Ilitch School alum Joe Petrella '12, '13 pays forward scholarship generosity with $25,000 gift to establish new scholarship fund

Like many undergraduate students navigating paying for their college education, Joe Petrella '12, '13 applied for scholarships throughout his time at Wayne State University.

"I received scholarships almost every year that I attended Wayne State," said Petrella. "I did the best I could in the classroom to succeed academically, and receiving those scholarships was a great reward for the hard work that I put in."

Now a Senior Tax Manager at Altair, a global technology company based in Troy, Petrella found himself well positioned to reciprocate the generosity he received with a $25,000 gift to establish an endowed scholarship at the Mike Ilitch School of Business.

A start at Wayne State

A Rochester Hills native, Petrella came to the business school in 2008 to study accounting and graduated in 2012. He stayed for his Masters of Science in Taxation, which he completed in 2013. For Petrella, the reputation and location of Wayne State made it an easy choice for his education.

"Wayne State has a very strong reputation within the business community," explained Petrella. "I liked that it was located in the heart of Detroit, where a lot of the big accounting firms are located. I was close to companies I would potentially be working for. Being in such a strong business community was valuable, and I was able to network with business leaders."

At the Ilitch School, Petrella was mentored by faculty with real industry experience in the accounting field, in particular Deb Jones, who Petrella took several classes from.

"I was impressed with her passion for accounting, and ability to connect with students," said Petrella. "I remember Deb as an enthusiastic professor and great advocate for the accounting field."

Petrella was also impressed with the diversity at Wayne State, which he feels prepared him for a future working in diverse workplaces.

"It was a very diverse community, and still is to this day," said Petrella. "Wayne really helped me as I started my career in the accounting profession."

Scholarship awards

While accomplishing his classwork, Petrella was also applying for scholarships. Among those he received to fund his education was the Glantz Family Endowed Scholarship.

"I remember receiving that award and getting to meet Paul and Mary Glantz, who are wonderful people," said Petrella. "I was very appreciative of the support they provided me.

"It was an amazing experience, especially as Paul is such a reputable leader in the Detroit business community. He is a great example of how you can build a career and be able to support Wayne State students in their own development. I looked up to him and that leadership role."

Paul and Mary Glantz were pleased to see that their scholarship supported Petrella and helped him build a solid foundation for his future career in accountancy.

"Mary and I both benefitted from the kindness of scholarship donors when we were earning our undergraduate degrees at Wayne State University. Such generosity, and the helping hand it availed to us during our school years, inspired us to create our scholarship for exemplary students at the Mike Ilitch School of Business," commented Paul and Mary Glantz. "Joe certainly fulfilled that criterion as a student, and now we are deeply gratified to not only see the success he is enjoying in his career, but also to learn that he is equally committed to helping those following in his footsteps."

These funds came at a crucial time for Petrella, as he was studying for the CPA exam, and completing the additional coursework required to receive this license. This generosity was something that Petrella would not forget as he began his career.

"I wanted to pay it forward because I know that students have ever increasing costs of education especially when they are trying to sit for the CPA exam," explained Petrella.

Paying it forward

Petrella graduated and accepted a role in the Detroit office of the accounting firm KPMG. He started as a Tax Associate in the firm's Business Tax Services department and progressed his way to a Tax Manager role. Petrella says the education he received from Wayne State was crucial to his success at this firm.

"I felt very well prepared coming out of Wayne State and starting my career," said Petrella. "I was able to utilize all the tools and skill sets that I learned from Wayne State and applied them to my work at KPMG."

Petrella eventually accepted an offer from Altair, where he now manages the company's global tax provision and compliance requirements. As his career progressed, he found himself well suited to pay back the generosity he received from Ilitch School scholarships, by establishing his own.

"I was always thinking that I would like to reciprocate the generosity that I received from Ilitch School donors," said Petrella. "I wanted to pay it forward and establish this scholarship fund to support the future generations of Wayne State students."

Petrella made a gift of $25,000 to establish the Joseph L. Petrella Endowed Scholarship in Accounting, to provide full-time graduate and undergraduate accounting students at the Ilitch school with financial resources to pursue their education, similar to how Petrella utilized those same resources to pursue his.

"I want to be able to help students who are going through a similar path as myself, get the support they need to achieve their own success stories," said Petrella. "I realize how fortunate I was to receive the financial support from the variety of donors at Wayne State, and I know that not every student is in that same position."

Petrella hopes that his gift can ease the financial burden for students to allow them to take full advantage of the education and extracurricular activities during their time at Wayne State.

"I would advise students to take advantage of any opportunity they are given," explained Petrella. "You may not know everything about the job you have or about what you're going to be doing. With an open mindset and listening to advice and feedback from others, I think you will find taking on new challenges very rewarding. As your career progresses, putting in that hard work, showing up and being willing to learn will go a long way."

-Patrick Bernas, Information Officer III

The Wayne State University Mike Ilitch School of Business prepares students for challenging and rewarding careers, advances the boundaries of scholarly and practitioner knowledge, and enhances the economic vitality of the city of Detroit, the state of Michigan and beyond through its programs, research and community engagement. Established in 1946, the business school was renamed in 2015 in recognition of a $40 million gift from Mike and Marian Ilitch. Thanks to this lead investment, the school moved to a new state-of-the-art building in the heart of the District Detroit in 2018, and academic programming and collaboration with city businesses are expanding. For more information, visit ilitchbusiness.wayne.edu.