Your mission is to educate, enlighten and inspire. We can help, with services to meet all your higher education compliance and advisory needs.
Your mission is based on lofty goals. But in an industry faced with limited financial support, declining enrollment, and extensive regulation, that mission can easily become bogged down. Add the challenges of adapting to an increasingly digital world (not to mention a pandemic that accelerated that process dramatically!) and you’ve got a tough row to hoe.
James Moore is the CPA and advisory firm of choice for your industry. Our dedicated Higher Education Services team is committed to solving your toughest problems. There’s a reason so many college- and university-related organizations coast to coast trust us to help them achieve their goals. You can too.
Who We Serve
Campus
Find individualized solutions to meet the unique challenges of your varied services, ensuring each contributes maximum value to campus-wide operations.
- CFO & Controller's Office
- Contracts & Grants
- Financial Aid
- Auxiliaries such as housing, transportation & parking
Direct Support Organizations and Affiliated Organizations
Enjoy customized support for the organizations that support your institution, to enhance long-term growth and financial stability.
- Foundations
- Research Foundations
- Financing Corporations
- Faculty Practice Associations
- Other Higher Education-Related Organizations
The business of collegiate athletics is tough and competitive. Get the edge you need with advisory services from pros with the experience to help you win at this game.
- Athletic Departments
- Athletic Associations
- Booster Clubs
- Conferences
Access the niche-specific knowledge you need to meet the strict compliance regulations of managing a successful public broadcasting-related organization.
- TV and Radio Stations
- University Licensees
- Foundations
"We’ve enjoyed a great relationship with James Moore. By understanding our industry thoroughly, they’re able to help us with the issues that impact us the most. They are honest, reliable, and thorough and have become a valuable partner in our work."
Milagros Garcia, Controller
Florida International University Foundation
"We wanted a company with higher education expertise, even if it meant looking out of state for help. James Moore exceeded our expectations—they asked all the right questions and quickly understood our operations and needs."
Randae Davis, Director of Development
Darton State College Foundation
"The level of expertise they’ve demonstrated over the years has been exceptional. Not only do they handle our tax compliance concerns, they also train our key financial staff members to quickly identify additional UBIT sources that we might not find otherwise."
Alan West, Assistant Vice President and University Controller
University of Florida
What makes us different?
While accounting is our primary language, we’re also fluent in the business of higher education. Our longstanding commitment to serving the industry gives us the niche-specific knowledge and experience to develop solutions for your toughest financial and operational challenges. From athletics and academic scholarships to parking and research foundations, our higher education CPAs can help you improve accounting, optimize processes and ensure compliance. Think of us not only as a qualified CPA firm, but also a strong business partner and year-round resource committed to helping you achieve more every day.
ON DEMAND WEBINAR
NCAA Reporting Automation: From Client Insights to Live Platform Review
Don’t let NCAA reporting season turn into a scramble because of scattered data, manual spreadsheets and key knowledge held by just one or two people. If you’re ready to change how your reporting gets done, tune in today!
Measurably Better
We make life easier for entities across the country that share your challenges. We serve:
100+ Higher Education-Related Entities Nationwide
40+ College and University Foundations
50+ Collegiate Athletic Organizations
20+ Public Broadcasting Stations
We’re here for you wherever you are.
You expand the world for others, but you don’t have to travel far to find the expert support you deserve. As the go-to firm for higher education institutions nationwide, James Moore brings ideas that make your life easier wherever you are.
Our Solutions for Higher Education
Audits and other assurance services are key tools to prove your financial records are compliant and your procedures are sound, whether you’re demonstrating this fact to grant funders, regulators or your own board. James Moore offers you a full range of assurance services covering everything from employee benefit plan audits to NCAA-agreed-upon procedures.
Don’t wonder if your accounting is GAAP-compliant or your research grants are at risk. Whether you’re focused on debt finance compliance or simply need a financial statement audit, our experienced higher education CPAs bring the highest level of expertise and the latest knowledge to deliver efficient assurance services built around your individual needs.
- Financial statement audit
- Uniform Guidance
- NCAA agreed-upon procedures
- Debt Finance compliance
- Research Grant compliance
With as many moving parts and different functions as your institution, complying with tax reporting can get complicated fast. Sponsorships? Merchandise sales? Donations? Alternative investment income? Unrelated business tax (UBIT) compliance alone can be incredibly complex, with its plentiful pitfalls and vast potential for missteps.
James Moore’s higher education tax professionals bring you extensive experience and up-to-the-minute understanding of all the latest rules regarding nonprofit tax compliance. From effective storytelling with Form 990 that makes an impact on donors to scrupulous compliance with evolving UBIT rules, we help take the headaches out of tax for higher education institutions nationwide.
- Tax Preparation
- UBIT Consulting
- State and Local Tax Consulting
- International Tax Consulting
In today’s highly competitive and increasingly digital environment, keeping your institution safe and financially sound is no simple matter. Concerns like cybersecurity, data analytics and business process optimization have become critical priorities. Are you ready for the complex challenges of competing in the post-pandemic economy?
From traditional needs like due diligence and internal control assessments to insightful strategies that help you discover innovative solutions and defuse the latest threats, James Moore offers you a full spectrum of advisory services. Let us help you adopt a proactive stance to meet emerging challenges and make informed decisions to keep your institution strong in a changing world.
- Outsourced Accounting Services
- Accounting Standards Implementation Consulting
- Audit Assistance
- Financial Analysis and Proformas
- Due Diligence
- Data Analytics & Business Intelligence
- Business Process Improvement
- Internal Control Assessments
- Financial Strategic Planning
- Financial Communications
- Financial Literacy Training
- Offsite Facilitation
- HR Consulting
- Technology Solutions/Cybersecurity
- ERP Implementation Consulting
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Higher Education Affiliations
Katie Davis, CPA, LSS Certified
Partner
Katie Davis is a partner at James Moore and a strategic advisor to collegiate athletics and higher education leaders navigating the financial and operational challenges reshaping the industry. She leads the firm’s Higher Education and Collegiate Athletics practices, which serve more than 100 higher education organizations, including 50+ athletic departments nationwide.
Katie works alongside athletic directors, CFOs and university leaders on financial and operational issues shaping the future of college athletics. Her perspective is shaped not only by over 20 years of experience, but by ongoing conversations and work with athletics leaders across the country. That gives her a broad view of how institutions are responding to industry change and allows her to help clients translate emerging trends into practical decisions for their own organizations.
A CPA and Lean Six Sigma-certified professional, Katie brings a financial lens to athletics without limiting the conversation to accounting. She helps leaders understand what the numbers are telling them, evaluate strategic opportunities and risks, improve how their organizations operate and communicate their financial story to presidents, boards and other stakeholders.
Katie is also an active voice in the national conversation about the financial and operational future of college sports. She speaks and writes regularly on emerging athletics issues and cohosts News & Brews Sports Biz, James Moore’s collegiate athletics podcast. She has been featured in industry publications and broadcast programs discussing topics ranging from NIL and athlete compensation to private capital and financial reporting.
An active member of NACDA, CABMA and NACUBO, Katie is particularly passionate about elevating the role of athletics finance professionals as strategic voices within their departments. Her goal is simple: help athletics leaders make better-informed decisions and build organizations positioned to compete in the next era of college sports.
Allison Benton
Audit Manager
Beth West, CPA
Audit Manager
Chris Noyes, CPA, CGMA
Senior Manager
Gemma Wallace
Business Analyst
Ken Kurdziel, CPA
Partner
Kevin Warren, CPA
Director
Kim Foresta
Senior Manager
Shane Metzler, CPA
Director
Taylor Adams, CPA
Senior Manager
Taylor Rochelle, CPA
Senior Manager