Educators Conference (C69401)

Geoffrey ‘Geof’ Brown, CAE, is president and CEO of the Illinois CPA Society (ICPAS), one of the largest state CPA societies in the nation. Brown also serves as president and CEO of CPAs for the Public Interest and ex-officio board member of the CPA Endowment Fund of Illinois.

A seasoned certified association executive (CAE), Brown has more than 20 years of experience as an association professional. Before joining ICPAS in 2022, he served as CEO of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA), the nation’s leading professional association of fee-only financial advisors, for nine years. Prior to NAPFA, Brown was an account executive with Sentergroup, an association manager at SmithBucklin Corporation, and held multiple positions with North-American Interfraternity Conference.

Brown served as the board chair for Association Forum and is an active member. He is also an active member in the American Society of Association Executives and is a board member for the AIDS Foundation of Chicago and the Association of Fraternal Leadership & Values. Brown earned his bachelor’s degree in government and politics from the University of Maryland.

Dr. Ann C. Dzuranin is the KPMG Endowed Professor of Accountancy at Northern Illinois University. She holds a B.S. from Fairleigh Dickinson University, an MBA from New York University, and a Ph.D. from the University of South Florida. A CPA (NJ) with 15 years of public and corporate accounting experience, Ann specializes in behavioral research on management accounting decision-making and accounting information systems.

Her work has been published in Issues in Accounting Education, Journal of Information Systems, Journal of Business Ethics, Strategic Finance, Management Accounting Quarterly, and more. She received the 2018 American Accounting Association’s Innovation in Accounting Education Award for her contributions to data analytics curriculum development. A sought-after speaker, she has presented to over 3,000 professionals and shared materials with 75+ universities. Coauthor of Data and Analytics in Accounting: An Integrated Approach, she has also served key AICPA committees, shaping CPA exam content and evolution.

Dr. Wendy Tietz, CPA, CMA, CSCA, CGMA, CITP, is an accounting professor at Kent State University in Ohio. She teaches introductory financial and managerial accounting in a variety of formats. She also teaches advanced management accounting and advanced accounting analytics and technology. Dr. Tietz has received several national teaching awards and is the co-author of three introductory accounting textbooks. She is passionate about teaching accounting and using educational technology to enhance student engagement. Dr. Tietz regularly presents at conferences throughout North America on various topics including AI, data analytics, and engagement strategies.

Margaret Tower is a senior instructor in the School of Accountancy & Management Information Systems, and the Director of the Office of Student Success at DePaul University in Chicago. She teaches introductory, intermediate, and graduate level accounting courses. 

Margaret wrote and teaches the school’s Career Management course which she developed with the university’s career center and Campus Recruiting Professionals from the world's largest public accounting firms.  As the Director of the Student Success office, she oversees programs that provide students professional engagement opportunities, including mentoring, Executive in Residence, and job shadowing. Through her network Margaret has developed a mentoring program for accounting students that includes 250+ accounting and finance professionals who serve as mentors for DePaul accounting students.

She received her undergraduate degree from Loyola University, an MBA from DePaul University, and is a licensed CPA.

Prior to teaching, Margaret was a senior manager at Arthur Andersen for 10 years. From there she became the controller and chief financial officer for a Chicago-area manufacturing company for 10 years.

Margaret is an active volunteer, particularly for organizations that have a mission to provide education and support to children in need of care. She and her husband were the 2012 Recipients of the Paul Buckholtz Award, given by Shelter Inc. for outstanding commitment to programs benefitting abused and neglected children. Margaret is the past board president of Valley Lo Club, past chair of Loyola Academy Ramble, board member at Guerin Prep High School, and Our Lady of Perpetual Help Finance Council. She is DePaul's faculty representative for Junior Achievement, each year involving DePaul students in service to this organization to promote the value of obtaining an education and understanding business.

Dr. Joseph C. Ugrin, PhD, CPA, is the RSM Chair of Accounting and Head of the Department of Accounting at the University of Northern Iowa (UNI). Under his leadership, UNI’s Department of Accounting earned AACSB accreditation, won the 2024 KPMG Innovation in Accounting Education Award for its hybrid satellite program, UNI@DMACC, and was ranked #1 in the U.S. for preparing students for CPA exam success in 2024. The department offers a faculty-led CPA review program and became STEM-designated in 2020.