ROSELAND, N.J. – The New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants (NJCPA) is pleased to announce that NJCPA member Patrick Chong, CPA, corporate controller at OceansFirst Bank N.A. of Red Bank, is among 36 CPAs nationwide to be accepted to the American Institute of CPAs’ (AICPA) 2022 Leadership Academy to be held Oct. 23-27.
Chong was selected based on his outstanding leadership qualities, both professionally and in the community. Patrick joined OceansFirst in 2020 and works on all aspects of financial statements including technical accounting research, tax compliance and external reporting. He is also involved in several of OceansFirst’s resource groups and committees. Prior to OceansFirst, Chong was an audit senior manager at KPMG, a national instructor for more than six years and was involved in KPMG’s leadership and recruiting initiatives.
A dedicated member of the NJCPA since 2009, Chong has been actively giving back to the next generation of CPAs. A former NJCPA scholarship recipient, Chong regularly interviews scholarship candidates, reads essays and is a mentor. He also assists the AICPA Legacy Scholarship program and is a member of the New Jersey Bankers Association’s Emerging Financial Leaders Group.
“Patrick is a true leader — in every sense of the word. We could not be prouder, especially since he has dedicated so many hours to helping other students and aspiring CPAs enter the profession,” said Ralph Albert Thomas, CPA (DC), CGMA, CEO and executive director at the NJCPA.
The Leadership Academy, now in its fourteenth year, was designed to strengthen and expand the leadership skills of promising young professionals while they network with a peer group of talented and motivated CPAs. Participants were selected from public accounting firms of all sizes, business and industry, academia and consulting firms. To date, more than 445 CPAs have participated in the AICPA Leadership Academy.
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The New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants, with more than 13,000 members, represents the interests of the accounting profession and advances the financial well-being of the people of New Jersey. The NJCPA plays a leadership role in supporting the profession by providing members with educational resources, access to shared knowledge and a continuing effort to create and expand professional opportunities. Visit njcpa.org.