March 2005

A Tribute to Donald H. Skadden

Don Skadden died on February 8, 2005, in Sanford, North Carolina, after an illness lasting several years. He had just celebrated his 80th birthday. Don's many accomplishments are beyond the dreams of most academics and professionals. It is a pleasure to list just a few as a tribute to this truly gentle and good man.

Don's father, Harvey, an architect, designed many schools and a beautiful Methodist church, in Danville, Illinois, structures intended to benefit future generations. Don, like his father, built for the future as he mentored, counseled, and led by quiet example. He influenced thousands of students through his masterful teaching and direction. This is particularly true for his many graduate students who have gone on to successful professional or academic careers.

Following his military service in WW II, Don earned his Ph.D. in Accountancy at the University of Illinois. For the next 32 years, Don taught at the Universities of Illinois and Michigan. He was also an associate dean at both universities. The stature of the business schools at these two great universities can be traced in part to Don Skadden.

While in Urbana, home of the University of Illinois, he served as mayor, in addition to two terms as alderman. He also spent several years on the Board of Directors of the Illinois Society of CPAs.

Professor Skadden's service to the academic side of the accounting profession was long and tireless. He worked on numerous committees for the American Accounting Association (AAA) and the American Association of Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). For many years he managed a summer tax program for Haskins & Sells at the University of Illinois and then for the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) at the University of Michigan. He was elected president of both the AAA and the American Taxation Association (ATA).

As for the practicing side of the profession, Don was appointed to many committees, including the AICPA Council, the Relations with the Bar Committee, and the Tax Division (now Section) Executive Committee. He led task forces to develop position papers for the AICPA on Social Security reform and increasing compliance in the underground economy. As the first Vice-President of the Tax Section of the AICPA, Don lobbied Congress for greater equity and simplicity in the tax law and assisted tax professionals in navigating the nuances of tax practice. Only Don has received the highest recognition of the ATA, "The Ray Sommerfeld Award," as well as the highest recognition of the AICPA Tax Section, "The Arthur Dixon Award."

Throughout his career, Don was concerned with maintaining and strengthening the integrity of the profession. Ethical failures in the accounting profession hurt him deeply; he spent many hours in retirement studying the recent corporate failures.

Don's greatest skill was his unique ability to build bridges among the frequently competing interests of educators, government officials, and tax professionals in accounting, law, and economics. No one has ever been more effective. He served on the Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council (FASAC), the Internal Revenue Service Commissioner's Advisory Group, New York University Law School's Advisory Panel for IRS education programs, and in retirement, as executive director of the American Tax Policy Institute, a group of tax lawyers, accountants, and economists supporting tax policy research. He worked with the IRS Statistics of Income and Research Divisions, encouraging the government to make these databases available to academics for private sector research. For twenty years, he was a trustee of the National Center for Automated Information Retrieval (NCAIR), meeting with lawyers and accountants on LEXIS-NEXIS issues.

Don sought to identify common interests and goals so as to foster greater understanding and cooperation wherever possible. He was a master of diplomacy, and he absolutely loved the work he did. He has provided an exemplary "bridge" for all of us to use both professionally and personally. His legacy, if we are wise enough to follow his path, will assist us in achieving more, with less conflict.

On the personal side, he was kind, considerate, and patient. One of the quotations he kept at the front of his office desk drawer for easy review was: "Students are not an interruption to my work; students are my work." He saw and spoke of the best aspects of every person with whom he interacted. Don was inexhaustible - busy and in demand, but never too busy to listen and, more importantly, to hear. Don could always provide a strong shoulder and a wise and frequently humorous word. We shall miss him very much.

James E. Wheeler, Professor Emeritus, The University of Michigan
Dennis J. Gaffney, Chairman, Department of Accounting, Cleveland State University