Meet Your Service Unit Member: Adam Chase

January 25, 2023   |   By WCER Communications

Adam Chase works in the Business Office as a Post-Award Accountant. Adam is responsible for financial reporting for federal and non-federal projects, auditing and reconciling all expenditures. Adam also works with program managers for WCER projects on future projections, and he assists in the close-out of projects with research and sponsor programs.

Originally from Sun Prairie, Adam graduated from UW-Milwaukee in 2013, with a bachelor’s degree in finance. Read more about Adam in his own words:

Q: Where did you work before joining WCER?

A: ”My first job was a bagger at Sentry Foods, and before working at WCER, I had a brief period of working for the Department of Corrections. Most of my other ‘work’ experience before, and for a few years after, that was volunteer work, such as ushering at the Overture.”

Q: What made you choose UW–Milwaukee for college?

A: “I was an architecture major, and UW-Milwaukee was the only school of architecture in the state. I was a good architecture student, though I ended up switching majors due to financial limitations.”

Q: How would you describe your work in financial services?

A: “In dealing with grant finances, I have to be knowledgeable of University rules, federal rules, uniform guidance, past precedent, etc. As an accountant, in order to provide accurate financials, I spend my time reviewing past and upcoming expenditures, making sure everything is accurate, and the expenditures are in alignment with the budget. If any inaccuracy is noticed, this is investigated and corrected.”

Q: What parts of your job do you like the most?

A: “I enjoy analyzing numbers and finding solutions to problems. I enjoy helping people and being able to be a source for federal and university policy.”

Q: What sorts of things do you like doing outside of work?

A: “I am an intermediate-ranked Go* player, getting 2nd place in the 9x9-board section of the U.S. 2019 national tournament, and an avid reader. My collection currently completely fills eight bookshelves, plus some partially filled ones. Favorite books include Foucault’s Pendulum by Umberto Eco and House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski. I also will promote Danielewski’s Familiar series, volumes 1−5, just for his attempt to push the limits of what a novel can be, though its 27-volume plan was never completed because the publisher dropped it. I’m also a fan of music, though mostly specializing in music from 1969–1974, classical, and a few modern alt rock bands. I love the song Witchwood by the Strawbs and other prog rock bands like King Crimson, Jethro Tull, Banco del Mutuo Soccorso, and Yes.”

*Go is an abstract strategy board game for two players in which the aim is to surround the most territory. Invented in China more than 2,500 years ago, it’s believed to be the oldest board game continuously played to the present day in the world.