Today we’d like to introduce you to Keyana Newman.
Keyana, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was born and raised in Atlanta, so I always knew that I wanted to be something in life. I was a fun child who was very independent and out-spoken. I loved being free from control and I loved being the eldest of my siblings because I felt like a natural-born leader who made the rules for them. As a child up until my sophomore year of high school, I had plans of becoming a lawyer. However, that changed once I began my pathway in high school, I took an accounting elective and I loved it. I was always great in school, I kept good grades, but math and analytical work was always my strongest asset.
I took what I learned in school and paired it with the real world and quickly decided my college of choice, Georgia State University, and my major in accounting. I graduated high school with my rank as number 18/376 students, six scholarships, and seven acceptance letters. I chose GSU, and it was the best decision I’ve ever made. I met some of my closest friends, maintained a good GPA, pledged AKA, networked, danced on the dance team, volunteered, partied, and the list goes on. GSU showed me where I came from, who I was, and where I planned to go. I graduated in four years and took six months off before beginning my Master’s program. I chose to get my master’s mainly to get enough credit hours to qualify for my Certified Public Accountant license. I finished on time and I am now preparing to sit for the 1st out of four parts of the CPA Exam. I have held four corporate jobs since being out of undergrad, and I wouldn’t change a thing. I am happy where I am now, working as a property accountant for a large real estate firm. And this is only my beginning!
Has it been a smooth road?
My life has not been smooth. As a child, I moved around a lot. High school was the first school I attended for the full duration without moving. Moving around had pros and cons, I met tons of people, but I never had genuine friendships because they would end after a year or so due to moving. I also enjoyed living in different places, but the negative in that was that if I got attached, it always hurt to let go. I love my upbringing because although we didn’t have everything we wanted, we always had what we needed. I had a super loving family and a lot of good times. High school was the highlight of my childhood because I became more mature, I got to become a captain of my own dance team, I forged genuine friendships, and really turned my pain into progress.
Please tell us more about your work, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
I do not have my own business yet. However, the company I work for is a real estate company that purchases multi-family communities and manages them. My role as a property accountant is to maintain a full and clean portfolio of financials for our clients. The typical workload is 10-15 properties per accountant, and I currently manage 12. I handle every inch of several financial statements for my properties, from cashflow to revenue and expenses. I love what I do because it is grooming me to learn how corporations work so that when I retain my CPA License, I can set up my business to run financially sound and in accordance with GAAP and other accounting laws.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Atlanta is the best place to be for business owners. I am an Atlanta native and there is no place I would rather be than here. I want the people in my city to become financially literate. I want businesses to be able to trust accountants to keep their business in order. With more CPA’s this all can be the start of a good cycle for our communities to continue thriving and making money.
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