The pandemic has stopped a lot of things in their tracks over the past couple of years.

It hasn’t stopped Maryland CPAs. They keep pushing the edge of the leadership envelope in new and innovative ways. Thanks to COVID, though, they haven’t gotten the proper recognition for it.

That all changed on May 24.

That evening, the MACPA held its inaugural “Celebrate the Profession” event to pay tribute to the Maryland CPAs who have blazed a leadership path during the pandemic. We haven’t had an opportunity to say “Thank you” during the past two years, so this was our chance to offer our thanks for what these folks have done on our behalf.

It was indeed an event to remember.

We opened the evening by celebrating former MACPA Chair Anoop Mehta’s election as chair of the AICPA’s Board of Directors. He is just the second Marylander to serve as AICPA chair. Kimberly Ellison-Taylor is the other. Learn more about Anoop’s journey here.

That was hard to top, but we did our best from there.

• We celebrated the 27 deserving young professionals who were awarded 2022 MACPA scholarships. The MACPA Foundation increased the total number of scholarships awarded from six in 2021 to 27 this year, and the total amount given from $6,000 to $48,000.
• We recognized our most recent Student Leadership Academy graduates and the six Marylanders who received the national 40 Under 40 Black CPA Award last year.
• We recognized our Women To Watch Award winners.
• We said thank you to our MACPA “champions” — CPAs who are key contacts and advocates for the MACPA within their organizations.
• We paid tribute to the MACPA’s past board chairs and current members of the association’s Board of Directors, members of Maryland’s State Board of Public Accountancy, and MACPA Foundation board members.
• We honored Ellison-Taylor and current MACPA Board Chair Lexy Kessler, who were among those named the Most Powerful Women in Accounting in 2021, and we paid tribute to Dr. Jan Williams, who is one of 17 University System of Maryland faculty members to be named winners of the 2022 USM Regents’ Faculty Awards.

This video takes a closer look at the work MACPA volunteers have done over the past couple of years.

Most of all, we also celebrated our profession — and the future of our profession in particular. The MACPA Foundation is dedicated to improving the pipeline of new CPAs into the profession, and to increasing the diversity, equity, and inclusion of accounting and finance professionals everywhere. Doing that requires money and resources, and those who gathered for the “Celebrate the Profession” event donated nearly $10,000 to the cause.

It’s not too late for you to do your part, too. Make your donation to the MACPA Foundation — an organization dedicated to ensuring the vitality of the CPA profession in Maryland for years to come — by visiting MACPA.org/Foundation or GiveButter.com/CPACelebrate. Your donation is your commitment to the future of our profession, and we thank you.

Take a closer look at our “Celebrate the Profession” event by scrolling through photos from the memorable event on the MACPA’s Facebook page.