History
In 1971, Vincent C. Ross established and endowed this institute. His goal was to create an environment where research would flourish and where financial executives, professional accountants, government officials, and academics could work to advance accounting principles and practices. Over the years The Vincent C. Ross Institute has provided funding for many activities, in a variety of formats, for the exchange of ideas about accounting and related disciplines, including: Conducting large-scale research projects on topics of interest to financial and management accountants, and disseminating the results to the business and academic communities, through conferences, journals, the working paper series and over the Internet. This is primarily done by:
Organizing and sponsoring programs and events to facilitate the exchange of information and ideas between the business and academic communities, including distinguished lectures, executive education programs, and professional conferences and roundtables.
Actively cooperating with other institutions to develop research, programs and events, including the NYU Centerfor Law and Business, the NYU Law School, and outside organizations such as the Brookings Institution, the Big Four Accounting firms and regulatory bodies, such as the Financial Accounting Standards Board.
Maintaining a research library for all Stern Schoolfaculty and Ph.D. students interested in accounting, finance, economics, management decision making and taxation. The library houses a unique collection of historical corporate annual reports.
The topics of the recent annual JAAF Conferences were: 2008, "Deviations from Historical Cost" 2007, "Transparency of Corporate Information" and 2006, "Accounting Dynamism: Research on Recent Events, Corporate Governance, Regulation and Disclosure." Specific information on the papers presented in each conference, and the presenters is available from the Ross administrator.
In the fall of 1996, the Institute sponsored a major research initiative known as the Intangibles Research Project under the direction of Professor Baruch Lev. The Intangibles Research Project sponsors research and disseminates information on the valuation and disclosure of corporate intangible assets. Intangible assets include human development and intellectual capital (which have never been recorded in corporate balance sheets), as well as purchased goodwill and other intangible assets that have traditionally appeared on the corporate balance sheets. The project also facilitates interchange between parties engaged in intangibles, through conferences and events.
The Intangibles Project sponsored annual conferences. The 1998 conference focused on the relationship between intangibles and capital markets, the 1999 conference presented managerial and organizational aspects of intangibles, the 2000 conference focused on knowledge management, and the 2001 conference on valuation issues.
