King Jr. has impacted societies all over the world,” he said. “It’s a celebration not just here, but globally. We’re thankful for the sacrifices and contributions people like him made. Being here in this country, I’m appreciative of being a recipient of those contributions, those sacrifices, and their achievements.”

Normally, The Red Chair is randomly placed around the IU Kokomo campus. Anyone walking by is free to sit down, get comfy, and share their experience about IU Kokomo. This edition is part of a focus on Black History Month. Watch the video with audio description.

Description of the video:

Upbeat music plays in the background. We see TsaraiChimhanda, visiting lecture in business, sitting in the Red Chair in the library. He faces the camera and smiles. Tsarai says “my name is Tsarai Chimhanda, I was born and raised in Zimbabwe, my parentswere high school teachers and they emphasized the importance of getting an education. It’s important to realize that everyone is gifted. We are all multitalented people, so in interacting the starting point is realizing and appreciating the contributions that others bring, the benefits that come with allowing others to contribute their skillsets.”He continues, “when you look at, say, the sports world, prior to allowing everyone to participate, the talent level was low. But we’ve allowed everyone to participate, that talent level has increased, and everyone has benefitted. We have become a better society by allowing everybody to contribute their skillset because everybody has a skillset, a gift, to contribute. The impact is bigger than just here in the United States. The contributions that African Americans have made here in the United States, the impact has gone worldwide. The benefits have made the world better. The positive message that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had, that positive change, that has impacted societies all over the world. It’s a celebration not just here, but globally, we‘re thankful for those sacrifices and those contributions, and just for me being here, it’s beneficial of those of sacrifices that were made by those prominent figures. Evento this day, we still have people making those contributions and I’m very appreciative to be a recipient of those contributions and sacrifices and achievements.”The Red Chair at Indiana University KokomoScreen fades to black.

Watch more red chair videos

Indiana University Kokomo celebrates 75 years as north central Indiana’s choice for higher education.

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