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Accounting class manufactures baked goods

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

BY LAURA WOLFE

Managerial Accounting students in KU School of Business lecturer Jeremy Lill's Accounting 201 class are cooking the numbers this semester. That is, the class is getting a hands-on look into the manufacturing process by baking cookies. Through manufacturing a batch of their favorite cookies, groups learn how manufacturing costs flow through various departments, or stages, as the product evolves from a list of ingredients to a completed cookie.

"It's a fun way to think about product costs, like direct material, direct labor and overhead," Lill said. Students, divided into groups for the project, not only baked their favorite treats but also calculated the cost of materials, labor, and even the depreciation on their ovens.

The project doesn't end when the cookie jar is empty, though. "Students will continue the project throughout the semester, later figuring out how much they would need to charge to turn a profit if they sold the cookies on campus," Lill said.

Lecturer Marci Feiden, who previously taught Accounting 201, came up with the idea for the famous "cookie project" several years ago. While brainstorming ideas to provide a more relatable context for the concepts in the class, Feiden came across a similar project in a book. "It was not only simple and inexpensive, but a product that they could actually enjoy," Feiden said. "How perfect!"

"The cookie project is a clever way to learn about production costs and how they are accounted for. Professor Lill makes references to the project practically every class, and when he does I'm able to apply what we are learning about to what I actually did," said Erin Robinson, sophomore from Lawrence. "Plus, making cookies is a lot more fun than just thinking of a hypothetical situation!"

Students don't just turn in their cookies in a plastic bag, either. "To encourage creativity, bonus points are awarded to groups who go above and beyond the stated project requirements, which occasionally results in something truly memorable," Feiden said. "I once had a group create a professional quality mock-up of a cookie box, and they managed to incorporate all of their responses to the project requirements within the design of the box itself."

Lill's accounting students were very imaginative in their presentation of the project this semester, too. Cookies were decorated as a volcano, complete with lava frosting; another batch was packaged in Jayhawk crimson and blue foil; and one group even created a cookie box with their company name, "Very Manly Cookies," and each group member's name, printed into their design.