Accounting Educators Workshop (E2410548)

Steven Budryk, MS, is an accountant at Traphagen & Traphagen LLC. He can be reached at steven@tfgllc.com.

Aiysha (AJ) is the CEO and executive director of the New Jersey Society of CPAs (NJCPA). Previously, she was executive director of BKR International’s Americas Region, where she was responsible for overseeing the implementation of all strategic efforts for BKR accounting and business advisory member firms in the United States, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean. Prior to serving the accounting profession, AJ worked for a range of associations including Vizient, the nation’s largest healthcare performance improvement company, where she supported members with complex benchmarking needs. She has more than 20 years of wide-ranging global experience working for nonprofits and professional and trade associations. AJ was elected to the boards of the Commerce and Industry Association of New Jersey (CIANJ) in 2024 and the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce in 2023. She is a member of BKR’s Center of Excellence Advisory Board and is on the boards of the Community Foundation of New Jersey and the Executive Women of New Jersey. She is a board member of the Berkshire Farm Center & Services for Youth and has been an active member of the University of Chicago’s Alumni Board from 2021-2023. She was named No. 1 on NJBIZ’s Accounting Power 50 list in 2023, an honoree on its list in 2024 and was one of its 2023 People to Watch in Finance. She was also named one of ROI-NJ’s ROI Influencers: People of Color 2023.

Jerry serves as an independent director and the chair of the Audit Committee for the Cohen & Steers Mutual Fund Complex. He is also a board member and Chairs the Audit Committee of inTEST Corporation (INTT; NYSE), a publicly traded technology company. Jerry also serves as the senior advisor for strategy and growth to the CEO and leadership team of Centri Consulting LLC, a professional services firm which specializes in providing financial reporting, internal controls, valuation, technical accounting research and CFO advisory services to clients in a variety of industries. Jerry is also an executive in residence at Rowan University, supporting the accounting program and coaching and mentoring students as they transition from academia to the business world. Previously, Jerry spent 36 years with KPMG where he was an audit partner serving a variety of clients and specializing in emerging growth companies. He led KPMG’s audit practice in Pennsylvania for five years and served as the firm’s Philadelphia Office Managing Partner for the last eight years of his career. He is a member of the NJCPA and serves on its Strategic Planning Committee. He is the author of Advice for a Successful Career in the Accounting Profession: How to Make Your Assets Greatly Exceed Your Liabilities.

Brad is an assurance principal at CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen LLP). He has significant experience in financial reporting, tax compliance and planning for closely held businesses, SEC registrants, nonprofit organizations and strategic business planning, and in industries, such as real estate, construction, architectural and engineering, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. Brad is a member of the AICPA and the NJCPA, and was a former NJCPA president. In addition, Brad has served as an adjunct professor of accounting at William Paterson University and the College of Saint Elizabeth.

Dr. Barry R. Palatnik, Ed.D, CPA, MBA, associate professor of accounting at Stockton University, has been a member of the NJCPA since 2010 and on the board of the Atlantic/Cape May Chapter since 2020. He also serves the NJCPA in a variety of capacities, including his involvement with the Pipeline Advocacy Work Group, Chapter Operations Committee and formerly the Educators Committee.

June is a principal at WilkinGuttenplan and is the president of the NJCPA for the 2024/25 term. She has been a member of the NJCPA since 1995 and has served in a variety of capacities, including the Peer Review Executive Committee, Strategic Planning Committee and Volunteer Relations Committee, and was chair of the NJ-CPA-PAC Board of Trustees, chair of the Committee Operations Committee and vice leader of the Business Valuation, Forensic & Litigation Services Interest Group. She is also an active participant in the Accounting & Auditing Standards and Nonprofit interest groups. Before WilkinGuttenplan, June was the managing member of zbt Certified Public Accounting & Consulting, LLC. She is a former treasurer of Garwood Municipal Library; a recipient of NJCPA’s Volunteer Award in 2018 and its Women to Watch Award in 2019; one of New Jersey Monthly’s Leading Women in 2015 and one of NJBIZ Accounting Power 50 from 2020 to 2022.