In order for professors to be successful in the classroom, they need to be open to learning alongside their students, said new Assistant Professor of Accounting Nancy Chun Feng. She sees each of her courses as an opportunity to refine her teaching and bring real-world issues into the classroom.

“I strive to continually improve both the content and delivery of my courses so that my students can take away something that goes beyond what they read in their textbooks or in the popular press,” she said.

Feng, who specializes in auditing, nonprofit auditing and accounting, and financial accounting, will be teaching the undergraduate-level accounting course Intermediate Accounting I (ACCT 321) this fall and both undergraduate and graduate levels of Not-for-Profit Accounting and Control (ACCT 415 and ACCT 871) in the spring of 2013.

Before joining Suffolk, Feng served as an assistant professor at Providence College, a lecturer at Boston University, an assistant professor at Gordon College, and an instructor at Daniel Webster College and Kaplan University.

She is a firm believer in “active learning,” whereby students engage in activities, such as reading, writing, and discussions, to analyze course content. It involves a cooperative, problem-based approach to teaching.

“I believe that students benefit the most from active participation in the learning process, both inside and outside of the classroom. Therefore, I think it is very important to share my working experience as well as my current research with students so that students have the exposure to the real-world experience,” she said.

Her main research interests include auditing and not-for-profit accounting and auditing. “I find it fascinating to examine how various stakeholders, such as management and auditors, act in the unique not-for-profit setting,” said Feng, who is working on several research projects that combine auditing and not-for-profit fields.

Feng holds a DBA in accounting from Boston University; MBA from the University of Massachusetts, Boston; MS from the University of Connecticut; and BS from Peking University in Beijing. Prior to teaching, she gained several years of experience in the industry. Besides teaching and research, she has also been serving as a board member of several not-for-profit organizations.