April 01, 2016

Last fall Mike Ozlanski ’05 came home to Susquehanna. It’s a trip he and his wife, Tammy Erney ’06 Ozlanski, have made for several years since graduation for Homecoming-Reunion Weekends and informal gatherings with faculty and fellow alumni. But now the couple have returned on a permanent basis. Mike joined the Department of Accounting and Information Systems as an assistant professor of accounting, followed within a few months by Tammy who accepted a position as a gift planning officer.

Assistant Professor of Accounting Mike Ozlanski ’05

“I think one of the coolest things is this experience of ‘coming home,’” Mike says. “We got to fall in love with Susquehanna all over again. We were able to discover that those core Susquehanna values are still here.”

Following his graduation from Susquehanna, Mike pursued, and ultimately earned, a doctorate degree from Virginia Tech. Though his professional career first started on the audit staff of PricewaterhouseCoopers in Philadelphia, he found his true calling in teaching.

Mike says he and Tammy, both first-generation college students, grew in ways that they didn’t know were possible at Susquehanna. “That always stuck with us,” he says, “this transformative experience.”

Beyond the technical accounting skills that allowed him to compete with graduates from larger, well-known public and private institutions, Mike developed the leadership skills and work ethic that has led to his success. “Even though I’m a business person, I firmly believe in the liberal arts. I believe in being a well-rounded person who has an understanding of what’s around them,” Mike says.

Now, in his role as a professor, he wants to help his students fully appreciate a liberal arts education. He hopes to engage students and young alumni in activities on and off campus that help prepare them for successful careers. “It’s a true privilege to be a college professor,” Mike says, noting his excitement for interacting with this generation of young adults, and sharing his love of accounting with them.