The Faculty of Management welcomed a representative of the Certified Management Accountants (CMA) of Alberta to campus recently to present an award to Dr. M. Gordon Hunter, FCMA, who has been designated the CMA Distinguished Scholar.

"I am very honoured to be named the first-ever CMA Alberta Distinguished Scholar," says Hunter. "I look forward to working with the CMA Alberta office to promote the CMA brand through academic intitiatives. Most importantly, for me, I am excited about continuing my work with students through information sessions and case competitions."

Hunter received his award from Kara Mitchelmore, CMA President and CEO.

"I'm honoured to present the CMA Distinguished Scholar Award to Dr. Hunter," says Mitchelmore. "He has been a strong advocate of the CMA designation, a pillar in the Lethbridge post-secondary community for a number of years and an outstanding member all around."

Mitchelmore also spoke to the gathering about the proposed merger among the national CMA, Chartered Accountants (CA) and Certified General Accountants (CGA) bodies. In Alberta, the CGA joined the provincial merger discussions with CMA Alberta and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Alberta (ICAA) last October. The unification would see all three associations granted the designation of Chartered Professional Accountants (CPA). Talks are in the preliminary stages at this time, with the expectation that a decision on whether or not to present members with a unification framework will be made later this year or by early 2012.