Professor Kate Cotter-Reilly has earned her CMA certificate and is now a Certified Management Accountant

(September 4, 2025) - Professor Kate Cotter-Reilly, a Lecturer of Accounting at Clayton State University, has recently earned her CMA, Certified Management Accountant, which identifies a professional who provides financial planning, analysis, and strategic decision-making support within a business. The requirements for achieving this designation include earning a bachelor's degree, gaining professional experience, and passing an exam administered by the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA). Yes, it is a significant achievement, and the College of Business is pleased to share the news of this milestone.

Kate has 22 years of experience as a teacher. She began teaching in 2003 as part of the JET (Japan Exchange and Teaching Program) in Japan. "When I came back to the states in 2006, I had to figure out what I wanted my future career to be," Kate recalls. "I worked in professional kitchens in restaurants for a while, but then started tutoring in the Japanese language, which led to me teaching it for a homeschooling group in Decatur. Then, the private school where I started in 2008."

She has a vivid passion for accounting, particularly Cost/Management and Financial Accounting. Kate earned an MBA in Accounting and Human Resources Leadership from Clayton State University in 2019 and became a member of Beta Gamma Sigma (BGS). BGS is the international honor society for business professionals. She currently serves as an advisor for the CSU chapter of the BGS Honor Society and is a member of the College of Business Student Engagement Group Committee.

The road to achieving her CMA began during her time as a student at Clayton State. "While I was a grad student here, I was one of the recipients of the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) scholarship for students. We are allowed to give out 10 scholarships a year," Kate shared.

"I took the exams, and I passed the exam at the beginning of 2019. And the only thing that I needed after that was the work requirement," explained Kate. "Eventually, I started teaching a finance class, the personal finance management class, and that counted towards the work requirement. Just teaching that class part-time, considering my full load of other classes, it took four years to accumulate the necessary work required."

When asked what achieving CMA status means to her, Kate explained that "It means a lot. I think, especially as a woman in this field of accounting, where there are so few women, there are so few people of color. It's still very much a white male-dominated industry. And to be able to say, I may be a lady, but I know what I'm talking about, and to have those letters back it up, is really huge for me."

Kate finds that many students fear accounting and the idea of taking a math class. She says, "I try to talk to them. I try to make it more interesting because I find accounting fascinating. I think it's a lot of fun."

She tells students that "the accounting industry is suffering due to people exiting the industry, and there are not enough people to fill those gaps. Due to this need for trained personnel, it's a good industry to enter for a higher salary."

Kate said, "I also recommend the CMA certification for students who are not accounting majors because it shows that you have a breadth of knowledge." She added that "It is desirable to employers anywhere in the world of business because achieving this certification tells them you're really smart and capable."