Summer Education Conference

Featured Speakers

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  Lisa McKinney

  Bio

  Ms. McKinney joined The University of Alabama after practicing for eight years in public accounting. Ms. McKinney is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and is a member of the Alabama Society of CPAs, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, and the American Society of Women Accountants.

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  Les Nettleton

  Bio

  Les Nettleton serves as Director of Information Technology Services for Bourgeois Bennett, CPAs and Consultants. In that capacity, he manages the team of specialists that both supports the technological infrastructure of Bourgeois Bennett and provides individualized technology services to the firm’s diverse client base.

  Les has specialized experience in the areas of systems analysis, technology management consulting, database management and information systems training. He regularly addresses academic, community and professional groups and organizations, both locally and nationally, on a variety of technology topics and provides technology training to the firm’s staff. Les was awarded the 2020 Outstanding CPE Discussion Leader by the Louisiana State Society of CPAs after receiving the highest overall speaker rating for 2020.

  Active in the community, Les is on the Board of Directors of Crimestoppers of Greater New Orleans. He is a member of the St. Catherine of Siena Pastoral Council. He is also an Assistant Scoutmaster with the Boy Scouts. He is a member of the American Institute of CPAs Technology Sector. Les is also a member of Technology Section for AGN North America, an international association of 200 accounting and consulting firms.

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  Florence Holland

  Bio

  Dr. Florence Holland, Ed.D.
  
  Dr. Florence Holland is an educator and diversity professional with over 19 years of experience firmly grounded in areas such as diversity, inclusion belonging, underrepresented minority recruitment and retention. She serves as the head of consulting for The Diversity Movement.
  
  From February 2014 to September 2020, Florence served as the lead manager, pipeline initiatives – diversity and inclusion with the Association of International CPAs. There she managed the Diversity and Inclusion Pipeline Initiative through profession awareness, program development and implementation and research, analysis and reporting.
  
  Her work revolved around a profession-wide and profession-funded initiative to improve the quantity and quality of underrepresented minorities in the accounting profession and ultimately securing their CPA licensure.
  
  Florence holds a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics with a minor in psychology from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), a Master’s of Arts in education in educational administration (K–12) from Ball State University, an Executive MBA from Auburn University and a Doctorate of Education in higher education administration from Argosy University, Sarasota where her research focused on the persistence of underrepresented minorities at predominately white institutions.
  
  Prior to her work at the Association, Florence was the special assistant to the associate provost for diversity and multicultural affairs at Auburn University. There she managed and coordinated diversity, inclusion and equity programs related to students, faculty and staff. She was responsible for over $3 million dollars in National Science Foundation diversity related grants focused on increasing the representation of minorities in STEM fields. At Auburn, she coordinated diversity training programs, collaborated with campus offices related diversity events and strategic planning, and organized national, regional and local events and conferences focused on student and faculty recruitment and retention, persistence of STEM underrepresented minorities, and diversity strategic planning.
  
  Florence is a certified mathematics middle grades teacher in Georgia where she taught middle and high school mathematics for five years. She also holds certifications in the Myers Briggs Type Indicator, the Wiley Everything DiSC and the National Coalition Building Institute. She is currently enrolled in the Cornell University Certified Diversity Professional/Advanced Practitioner program, on track for completion in November 2020. She also currently teaches in the Education and Business graduate degree programs for Southern New Hampshire University where she teaches courses in action research, nonprofit organizations and education factors of diversity.
  
  Despite all her educational pursuits and professional career her main focus always remains her passion for children and their ability to find their calling and purpose through exposure and opportunity. Therefore, she is committed to giving back and serves in her community through her church (Greenwood Missionary Baptist Church) and youth ministry involvement, tutoring middle and high school students in mathematics and ACT preparation and serving as a Den Leader for Troop 170 of the Boys Scouts of America, Inc. in Tuskegee, Ala. She also serves as the church clerk and choir director at her church. She is a board member for the Alabama Prison Birth Project, member and officer of Jack and Jill of America, Inc. – Tuskegee Chapter, and during the 2020-2021 school year will serve as president of the Auburn Junior High School Parent Teacher Organization (PTO).
  
  Her ultimate pride and joy are her three sons — Michael, Miles and Major — with whom she parents with her amazingly supportive husband, Michael.

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  Jeannine Birmingham, CPA, CAE

  Bio

  Jeannine P. Birmingham, CPA, CAE
  Alabama Society of Certified Public Accountants
  President & CEO
  Montgomery, AL
  
  Jeannine Birmingham is the executive of a member service organization serving 6600 licensed CPAs. She has been with the ASCPA for eleven years, serving in several capacities before becoming President and CEO in 2007. Birmingham is a graduate of Troy University majoring in accounting and mathematics and spent five years in public accounting following graduation. She currently serves on the American Institute of CPAs Women's Initiatives Executive Committee and as a Board Member of CPA/SEA, an association of accounting society executives. She serves on the Accounting Advisory Boards at both the University of Alabama and Troy University and is the president-elect of the Alabama Council of Association Executives. Ms. Birmingham resides in Montgomery, Alabama with her husband Robert, daughter Kristen and son Porter.

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  Ron Gitz, CPA, CGMA

  Bio

  Ron serves as CEO of the Society of Louisiana CPAs (LCPA). Prior to joining the non-profit professional association in 2012, Ron had a diverse career working both in public practice and industry. He owned and operated several businesses, including a restaurant, a document imaging and management solutions company, and later, a successful CPA practice. At the national level, Ron serves on the board of the CPA Society Executives Association (CPE-SEA) and AICPA’s Practice Monitoring of the Future Task Force. On the state level, he serves on the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry’s Taxation & Finance Committee. Ron directs LCPA’s State Government Relations Program which was awarded a grant obtained through the The Accounting Coalition’s (TAC) Beta Grant Program, making Louisiana one of three grant recipients in the initial phase of the project.
  
  He holds both the CPA and Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) designations.
  
  Ron enjoys hunting, fishing, playing golf, scuba diving, and cooking competitively. He lives in Covington with his wife, Jennifer. Together they have three children, Audrey, Mary Grace, and Harrison.

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  Kurt Oestriecher

  Bio

  Kurt Oestriecher, CPA – Partner, Oestriecher & Company, CPAs, Alexandria, LA
  
  Kurt G. Oestriecher, CPA is a partner with Oestriecher & Company, CPAs of Alexandria, Louisiana and has been with the firm since graduating from The University of Louisiana in 1986 with a BBA in Accounting. He is partner in charge of accounting and auditing services, and is also involved in litigation support and small business consulting engagements.
  
  He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the Society of Louisiana Certified Public Accountants (LCPA), and served as President of the LCPA in 2002–2003. He is currently chair of the LCPA Professional Ethics Committee, and has chaired the Louisiana Accounting and Auditing Conference Committee, Strategic Planning Committee, Budget Committee, and Nominating Committee.
  
  Kurt served a four-year term on the Accounting and Review Services Committee of the AICPA from 2000-2004, and served a six year term on the AICPA Joint Trial Board from 2005-2011. He also served a three year term as an elected member of AICPA Council and a one year term as Louisiana’s dedicated Council member.
  
  Kurt was the recipient of the 1998, 2006, and 2010 Outstanding CPE Discussion Leader Award from the LCPA, and was named the Outstanding CPE Discussion Leader for the AICPA for the past twelve consecutive years.. He has authored many educational courses on accounting and auditing topics, including the AICPA “Annual Update for Accountants and Auditors”. He has also served as an Adjunct Instructor of Accounting at LSUA and Northwestern State University.

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  Paul Perry

  Bio

  Paul Perry has been with the Firm since 2004 and is a Member and the leader of the Security and Risk internal control and information technology control related projects including SOC engagements. Paul is also responsible for general consulting projects for the Firm. Paul is the leader of the Firm’s Data Analysis Group, a team of individuals within the Firm who provide data analysis solutions to both internal and external clients. For more than 11 years, he specialized in auditing and assurance services. Paul has extensive experience serving clients in the nonprofit, governmental, financial, insurance and healthcare facilities/hospital industries. Paul has earned the Certified Information Technology Professional (CITP) certification. This credential is awarded to CPAs who possess both information technology and business expertise. Paul is also a published author, columnist and regular speaker on topics such as data analysis, internal controls and information technology for accountants and auditors.

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  James Spiro

  Bio

  Jim Spiro, Managing Director - Wealth Management, Financial Advisor, entered the industry in 1984. As a licensed investment professional, Jim leads The Spiro Group in implementing wealth-management strategies for high and ultra-high net worth clients through effective portfolio management, managing over $2 billion dollars, as of June, 2018. A graduate of Wesleyan University, Jim furthered his educational training with a Masters in Business Administration from Tulane University’s A.B. Freeman School of Business, where he was inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma, a nationally-recognized honor Society whose members receive admission only for academic excellence.
  
  Jim focuses on equity research, portfolio hedging strategies and new business planning development. The Spiro Group, under Jim’s leadership, has maintained a continuous commitment to long-term client relationships, exceptional client service and assistance in achieving financial objectives.
  
  Although the name of the parent company has changed due to acquisitions and divestitures many times over the years, Jim is highly unusual in the industry in that he has never changed firms, not once, in 35 years. All these years later, to this very day, he still gets a high internal level of satisfaction knowing that what he does makes a profound impact on others—he enjoys his work and believes that will always be the case.
  
  Jim has been named a 2013 REP Magazine Top 100 Advisor in America; a 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2018 Financial Times Top 400 Financial Advisor, and was listed in the 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 Barron’s Top 1,200 Advisor Directory. All three are among the most respected publications in the industry.