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CPA News March/April 2010 In this Issue: WHICH ARE BRAZOS COUNTY’S FASTEST-GROWING PRIVATE COMPANIES? Nominations for the 17th annual Bryan Rotary Club/Newman 10 Business Performance Awards are being accepted now through March 19, 2010. The 10 private small businesses with a five-year sales history and the highest percentage increase in gross sales for the past three years will receive the prestigious awards and be recognized for their achievements and for their significant economic impact on the Brazos Valley community. Anyone can submit nominations – customers, vendors, friends, business associates. Self-nominations are welcomed. Nominated companies will receive an application to submit their gross sales information. Information submitted is confidential and only the percentage of sales growth is published. Nomination forms are available on-line at www.newman10.com, www.bryanrotary.org, www.bcschamber.org or at the B/CS Chamber of Commerce office.Established in 1994 by the Bryan Rotary Club, in cooperation with the Bryan/College Station of Commerce and in partnership with the Mays Business School at Texas A&M University, the awards will be presented at a luncheon June 9, 2010. For more information, please call Rusleen Maurice, 979-846-5232, or e-mail rragsdale@suddenlink.net.Chapter Calendar SAVE THE DATE – CHAPTER ANNUAL MEETING LUNCHEON IS MAY 4 Brazos Valley Chapter TSCPA will celebrate our 35-year anniversary at Pebble Creek Country Club with lunch, and special guests will be our Founding Members and TSCPA Chairman-elect, Jeff Gregg. Mark your calendar now! CHAPTER NEWS Leadership Brazos Class Treated to "Tax Tips" and lunch Brazos Valley CPA Chapter has engaged in various community activities to promote the profession and image of the CPA as a trusted and valued advisor. One such event was held on December 16, 2009. The Chapter sponsored lunch for the 2009-2010 Leadership Brazos class during the class’s monthly meeting at the KAMU-TV studio on the Texas A&M University campus. Leadership Brazos is designed to promote and foster the development of community leaders; this nine-month Leadership program is sponsored by the Bryan-College Station Chamber of Commerce. A Buppy’s lunch of Lasagna, salad, breadsticks, and Italian cream cake was provided to approximately 50 people including the current Leadership Brazos class, Chamber representatives, Leadership Brazos alumni, and KAMU-TV staff. A "2009 Tax Tips" brochure, developed by TSCPA with the assistance of chapter members Dillard Leverkuhn and Lyn Kuciemba, was distributed to everyone present. Lyn Kuciemba and Artie Brieden represented the chapter during the day. Special thanks to the following firms who generously underwrote the luncheon and brochure: Brewer, Eyeington, Patout & Co.; Ingram, Wallis & Co,; Seidel, Schroeder & Co.; Ed Slovacek; Tracy B. Stewart, and Thompson, Derrig & Craig.
Chapter Ads Watch for the Brazos Valley Chapter ads on The Eagle online web site www.theeagle.com and the Brazos Valley Chamber of Commerce monthly newsletter. Thanks to Rodney Horrell and to TSCPA, which helps fund these external relations opportunities.
WELCOME New Members
From AICPA AICPA Exam Team Seeks CPA Nominees for CPA Exam Panel When the new Uniform CPA Examination is launched on January 1, 2011, changes in content, format, and structure will be introduced. These changes will require the current passing score to be re-examined. The process to do so will include convening four panels of CPAs – one for each examination section – to prepare the groundwork for the passing score decision by the AICPA Board of Examiners. A new passing score determination is necessary in conjunction with the new examination to ensure that legally defensible CPA Examination pass/fail decisions continue to be made in protection of the public interest. Panel Nominees The AICPA is seeking nominations for passing score panel membership. Nominees should be CPAs who: • have been licensed for between 3 and 5 years • have supervised entry-level CPAs during the past year • have NO affiliation with CPA Examination review courses, and • are willing to participate in an August 2010 two-day meeting in Chicago, IL at the expense of the AICPA. The selection of panelists from among qualified nominees will be made to ensure broad representation from all segments of the profession and demographic categories. Panelists will be given training at the August meetings on their responsibilities as panel participants. Submitting Nominations Nominations may be submitted online at http://vovici.com/wsb.dll/s/4e5ag3f124 or the forms completed and returned by FAX to 609-671-2922. Or, the names and contact information of nominees may be sent by e-mail to passingscorepanel@aicpa.org. The information collected about nominees will be used only for the purpose of selecting panel participants.The deadline for submitting nominations is MARCH 31, 2010. PLEASE SUBMIT AS MANY NOMINATIONS AS YOU CAN AND URGE YOUR COLLEAGUES TO DO THE SAME. THANK YOU!
FROM TSCPA Make TSCPA.org A Custom Fit New Site Apps Focus on Your Needs and Interests The TSCPA website has been upgraded and is now run by a content management system (CMS) which makes the site much more dynamic, convenient, and efficient to use. The CMS provides every member the capability to highly personalize the TSCPA website and to potentially make it into a powerful professional tool. Please check the TSCPA.org site frequently as more features make their debut. The objective is to make TSCPA.org a valuable part of your membership and provide you a personalized professional resource.Sharblog TSCPA Executive Director and CEO, John Sharbaugh, has created a blog. The Sharblog http://www.thesharblog.com/ will host John’s thoughts and ideas on matters of the profession and TSCPA, along with the occasional, unrelated post about life in general. TSCPA encourages you to visit John’s blog and leave your thoughts and opinions in the comment section. TSCPA would like to continue to communicate with its members in the social media world, and this is another platform we hope will be successful.2010 Financial Fitne$$ Calendars Are Here Please note that there is a limited number of calendars available. Tax Season Interview Contact List As we prepare for tax season, one of TSCPA’s task items is to create a volunteer list of CPAs willing to do newspaper/on-camera media interviews. If you know someone who has the time and would be a great candidate to represent the Society, please contact Kelly Hardwick by e-mailing khardwick@tscpa.net or phoning 800-428-0272 ext. 652 / 972-687-8652. He will contact those recommended and obtain their commitment to participate.Business and Industry Center Keeps You In the Know Are you looking for a way to stay up-to-date with the latest industry news or to keep in contact with other Business & Industry CPAs? If so, TSCPA has the perfect tool for you… The Business and Industry Center under the Resource Center tab on the TSCPA website. There you will find specialized neighborhoods (CFOs, Healthcare, Energy, Non-profit, Education and Government), social networking, member profiles and everything else in between. For more details go to http://www.tscpa.org/resource/businessindustry/.Depression Can Be Helped Sad and tired all the time? Feel the pressures of your job are crushing you? It could be more than the winter blahs; you might be suffering from depression. The TSCPA Accountants Confidential Assistance Network (ACAN) is there for you. Phone 866-766-ACAN. We’re here to help. Financial Literacy The New Year is a great time to bring TSCPA’s free workplace financial literacy program into your office. ValueYourMoney.org helps you educate non-CPA employees on money matters via downloadable materials like newsletter articles, flyers for bulletin boards, table tents for break rooms, and paycheck inserts. Speeches and PowerPoint presentations are also available for employee seminars. Check out the newest resources on budgeting and preparing financially for a disaster at http://www.valueyourmoney.org/.Let a Student Shadow You You can help mold a young person’s career choice! Job Shadowing is an educational activity focused on providing an up-close look at the world of business. It gives students across America the opportunity to "shadow" a workplace mentor through a normal day on the job, letting them see how the skills learned in school relate to the workplace. For students, Job Shadowing can become the link between academics and careers. For employers, it offers both an introduction to the employees of tomorrow and the opportunity to help students explore career options – and to share what it will take to achieve their goals. Members in industry are especially encouraged to participate, not only to benefit their employers, but also to expose students to the wide variety of job responsibilities available to them as CPAs in the world of business. All it takes is a willingness to arrange for a few students to visit your work site so they can see how the real world works. Get all the info you need, and find out how to sign up, at www.jobshadow.org.
JobOpportunities (click on link to go to page) |
