Charles Day joins the Maine Business School Accounting faculty

The Maine Business School added a new Lecturer in Accounting to the faculty at the start of the 2022-2023 academic year. Charles Day, CPA, has lived, taught, and worked in the United Kingdom, South Africa, Australia, Canada, and the United States. We’re thrilled he has joined us in Maine.

“Charles brings a unique background in the energy industry and teaching experience for universities in the UK to the University of Maine,” says Dr. Jason Harkins, Interim Executive Dean of the Maine Business School. “We are excited to see the impact he will have on students focused on Accounting and beyond.”

Maine was a strategic choice for Day. He and his wife, who hails from Australia, have two daughters. One lives in Boston, and the other in California. Since arriving in Maine this summer, Day has loved the access to nature that Maine affords him. “The biggest surprise is probably that I feel like there are more people around than I would expect in a relatively unpopulated state,” he says.

Day has a long history of professional accounting work and began teaching in 2016. “I wanted to contribute to the accounting profession by helping the development of future accounting professionals,” he says. He adds that accounting is primarily learned through doing rather than watching or listening to someone else. Since arriving at UMaine, he has significantly changed his approach to teaching accounting. Instead of lecturing in class and having students complete tasks in their own time, Day has tried to flip the classroom. He has students complete tasks under his supervision so that he can help resolve issues as soon as they arise. “My satisfaction comes when students get it, and I have helped equip them with a skill they will likely have forever.”

A chartered accountant, Day is passionate about the career options of a degree in accounting anywhere in the world. “In South Africa, where I grew up, qualification as a chartered accountant is almost essential to become a chief financial officer,” he says. He adds that a significant number of CEOs are also chartered accountants. “Managing a business requires a deep understanding of the business performance. That only comes from understanding financial performance and position. Accounting is too often mischaracterized as scorekeeping. In reality, professional accountants play a significant role in determining the score on the board.”