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The Ohio Council of the Institute of Management Accountants will host its 40th annual Meonske Accounting Professional Development Conference and Seminar on April 24-25 at �鶹����.

“This conference is recognized as one of the top five accounting conferences in the country,” said Norman Meonske, Ph.D., professor emeritus of accounting at Kent State’s College of Business Administration and a national online instructor for the Becker CPA Review Course. Meonske, conference namesake, said, “We are going to have two days packed full of high-quality practical training for members of the accounting and financial community. We encourage registrants to take advantage of the early and group discounts because we expect a sellout of 600 people.”

The conference chairman is Nicholas Sucic, vice president and controller for the Davey Tree Expert Company in Kent, Ohio.

The Friday morning financial reporting panel features Dennis R. Beresford, executive in residence, J.M. Tull of Accounting, University of Georgia; Leslie F. Seidman, executive director, Center for Excellence in Financial Reporting, Pace University’s Lubin School of Business and former chairman, Financial Accounting Standards Board; Jay D. Hanson, board member, Public Company Accounting Oversite Board; James L. Kroeker, vice chairman, Financial Accounting Standards Board; and Daniel Murdock, deputy chief accountant, Security and Exchange Commission’s Office of the Chief Accountant.

The keynote luncheon address “Achieving New Heights in Your Life” will be presented by Todd Huston, author, adventurer, world-record holder, inspirational speaker and inventor.

The first Friday afternoon session is “Quality Financial Reporting” by Accounting Today magazine’s “Paul & Paul” featuring Paul B.W. Miller, Ph.D., professor of accounting, University of Colorado, and Paul R. Bahnson, Ph.D., professor of accounting, Boise State University. The second afternoon session is “Accountants and Technology; Converging Trends + Technology = Opportunity” by Donald R. Tomoff, founder, Invenio Advisors, LLC.

The Thursday seminar morning session includes a “COSO 2013 Internal Controls” panel featuring Robert B. Hirth Jr., chair, Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) and senior managing director, Protiviti; Stephen E. Soske, partner, National Professional Services Group, PricewaterhouseCoopers; Jeffrey C. Thomson, president and CEO, Institute of Management Accountants; and Timothy F. Gearty, partner, Gearty & McIntyre, LLP, and national director and editor in chief, Becker’s CPA Exam Review.

The two concurrent Thursday afternoon tracks include “Conflict Management: Using Conflict to Your Advantage” by Gearty. Also included in Track 1 is “The Speed of Trust and Personal Leadership” by Gabe Zubizarreta, founding principal, Silicon Valley Accountants. Track 2 includes “SEC Enforcement” by Robert Burson, senior associate regional director – Chicago Office, Securities and Exchange Commission, and “Ohio Professional Standards and Ethics” presented by Meonske.

Attendees for both days will earn 16 hours of Continuing Professional Education (CPE) credits. Friday attendees will receive a free deluxe executive computer/iPad backpack and the opportunity to win a new Apple iPad3.

Register prior to April 18 to avoid late registration charges. For more information or to register, contact the �鶹���� Special Events and Conference services office at 330-672-3161 or go to .

For more information about Kent State’s Department of Accounting, visit www.kent.edu/business/accounting.

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Media Contacts:

Norman Meonske, nmeonske@kent.edu, 330-554-7211
Emily Vincent, evincen2@kent.edu, 330-672-8595