(Butler, PA) Three Butler County Community College students from Butler County who intend to become certified public accountants have received from a Philadelphia-based nonprofit organization $1,000 scholarships that recognize their academic achievements.

Jenna Frankenstein, of Zelienople; Denver Ott, of Sarver; and Peter Zulick, of Renfrew; are among five students or recent graduates of BC3’s business and information technology division to receive this month 2026 financial awards from the Pennsylvania Certified Public Accountant Foundation, which is associated with the Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs.

Their scholarships from the foundation bring to 12 the number awarded to BC3 students or recent graduates in the past three years.

Frankenstein, 24, is pursuing an associate degree in accounting through the college’s 62-credit virtual program. Ott and Zulick, both 19, study on BC3’s main campus in Butler Township and are seeking an associate degree in the college’s 60-credit business administration program.

Ott and Zulick have achieved BC3’s president’s list twice and Frankenstein once in the past year. The recognition honors students who earn a grade-point average of at least 3.75 in a semester.

Frankenstein, Ott and Zulick also qualified this spring to join Rho Phi, BC3’s chapter of Phi Theta Kappa, an international academic honor society whose new members must have a minimum grade-point average of 3.5.

Community college students must have achieved a grade-point average of at least a 3.0 to be eligible for the Pennsylvania CPA Foundation’s financial award.

The foundation also selected Allison Mosley, of New Castle; and Rachel Hicks, of DuBois; to receive $1,000 scholarships in 2026. Mosley graduated cum laude in May from the virtual associate degree program in accounting that enrolls Hicks, another BC3 president’s list student, and Frankenstein.

The foundation states that its mission is to inspire students to pursue careers in accounting and to provide educational, motivational and financial support to those working to attain the CPA credential.

 

“After other life responsibilities had taken priority in my life for several years, I decided it was finally time to pursue my educational goals. BC3 had always been on my mind because of its affordability and accessibility.”

Jenna Frankenstein, BC3 virtual program student

 

Frankenstein, Ott and Zulick began studies in BC3’s business and information technology division last fall.

Frankenstein, a 2020 graduate of Seneca Valley High School, said she developed an interest in accounting while helping her husband, Wade Stevenson, emigrate to the United States from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada.

“After other life responsibilities had taken priority in my life for several years, I decided it was finally time to pursue my educational goals,” Frankenstein said. “BC3 had always been on my mind because of its affordability and accessibility.”

She has worked as a full-time retail supervisor in Cranberry Township for five years. Her husband became a permanent resident of the United States in 2024 following a two-year process.

“As a nontraditional student,” Frankenstein said, “I needed a college that offered flexibility to accommodate my work schedule, realistic tuition that aligned with my financial goals and a respected degree to help me move forward toward a career that I am passionate about.”

 

 

“I strive to be a leader in whatever environment I’m in. Because accounting is such an integral part of business, I thought it would be a good pathway to get into that leadership that I crave and in an environment in which I want to work.”

-- Denver Ott, BC3 student

 

Accounting courses taken in high school sparked their interest in the profession, Ott and Zulick said.

Ott is a 2025 graduate of Knoch High. He has worked up to 16 hours a week for the past five years assisting residents and staff at a health care provider in Butler County, became an Eagle Scout in April 2025 with Boy Scout Troop No. 58 in Middlesex Township and is president of the Premier Livestock Club in Herman.

Ott in the past academic year received the $1,395 Wade Snider Scouting and the $610 George W. and Judy Marburger 4H scholarships from the BC3 Education Foundation.

“I strive to be a leader in whatever environment I’m in,” he said. “Because accounting is such an integral part of business, I thought it would be a good pathway to get into that leadership that I crave and in an environment in which I want to work.”

Zulick is a 2025 graduate of Butler High. He worked 16 hours a week as an associate at a national big-box retailer during his first year at BC3.

“In thinking about my future,” Zulick said, “I want to be sure I will have a stable job, and being an accountant is one of the best there is.”

BC3’s affordability, financial aid options and BC3 Education Foundation scholarships enabled 82 percent of its Class of 2026 to graduate debt-free.

Frankenstein, Ott and Zulick expect to graduate debt-free from BC3 in May, then transfer to four-year institutions to pursue bachelor’s degrees accounting or in business administration with an accounting track.

 

 

“That was really cool. We got to see first-hand what they do there. You hear stories about it and you learn about it in class, but that was real life, what they do on the job.”

-- Peter Zulick, BC3 student, about college trip to PricewaterhouseCoopers, Pittsburgh

 

Associate degree programs within BC3’s business and information technology division are accredited by the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs, Overland Park, Kan.

“BC3 has given me a high-quality education and meaningful support, which surprised me as an online student,” Frankenstein said, adding that accounting program coordinator Laura Wiest “has been an incredible resource for many opportunities, including the (Pennsylvania CPA Foundation) scholarship.

“I feel that I am being well-prepared to move forward academically and professionally.”

Wiest is also an instructor in BC3’s business and information technology division and a member of the Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs.

Wiest, a former employee of PricewaterhouseCoopers, was among faculty members who with BC3 business and information technology students in November visited the Pittsburgh offices of the international professional services network.

BC3 faculty and students attended a workshop whose topics included careers in accounting, and a panel discussion featuring employees who discussed their career paths and experiences.

“That,” Zulick said, “was really cool. We got to see first-hand what they do there. You hear stories about it and you learn about it in class, but that was real life, what they do on the job.”

Accounting is one of nine associate degree, certificate or workplace certificate programs offered virtually by BC3’s business and information technology division.