CCC students who passed either the Certified Payroll Professional, or Fundamental Payroll Certification, were recognized at a banquet on May 12, 2018 in Flagstaff. From left to right: Sherri L. Normal Bravo, Rocio Soto Sanchez, Evelyn Kerley-Little, Paul Bearchell, Jennifer Wolosz, Melissa J. Deschenie, Irma L. Encinas and Yesenia Renteria. Courtesy photo.
FLAGSTAFF — Coconino Community College student Evelyn Kerley Little said it was a “grueling” 10 weeks, but she made it.
And now she’s certified to handle the payroll needs of the roofing business she and her husband run.
“I do my own books,” Kerley Little said. “So, it was more advantageous to me to have my own payroll certificate.”
Kerley Little was among seven CCC students and their families being honored at a banquet on May 12 for successfully passing tests for Fundamental Payroll Certification (FPC) and Certified Payroll Professional (CPP). The banquet was held to honor the achievement of the students said Michael Casey, an accountant and instructor at CCC who taught the students the rigorous subject matter they would need to pass the exam.
Six students took the exam for FPC, which does not require professional experience in the field. One student took the exam to be a CPP, which does require professional experience in the field. The designations of FPC or CPP help the students be more marketable for getting jobs. Additionally, the FPC certification is worth eight college credits, and the CPP certification is worth 10 college credits.
Although the class met once a week, Kerley Little said that the students would often meet up to three times a week – at a church, at someone’s house, in coffee shops – to master the topics to be covered in the exams.
“If it’ll work out, we’ll do it,” Kerley Little said, smiling.
She takes care of the payroll and tax documents for her and her husband’s business – LCR Roofing. Previously, she’d done all the payroll by hand, but now, she’s gone computerized and uses current software with the help of the class, ACC 298.
The road to getting her certification started off small. At first, she just wanted to take a computer class to increase her computer literacy, but her husband, Olin Little, encouraged her to continue, and her advisor suggested accounting might be a good fit.
“I thought, ‘Why not?’”
As for her experience at CCC, Kerley Little said that she enjoyed the professors and the comradery among her classmates.
“I’m a people person, so I really enjoyed that,” Kerley Little said.
During the banquet, Casey reminded everybody about the sheer amount of information the students needed to master in order to pass the exams. Each student was individually recognized for the milestone they had reached.
Sherri Norman-Bravo, who has considerable experience in the payroll field, was the only student to take the CPP exam, and she thanked CCC for offering the course, which was much more inexpensive compared to other options out there.
“Because, without the course, I probably wouldn’t have passed,” Norman-Bravo said. “It was definitely a tough exam. It took a lot of studying.”
The CPP exam took four hours to complete.
“I’m glad it’s over, and I never want to take it again,” Norman-Bravo said and laughed.
Other students who passed the exam were Melissa J. Deschenie, Irma L. Encinas, Yesenia Renteria, Rocia Soto Sanchez and Jennifer Wolosz. Student Paul Bearchell was recognized as Outstanding Student Advisor.
For more information about CCC and the degrees and certificates offered, visit www.coconino.edu.