On July 31, the AICPA selected James C. Metzler, CPA, a nationally recognized consultant to small firms and previously a partner of a local Buffalo, New York, firm for 24 years, to fill the newly created position of vice-president for small firm interests. Metzler, who is a long-term member volunteer, will oversee the AICPA’s firm practice management initiatives—which include partnering for CPA practice success (PCPS) and management of an accounting practice (MAP)—and act as a liaison between the Institute and small firms, helping them find more effective ways of delivering the high-quality services their clients need.

“I couldn’t be happier that Jim’s joined our team,” said Barry C. Melancon, AICPA president and CEO. “Over the past 18 months, it’s become increasingly clear to members, financial statement users and the business world how vast the differences are—in clientele and services—between small firms and their larger, more visible counterparts serving public companies.” One of the Institute’s top priorities is protecting firms that do not audit SEC-registered entities from laws and regulations created to govern the actions of those that do.

Melancon added that at meetings of state societies and other local practitioners’ groups, Metzler will be soliciting from members their wishes and concerns about various issues, including the potential for regulatory excess, and conveying them to the AICPA board of directors and the strategic planning committee. “Now that Jim has arrived,” he said, “the small firm perspective will be even better represented when the Institute formulates positions on rules and legislation and plans its various activities.”

The Institute promoted Janice Maiman in July to the recently established position of vice-president for strategic/member communications. She will be responsible for ensuring that member, state society, executive and internal communications satisfy the members’ need for timely, clear and meaningful information on important issues. Maiman began her career at the Institute in 1988, becoming a director in public relations/communications in 1995.

The AICPA bestowed its 2003 Special Recognition Award on Sidney Kess, CPA, an accounting educator and former partner of KPMG LLP for his contributions to the betterment of continuing professional education. Over the course of a 40-year career, he lectured before more than 700,000 practitioners and others and wrote or cowrote 25 books on tax-related subjects. Working with the AICPA, Kess edited several professional newsletters, developed a series of CPE video courses and created—and also continues to moderate—the Institute’s annual conference on tax strategies for high-income individuals. The award recognizes members who have contributed to the success of a particular AICPA project or initiative that benefits the profession

Of the 59,000 candidates who sat for the two-day CPA exam in November 2002, Melinda DeCorte, left, of Arlington, Virginia, earned the highest combined score on all four sections, winning the Elijah Watts Sells gold medal. The other Sells awards went to Yu Duan of Beijing, People’s Republic of China, who placed second, winning a silver medal, and Ajit V.L. Sequeira of Bombay, India, who received the third-place bronze medal.