Researching NYC's Budget During the Pandemic

 Angelyne Acevedo, Verrazzano Class of 2022, completing majors in Business Management and Accounting, and a minor in Corporate Communications 

The capstone is usually a dreadful task for many students but to me, it was illuminating. Students need to find a mentor who will assist them in their research and oversee their paper for their capstone. When finding a mentor, I had to be sure that I found someone who could positively assist me and give me a better understanding of my topic.

Professor Joseph Petrucelli is an author of two books about fraud in different types of organizations, which made him a great source of knowledge and guidance. When discussing possible topics for my capstone, Professor Petrucelli and I both thought that it was timely and imperative to analyze the damage that COVID-19 has unleashed, and the lack of transparency within the government in terms of its handling of the pandemic. The topic I chose to do my capstone on was the impact of COVID-19 on New York City’s budget. This topic gave me some insight into the nature of the city’s economy and an in-depth look at where I live. I love my city and I found it amazing to understand how it operates and how we can collectively make it better.

One experience that stands out when looking back at my capstone experience was the immense amount of research that it took to support my findings. At times, I found it difficult to find a credible source that held no bias, especially in the digital age where anyone can buy a website domain and frame itself as a legitimate news source. Thus, I looked towards finding government-operated sources and articles that had named sources that I could investigate for legitimacy. I read the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report for New York City for the first time, and it taught me a lot about governmental accounting. The 413-page document carried heavy language that required many Google searches and an abundance of time. However, I knew that this report would be an important aspect of my research, because it is one of the most important documents from the Office of the NYC Comptroller.

This experience taught me perseverance because although the document and the research were dreadfully long and tedious, I knew that all of the hard work would pay off and become an excellent piece of research for my capstone.