Hot Topics: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Accounting Profession (Replay) (E2003124)

Ayodola Anise, MHS, is a leader and public health professional with over 15 years of experience advancing health and healthcare equity. Her own experiences with discrimination have led her to develop and share strategies to address bias and improve equity not just in healthcare, but also in the workplace.

Ayodola is the founder and Chief Colorer at "Coloring in White Space," an organization focused on coaching and supporting women and women of color to ensure that they have the tools and strategies needed to combat bias and advance professionally in the workplace. A skilled speaker and facilitator, she provides concrete information to various groups about unconscious bias, and identifies personal-, professional- and organizational-level strategies to improve equity. Ayodola believes that by adding more color to our perspectives, we can create masterpieces, and she weaves in her talent of jewelry design and knowledge of semi-precious gemstones to tell the story of how each of us has the power to change the spaces we are in.

Ayodola has a BA in English writing, with minors in chemistry and biology, and a MHS from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Department of Population and Family Health Sciences.

Dr. McDowell joined the Rider University in 2005 with extensive experience in public accounting. A CPA since 1987, she teaches the introductory financial accounting and managerial accounting courses. Her research interests are in the relevance of accounting information and decision making, in tax policy and in taxpayer behavior. McDowell is a recipient of the KPMG Doctoral Scholarship, and researches primarily in the areas of the effects of tax policy on decision making. Her work has appeared in publications including Accounting Horizons, Journal of Finance and Accountancy, the American Journal of Business Education and Research in Accounting Regulation. She is a frequent participant at meetings of the American Accounting Association, of which she is a member. She is also a member of the American Institute of CPAs, New Jersey Society of CPAs, Institute of Internal Auditors, Institute of Management Accountants, and the Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action. Ms. McDowell earned her bachelor’s in business administration from Baldwin-Wallace College, her master’s in accountancy from Case Western University, and her doctor of philosophy from Case Western Reserve University.

Ralph is the CEO and executive director of the NJCPA - a post held since 1999. He was appointed by New Jersey Senate President Sweeney to the New Jersey Economic and Fiscal Policy Working Group in 2018. He was also previously appointed to the AICPA Foundation Board and the inaugural AICPA National Commission on Diversity and Inclusion. Ralph is a lifetime member and former national and chapter president of the National Association of Black Accountants (NABA), was appointed chair of the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy’s (NASBA) State Society Relations Committee, and is a member of the accounting advisory boards of Lehigh, Rutgers, Seton Hall, Montclair State, Felician, Thomas Edison universities and Middlesex County College. He is also the treasurer of Opportunity NJ. Additionally, he was selected for the last seven years by Accounting Today as one of the “Top 100 Most Influential People in Accounting.” Prior to joining NJCPA, he held various accounting-related management positions at Citibank, AT&T, Potomac Electric Power Company and PricewaterhouseCoopers.