Huilan Zhang

Dr. Huilan Zhang is an assistant professor of accounting. She joined Penn State Altoona in the fall of 2019 after teaching at Shippensburg University for three years. She earned her Ph.D. in Manufacturing and Technology Management with a specialization in Lean Accounting from the University of Toledo. She earned a Master of Science in Taxation from Philadelphia University and received both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Accounting from Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, China.

Zhang’s teaching interests are in financial accounting, managerial accounting, and federal income taxation. She has taught numerous classes at various universities, including Fundamentals of Financial Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Cost Accounting, Tax Accounting, and Advanced Tax Accounting.

Zhang’s research interests are wide and varied, including corporate governance, earnings management, executive compensation, managerial ability, performance measurement, and tax avoidance. Her research has appeared in several journals, such as the Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management, the Journal of Financial Market, the International Journal of Disclosure and Governance, the Journal of Accounting & Organizational Change, and the Data Envelopment Analysis Journal.

Teaching

• ACCTG 211: Financial and Managerial Accounting for Decision Making
• ACCTG 310: Federal Tax I
• ACCTG 340: Cost Accounting
• ACCTG 404: Managerial Accounting: Economic Perspective
• ACCTG 405: Principles of Taxation I

Honors and Awards

• Advisory Board Award for Faculty Research and Creative Activity, 2021
• Robin Pruitt Service Award, 2019
• Best Paper Award, GNP Section, American Accounting Association Annual Meeting, 2018
• IMA Accounting Honor Society, 2016
• Enterprise Institute Excellence in Lean Accounting Student Award, 2014