Portia W. Benson

"I was drawn to teaching because I understand students' frustrations with new concepts and can show them different ways to learn if they don't understand the first time. Working in a classroom setting is the most enjoyable way to teach. I think the energy and questions the students develop in a group are essential to their learning."

Portia holds a BA in sociology/anthropology with a minor in biology from Principia College, and an MBA from West Texas A&M University. She is also an active Certified Management Accountant (CMA). Prior to working at Principia, she served as the Finance Manager and math teacher at the Link School in Colorado. Portia has also worked for nine years as a financial consultant and three years as a senior technical training consultant for Lucent Technologies. During her time as a consultant, she travelled globally training clients how to use telecom billing systems.

Scholarly Interests

• Behavioral finance and economics
• Tax morale
• Ethics and corporate governance
• Non-profit organizations

Contributions to Field

• Wrote a grant and secured government funding for a fire protection district to purchase a new ambulance and fire truck. Presented and defended the grant's financial statements to state and county officials. Started two consulting businesses which provided financial and bookkeeping services to clients
• Wrote and submitted a 501c3 application for a new non-profit. Defended the application to the IRS. Set up the new 501c3 business with financial reporting software, articles of incorporation, by-laws, and operating procedures. They continue to be a successful, board-run non-profit organization.

Memberships and Affiliations

• Institute for Management Accountants (IMA), Certified CMA
• National Financial Educators Council (NFEC) 
• American Economic Association (AEA)
• The Link School Board of Directors