BARBADOS
Baker Tilly International has increased its coverage in the Caribbean with the addition of Barbados accountancy firm, Ayub Kola & Company.
FLORIDA
Russell Thompson Butler & Houston LLP has joined CPAmerica International, an accounting association of independent, certified public accounting firms that provides shared best practices, networking opportunities and access to expert resources for member firms. The AICPA and American Accounting Association, the founding co-sponsors of the Pathways Commission on Accounting Higher Education, have announced developments in the implementation of the Commission’s recommendations. With more than 75 volunteers currently working on more than 17 task forces, the Commission has made substantial progress on a number of important recommendations stemming from the Commission’s report: Proposal for an Advanced Placement Course in Accounting. The Pathways Commission has been working with The College Board, which provides AP courses in high schools, to propose an AP Course in Accounting. Development and Distribution of the Pathways Vision Model. The Model emphasizes the importance of professional judgment, the complex thinking that it involves, and the critical role accountants play in the success of corporations, firms, organizations and governments around the world. Integration of Professionally Oriented Faculty. Many colleges and universities are engaging professionally oriented faculty to help bring business-world experience into the classroom and help inform academic research. The Pathways Commission has developed a summary of leading practices, and a set of principles for effectively integrating these members into accounting departments and schools, asking department chairs to sign on as adopters of the principles. Expansion of an AAA Auditing Section “boot camp” program. The program works to incorporate current practice issues into accounting classes and research. In the coming year boot camps are planned for management accounting, tax, and accounting information systems. ... Guidance Programs for Success is the 2015 winner of the UNITE (Uniting Nonprofits In Teaming for Excellence) Award and the $25,000 cash prize. Established by Myers, Brettholtz & Co. and supported by the Southwest Florida Community Foundation, the Cape Coral Community Foundation, the United Way of Lee, Hendry and Glades Counties and the Smith Family Foundation, the UNITE Award is a regional award that recognizes successful nonprofit collaborative models across the five-county area that exemplify excellence and community impact. Its goal is to provide information to the nonprofit community about collaborative models that have succeeded in our area and to share proven effective practices for nonprofits working together.
ILLINOIS
Ostrow Reisin Berk & Abrams, Ltd. director Michael Kovacs, will be speaking at the Association of Marina Industries’ International Marina & Boatyard Conference, taking place January 28-30 in Tampa, Fla. Kovacs’s session, “Reducing The Most Hated Expense of Marina Owners—Income Taxes,” will discuss key areas for tax benefits, including cost segregation, depreciation, employee credits and new regulations on repairs and maintenance. The presentation will also address the treatment of a marina from a tax perspective. For more information, visit www.marinaassociation.org/imbc
NEW YORK
AGN International North America, Inc., the associations of independent accounting and consulting firms, has admitted Markowitz, Fenelon & Bank LLPinto membership. ... UHY LLP will donate $48,500 to support the 55th Annual Center for Disability Services Telethon at the Holiday Inn Albany on Wolf Road on Sunday, January 25. The telethon will feature autograph signings with New York Giants running back Rashad Jennings and New York Yankees pitcher Adam Warren, courtesy of the UHY Sports LineUp. The players will sign autographs from noon to 3 p.m. Autographs are $15 with proceeds benefitting the Center for Disability Services.
SOUTH CAROLINA
Phyllis Graydon and Greg Thompson has formed Graydon Thompson LLC, a Greenville-based, accounting firm. Graydon Thompson will provide a comprehensive range of tax, assurance, small business and specialized consulting services to clients across the Carolinas from the start, added CPA and co-founder Greg Thompson.
TEXAS
The Financial Accounting Standards Board and the Private Company Council will host their fourth Private CompanyTown Hall Meeting on April 28, 2015, at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. The town hall meeting will take place from 8:30 a.m. to noon (CDT) in the Crum Auditorium in the Collins Executive Education Center. The town hall meetings are intended to provide private company stakeholders across a wide variety of industries the opportunity to discuss private company accounting issues and share input on current and future agenda topics of both the FASB and the PCC. Billy Atkinson, chairman of the PCC, will lead the discussion. Other expected participants are FASB members Daryl Buck and Marc Siegel, and PCC members Thomas Groskopf, Mark Ellis, and Carleton Olmanson. Interested stakeholders should register in advance to participate. The town hall meeting will be recorded and available for audio playback on the FASB website, www.fasb.org.
VIRGINA
BookKeeping Express has partnered with Aire Serv, a 175-location franchise that provides commercial and residential installation, maintenance and repair of heating, ventilation, air conditioning and indoor air quality systems.
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