FICPA leadership consists of the Board of Directors, Council, and Chapter leaders.
The Board of Directors includes the FICPA chair, chair-elect, nine directors, the Chair of the FICPA's Young CPAs Committee (non-voting) and the FICPA's President & CEO, who serves as the Secretary-Treasurer (also, non-voting).
Together, the Board implements the Council’s policies and oversees the Institute’s activities. Each officer, with the exception of the CEO, serves a two-year term that runs from July 1 to June 30.
Chair
Julian Dozier, CPA, ABV, CFF, CFE
Julian Dozier is the 2022-23 chair of the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
“The FICPA has positively impacted every stage of my career, and I appreciate my fellow volunteers for entrusting me with this role,” said Dozier, a shareholder at Thomas Howell Ferguson P.A. CPAs and the director of the firm’s assurance services department. “The FICPA exists to protect the value of the CPA license, promote the accounting profession, educate and enrich its members, and innovate through forward-thinking leadership.
“This is an exciting moment for our profession. As CPAs, we can each design our career to suit our own goals and values; we offer incredible opportunities for students and the newly licensed; and together we ensure CPAs thrive as we power the success of Florida businesses and the communities we serve.”
Dozier joined the FICPA in 2006, started volunteering with the Accounting Principles and Auditing Standards Committee in 2010, and has been a member of its Council since 2016. He is a member of the AICPA’s Council and a graduate of its Leadership Academy. An active member of his local community, Dozier is the Immediate Past Chair of Leadership Tallahassee and has served in leadership roles with the Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra, Greater Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce, and LeMoyne Center for the Visual Arts, among others. He was named to CPA Practice Advisor’s “40 Under 40” in 2021 and received the AICPA’s “Standing Ovation” recognition in 2016. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting from Florida State University.
Chair-Elect
Key G. O'Keefe, CPA
Key O'Keefe is a partner with O’Keefe, Somerville & Associates PLLC. She provides tax and accounting services to small businesses, individuals, and estates and trusts.
An Alabama native, Key and her family settled in Melbourne when her husband retired after 30 years of service in the Coast Guard.
Since returning to Florida she’s been active with the FICPA serving the local chapter, on several state committees, state task force and on Council and Board.
A passion for financial literacy education has led to over 20 years volunteering coast to coast with Junior Achievement and continues with Junior Achievement of the Space Coast where she serves on the board and is a frequent volunteer in the classroom.
She considers her greatest accomplishment her two beautiful children, Daniel and Aime, both of whom she claims are pretty much perfect except neither visits often enough.
Directors
Hector Aguililla, CPA
Hector E. Aguililla provides auditing and accounting services, due diligence, litigation support services and business consulting services at Berkowitz Pollack Brant.
He works with clients across a wide variety of industries including real estate, construction, hospitality, professional services, manufacturing and distribution, retail, and employee benefit plans. With over 20 years in the industry, he consistently helps clients achieve their business goals.
He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants (FICPA). In addition, he is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants and a member of the Board of Directors of the Latin Builders Association. He is a Past President of the Cuban American CPA Association (CACPA) and past Chair of the Miami-Downtown Chapter of the FICPA.
Mr. Aguililla is a graduate of Florida International University with a bachelor's in accounting and a minor in International Relations. He also holds a master's in Accounting from Florida International University.
Valrie Chambers, Ph.D., CPA
Dr. Valrie Chambers is a past chair of the M.E. Rinker, Sr. Institute of Tax and Accountancy and an Associate Professor of Accounting at Stetson University in Deland.
Prior to receiving a Ph.D. concentrating in taxation in 2000, she had over a decade of public accounting experience as owner/partner-in-charge of a CPA firm in Houston that had a concentration in accounting issues for small business owners.
Dr. Chambers has published articles in such journals as the Journal of Business Ethics, Journal of State Taxation, Strategic Finance, Journal of Accountancy, Tax Notes and Tax Adviser. She has served on the American Taxation Association’s Family Tax Policy sub-committee, been cited by the National Taxpayer Advocate in her 2004 Annual Report to Congress, developed continuing education courses for accounting professionals and coordinated an extra-curricular simulation set with the Internal Revenue Service for students interested in careers curbing financial crimes.
She has also volunteered in several capacities for the American Institute of CPAs and other not-for-profit boards.
Ed Duarte, CPA, CGMA
Ed Duarte is the Chief Financial Officer of Foreign Parts Distributors, Inc. (FPD), a worldwide leader in the automotive aftermarket industry.
Prior to joining FPD in 2015, Ed served in various leadership roles at national and regional public accounting firms in New York, Puerto Rico and Miami covering a full range of professional services including audit, accounting, financial reporting and consulting.
Ed received his Bachelor of Arts in Accounting & Finance from Florida International University and is a licensed Certified Public Accountant in Florida and New York.
Ed has served the FICPA in various roles since 2006. He currently serves on the AICPA Council. Additionally, under the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Ed serves as a member of the Clay Ford Scholarship Committee. Ed has previously served as President of the Cuban American CPA Association and Foundation.
Ed is a founding member of the executive board of directors with the Live Like Bella™ Foundation and works passionately with the team to meet their mission and vision statements to help find a cure for pediatric cancer. Ed has graciously served as a volunteer in numerous worthy charitable organizations in the community.
Ed is married to his beloved wife Miriam. They have three children and reside in Boca Raton, FL.
Jennifer Gunter, CPA, CISA, CISSP
Jennifer Gunter joined the Florida Department of Transportation’s Office of Comptroller in 2015, where she oversees Contracts, Grants, and Funds Management activities.
A public servant with over 26 years in state government, Jennifer spent her first 19 years at the Florida Office of the Auditor General, where she served in Quality Control and Information Technology Audit roles.
Her professional activities with the FICPA include service on the FICPA Board, Council, Finance and Office Advisory Board, and Compensation Committee. She is Past President of her local FICPA chapter.
She has served on the Florida State University (FSU) Professional Advisory Board for the School of Accounting, the Florida Department of Education Accounting Curriculum Development Advisory Committee, the National State Auditors Association’s (NSAA) Peer Review Committee, and has conducted NSAA Peer Reviews in California, Utah, New York, and Georgia. She has presented at the FSU Accounting Conference, National Association of State Auditors, Comptrollers, and Treasurers’ (NASACT) Conference, and for a number of other audit related organizations.
She earned her CPA designation in 1997, Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) designation in 1999, and Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) designation in 2010.
She is married to Bart Gunter and has three bonus daughters: Claudia, Hannah, and Dorey. In her free time, Jennifer enjoys traveling, spending time with family and friends, and singing. She is a graduate of Florida State University, but during football season can be found in the stands surrounding Steve Spurrier Field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium cheering for the Gators!
Kathryn K. Horton, CPA, CMA, CIDA, CFE
Kathryn Horton is President of Kathryn K. Horton CPA PA based in Coral Springs, Florida.
Kathryn is a nationally recognized leader in data analytics and performs audits and reviews of private companies and not-for-profit organizations.
Kathryn was recognized as a 2021, 2020 and 2019 National 40 Under 40 Honoree by CPA Practice Advisor, and has served on the FICPA Board of Directors since 2020. Kathryn is also a Florida delegate on the AICPA Governing Council.
Kathryn started her involvement with the FICPA through the CPA Day of Service and as a 2018 graduate of the Emerging Leaders Program, subsequently becoming a speaker at various conferences on data analytics, including the Florida CPA Summit, MEGA Conference and Florida University Conferences. Kathryn served as Chair of the Young CPA Committee in 2020 and has been an FICPA Council member since 2020. Kathryn has also served on the State and Legislative Policy Committee, Women in Leadership Committee and Technology Committee. Kathryn was awarded the 2020 Emerging Leader Woman to Watch by the FICPA, and graduated both the 2020 Florida TaxWatch Citizenship Institute and the 2021 AICPA Leadership Academy. Kathryn also presents data analytics to accounting students each semester at local universities, and participates in the FICPA’s Hike the Hill in Tallahassee on an annual basis.
Kathryn is an active member of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Chamber of Commerce and the Attorney and Accounting Networking Group of Florida. She also volunteers with the Salvation Army, Kayla Cares 4 Kids and Project Downtown Fort Lauderdale.
Jennifer Keller, CPA
Jennifer Keller is a senior tax manager at Crowe, LLP.
Based in Tampa, she is a leader in Crowe’s National Retail Dealer services group, which interacts with more than 12,000 dealerships in the US and provides specialized audit, tax, advisory and consulting services that dealers require.
Jennifer has over nine years of public accounting experience, providing federal tax compliance and consulting to large multi-point dealership groups.
As an active member of the FICPA she has completed the Emerging Leaders Program, served as a regional advisor for the program, served on the Women in Leadership committee and participated as a speaker at the scholarship nights, served as the West Coast Chapter Chair and Chair of the Young CPA committee. She has recently been appointed to the FICPA Board of Directors and Board of Trustees for the FICPA Scholarship Foundation. She was the recipient of the 2021 Horizon Awards, which recognizes the brightest young CPAs at the forefront of the accounting profession.
She is an active member in her community, volunteering with various not-for-profit organizations. She has a passion about giving back and helping young accountants become CPAs and leaders in the profession.
Mindy Rankin, CPA, CCD
Mindy Rankin, CPA, is a member of Warren Averett, LLC.
She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics with a minor Information Systems from Troy University in Troy, AL, where she played Division I softball.
She went on to earn a Master of Accountancy with a Concentration in Taxation from the University of West Florida. Her primary practice area is in the construction industry, as she provides reviews, compilations, and assistance to contractors on percentage completion accounting as they obtain bonding for projects. She spends the rest of her time preparing tax returns for individuals and small businesses.
She was appointed by Governor Rick Scott to serve on the Florida Board of Accountancy (2016-2020), served on the FICPA Board of Directors and Council, YCPA committee, Membership committee, and was a Chapter officer for the Miracle Strip Chapter having served as President, President-Elect, and Treasurer. In the local community, she served on the Board of Directors of Girls, Inc. of Bay County for six years, currently is Treasurer of the Panama City Chapter of Troy Alumni, and is on the Board of Directors of Tyndall Federal Credit Union.
Rankin was named by CPA Technology Magazine to the list of Top Forty CPA’s Under Forty in 2009.
She and her husband, Eric, reside in Panama City, FL with their three Siberian huskies (Tebow Joe, Rally Joe, and Rocket Joe).
Brion Sharpe, CPA
Brion serves as a Director in the Trust Solutions practice of PwC in the Central Florida area.
He is an alumnus of the University of Florida where he earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting and continues to support the Fisher School of Accounting.
Brion is excited to serve in his second term on the Board and has enjoyed supporting the leadership efforts of both Past Chair Bivona and Chair Dozier as well as President & CEO Weir since she joined the association.
The outreach and advocacy efforts of the FICPA have been unparalleled and we look forward to continuing those efforts to connect with our members and protect and enhance the value of their license.
This will be especially important with the upcoming changes to the CPA exam along with the increasing number of young CPAs which are vital to our success.
Cheri Swain, CPA
Cheri Swain is a Partner with Carr, Riggs & Ingram, LLC (CRI). She has been providing accounting and auditing (A&A), internal controls, and business consulting services at CRI since 2004. She has worked with clients from a variety of industries with a concentration on nonprofits, educational institutions, and real estate entities. Her background includes extensive experience with information technology audits and assurance, including performing service organization control 1 reports, assessing and testing IT controls as part of the financial audit, and utilizing computer assisted auditing techniques tools.
Cheri is passionate about giving back to the profession and helping develop future professionals. She serves on both FICPA Council and AICPA Council and often facilitates both leadership and technical courses. In 2013 and 2015, she was honored by the FICPA as one of Florida’s Top 26 CPAs Under 36.
Throughout her career, Cheri has been an active member of the FICPA. She has served on the Central Florida Chapter, chaired the Young CPA committee, chaired the audit committee, served six years on Council, and is now serving her first term on the Board of Directors.
Cheri completed her Bachelor in Accounting from University of Central Florida (UCF) in 2003 and her Master of Business Administration from UCF in 2007. Cheri also serves as a board member/treasurer of Girls on the Run Central Florida, is mom to two active children, and is an avid UCF football fan.
Alex Welsh, CPA, CISA, CTIP (Young CPAs Committee Chair; non-voting advisory member)
Alex Welsh, CPA, CISA is an Associate Manager at A-LIGN.
She is focused on ISO 27001, HIPAA, and SOC cybersecurity audits and is based out of Boca Raton, Florida.
She is looking forward to an exciting year as Chair of the Young CPAs Committee and hopes to continue the momentum from last year.
Her involvement with the FICPA includes successfully completing their Emerging Leader program and involved as a Region Leader for the Emerging Leader Program.
Alex is passionate about giving back and does so with the Salvation Army, Junior Achievement, and Junior League of Boca Raton.
She graduated from Florida State University with a bachelor’s degree of science in Accounting and Finance.