* California
Servio Lee, Jeff Nagy and Yari Wajid have joined Tiburon Strategic Advisors, Tiburon, as research managers, and Kristen Colwell has joined the firm as marketing manager. Lee had previously been an underwriter at Provident Funding and a business analyst at SEACC; Nagy previously worked at McKesson Corp. and with the ASU Investment Fund; and Wajid had experience at Arthur Andersen, Merrill Lynch and with a tax preparation business. Colwell brings extensive experience from PSL Marketing Resources, Brand Ladder, Aegis Partners and the Pacific Vascular Research Foundation. ... Hazel Santos has been promoted from senior auditor to manager at Stonefield Josephson, Santa Monica. She concentrates on public companies, health care, manufacturing and retail clients, and has been with the firm for five years.
* Florida
Michael O'Rourke, a partner with the Ft. Lauderdale office of Morrison, Brown, Argiz & Farra LLP, has been appointed to the Planning Giving Advisory Board of the American Lung Association.
* Georgia
Karin Rising has joined Matson, Driscoll & Damico LLP, in its Atlanta headquarters, as marketing manager. She comes to the accounting firm from Turner Broadcasting System, at which she was marketing manager for the TBS Superstation.
* Illinois
Karen Villaflor has been named a tax manager, and Rick Prohammer has been named an assurance senior manager, in the Chicago office of Grant Thornton LLP. Villaflor previously spent six years at McGladrey & Pullen as a tax manager; Prohammer spent 19 years with Arthur Andersen, where he was a partner.
* Indiana
The Indiana CPA Society, Indianapolis, distributed a number of awards at its annual banquet. The Outstanding Discussion Leader Award went to Dennis Faurote, of The Faurote Group, and Dennis Venvie, of Garverick McCoy Tax Seminars Inc. The Outstanding Accounting Educator Award went to Joseph C. Sanders, of Indiana State University. The Outstanding Public Service Award went to Robert S. Kasper, of The Windsor Group Ltd., while the Outstanding CPA in Government Award went to Carl H. Zapfe of the Auditor of State, and the Outstanding CPA in Public Practice Award went to Thomas J. Sponsel of Greenwalt Sponsel & Co. The Outstanding CPA in Business and Industry Award went to James M. McMechan, of Anthem Inc.; the Outstanding Leader in Technology Award went to M. Darren Root, of Root & Associates; the Distinguished Service Award went to James J. Larkin, of Union Federal Bank; and the Chairman's Award went to Gayl W. Doster, a CPA in Indianapolis. The "Five Under 35," emerging leaders in the CPA profession, were Lindsey J. Schiesser, of Deloitte; Chad D. Reed, of K.B. Parrish & Co.; Veronica G. Locker, of Duke Realty Corp.; Jennifer Shikany, of Deloitte; and Kurt J. Pickering, of Estep, Doctor & Co. PC. ... Mary Bennett, a partner at Crowe Group LLP, was among the recipients of the 2004 Torchbearer Award from the Indiana Commission for Women, which is given to honor women who have overcome or removed barriers to equality or whose achievements have made Indiana a better place to live.
* Maryland
Joel Cohn has been appointed co-principal in charge of the Baltimore office of Reznick Group, succeeding Mark Einstein, who will now serve as co-principal in charge of the firm's Bethesda office.
* Massachusetts
Paul Languirand has joined Tofias PC, Cambridge, as a principal in its Accounting & Auditing Group, where he will work with clients in both Massachusetts and Rhode Island. He brings over 14 years of experience, most recently at Ernst & Young. ... Levine, Katz, Nannis + Solomon PC, Needham, announced a number of new hires: Paul L. Gentili has joined the firm as a supervisor; Brenda Sleeper as business development director; Nicholas S. Renzulli as tax manager; David J. Coburn and Sherrie Brogan as senior staff accountants; and Nidhi S. Shah as a staff accountant.
* Michigan
James L. Bruursema and Keith B. Noorman have been promoted to partner at Kaptein, Dykstra & Co. PC, Grandville. Bruursema has 12 years of experience, and specializes in taxation of estates and trusts; Noorman has 14 years of experience, and specializes in personal financial planning. ... Thomas Frazee has joined UHY Advisors, Sterling Heights, as a principal in the Forensic, Litigation and Valuation Services Group. He brings extensive experience providing valuation and consulting services, as well as expert testimony. ... Ravi Nayar has joined the Southfield office of UHY Advisors as a managing director. He will develop and lead the firm's industry focus on manufacturing. He brings over 20 years of experience, most recently as a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers. He was also previously a partner at BDO Seidman.
* Minnesota
Courtney Wood has joined RSM McGladrey, Minneapolis, as the firm's first-ever chief program management officer. She will facilitate the development and implementation of strategy across all RSM business lines. Prior to joining the firm, she served as co-founder and chief strategist of Cap Gemini's Center for Enterprise Creation. ... Tim Martin has been appointed a regional audit and accounting head for the Central Midwest and Great Lakes regions at McGladrey & Pullen LLP, Minneapolis. He is a 24-year veteran of the firm, most recently serving as an audit partner in the Chicago office. ... Mark Sellner, a tax principal at Larson, Allen, Weishair & Co. LLP, Minneapolis, has transferred to the Manufacturing/Distribution Group to provide client service and coordinate tax services to public companies. ... Sally Oberstar and Mary McMahon have been appointed principals of GlobalBridge Inc., Minneapolis, as well as directors of relationship management.
* Mississippi
Kimberly Watts Cleland has joined the audit staff of the Jackson office of Smith, Turner & Reeves, while Dawn F. Mathis has joined the Natchez office as a manager.
* Missouri
James G. Castellano, chairman of the board of Rubin, Brown, Gornstein & Co. LLP, St. Louis, has been selected to lead Baker Tiller International, an accountancy and business services network of 116 independent firms in 67 countries.
* New Hampshire
Ralph Jenkins has been appointed the office managing partner of the Manchester office of Ernst & Young. He succeeds Don Labrie, who will become senior partner in the firm's retail consumer products and industry products practice in Hartford, Conn.
* New Jersey
Kelli A. Tiernan and David M. Glueck have joined the Livingston office of WithumSmith+Brown, as a staff level I and a senior accountant, respectively. Tiernan graduated cum laude from Rowan University with a Bachelor's in Business Administration. Glueck brings more than six years of experience. Also, Brenda Hartmann has joined the firm in its Princeton office, as a tax associate, and Anthony Nitti has joined the same office as a tax manager. Hartmann is a graduate of Rider University, and Nitti was most recently a manager with PwC. ... Todd J. Rosenblatt, tax manager with Untracht Early & Associates, recently spoke at the Financial Planning Association of New Jersey's "Town Meeting of Financial Planning: Ask the Experts" seminar at Fairleigh Dickinson University.
* New York
Ricky Propper has joined Eisner LLP, New York, as a partner in its Tax Advisory Group. He brings 25 years of expertise in tax strategies for corporate acquisitions, dispositions, reorganizations and restructuring, including recent work for a major law firm and a Fortune 100 corporation. ... Adam Wolf has joined Eisner & Lubin LLP, New York, as director of marketing. He brings ten years of experience in marketing and public relations, including stints as a vice president at GCI Group and as senior account executive at Fleishman-Hillard. He also ran his own communications consulting business and directed U.S. media relations for Reuters. ... Karen Hovey, an audit manager with Grimaldi & Associates CPAs PLLC, Syracuse, has obtained the Certified Fraud Examiner designation from the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners. ... Alice M. Hoatland, a principle at Fagliarone Group CPAs PC, Syracuse, was elected president of the Board of Directors of the Auburn/Cayuga Community College Alumni Association. ... Willem van der Berg has been promoted to manager at Friedman LLP, New York, while Lisa Busch has been promoted to tax manager, and Maureen O'Conner and Charles Nigro have been promoted to audit manager. ... Rachel Commer, Trisha Huang, John Mikuljan and Jason Schwartz have been promoted to senior audit staff accountants at Friedman LLP, New York. Commer focuses on manufacturing, apparel/textile, real estate, legal and other service industry clients; Huang on corporate and individual tax returns for apparel and real estate clients; Mikuljan on real estate, retail, service and apparel clients; and Schwartz on real estate, retail, service and apparel clients. ... Steven Goodman of The Goodman CPA Group, New York, was a keynote speaker at the Greater New York Physicians Expo in October. He spoke on aggressive tax planning and the real costs of staffing.
* North Carolina
Rose E. Lay has joined Burgess, Lowman & Associates PA, Kitty Hawk, as a director. She brings 16 years of experience, and has served as a federal auditor and CFO. ... Davenport, Marvin, Joyce & Co. LLP has promoted R. Milton Howell III to tax partner in its Greensboro office, and Donna B. Johnson to partner in its Sanford office.
* Ohio
Cindy L. Fischer has joined the employee benefits team at Brady Ware, Dayton, as an account manager. She is currently a senior at Wright State University, pursuing a Bachelor's degree in Organizational Leadership.
* Pennsylvania
Gregory Kieselowsky and Allison Agus have joined Briggs, Bunting & Dougherty LLP, Philadelphia, as staff accountants. Kieselowsky previously worked as a staff accountant at Frank N. Ciero CPA, and has passed all four parts of the CPA Exam. Agus graduated from St. Joseph's University in May. ... Barry W. Braun, managing partner of Goldenberg Rosenthal LLP, Jenkintown, has been selected for the Musser Award for Excellence in Leadership from the Fox School of Business and Management of Temple University. The award honors outstanding achievement and service. Braun is a graduate of Temple, and a member of the Fox School's Alumni Hall of Fame.
* South Carolina
Elliott Davis LLC announced six hires: In the Greenville office, Sarah T. Bell has joined the Tax Department as a staff accountant; Jeff Walker and Kelly Cunningham have joined the Assurance and Advisory Department as staff accountants; Liat Gurwicz joined the same department as a senior accountant; and Lori Coker joined the Business Services Department. Sheri Meyers Cannon has joined the Anderson office as a business development specialist.
* Texas
The Texas Society of CPAs, Dallas, has recognized four educators with its 2004 Outstanding Accounting Educator Awards: Ramon Fernandez, an assistant professor of accounting at the University of St. Thomas; Liliana Hickman-Riggs, an adjunct accounting faculty member at the University of Texas - Dallas; Karen Russom, a professor of accounting and accounting coordinator at North Harris College; and Dr. L. Murphy Smith, a professor of accounting at Texas A&M University.
* Washington D.C.
Julian Kim has returned to Latham & Watkins LLP, Washington, as a partner, after two years as acting deputy tax legislative counsel at the U.S. Treasury Department.
