Accelerating Scholars in Accounting (E2505450)

Benjamin Aspir is a Partner in the Private Client Services Group and a member of the firm’s National Tax Group, with more than 15 years of public accounting experience. His client base includes closely held and family businesses and their owners. Benjamin has experience spanning various industries, including professional services, cannabis and hemp, real estate, and manufacturing and distribution. He also serves high net worth individuals and family offices. Benjamin is one of the firm’s leaders with IRC Section 1202 - Qualified Small Business Stock, advising cannabis clients on IRC Section 280E and the Employee Retention Tax Credit. In addition to tax compliance and advisory services, Benjamin has prior audit and accounting experience that allows him to deliver a unique perspective to clients. Benjamin is a frequent speaker and author on an array of topics, including tax reform, Section 1202 and Section 280E.

Nicole is the director of tax with SKC & Co, CPAs LLC, a Brand Ambassador at UWorld Accounting and has more than 15 years of public accounting experience, specializing in taxation for closely held businesses and individuals. In addition to working with clients in an array of industries, she was also an adjunct professor at Raritan Valley Community College where she taught Tax Accounting for Individuals for four years. Nicole is a member of the NJCPA Board of Trustees and active on several interest groups and committees, including the Content Advisory Board, Federal Taxation Interest Group and Emerging Leaders Interest Group. In 2015, she was awarded “30 Under 30” by the NJCPA. In 2019 she was awarded the “Women to Watch” Ovation Award which applauds the growth and success of female members. Nicole was also named a Forbes Top 200 CPA and was on NJBIZ’s Power 50 List for 2020 and 2021. In Nicole’s spare time, she teaches Zumba Fitness and is active in various charitable organizations, such as St. Jude's and the American Heart Association.

Larissa has over 8 years of experience providing audit and assurance services to clients in the life sciences and healthcare industry and serves companies ranging in size from early-stage emerging growth biotech to multi-national manufacturers. Larissa supports the Tri-State Life Sciences Practice at Deloitte in her role as a Senior Manager and is a CPA in the state of New Jersey. Larissa has been recognized by the New Jersey Society of CPAs as an emerging leader in the accounting profession.

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, 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. AJ worked for a range of associations including Vizient, where she supported members with complex benchmarking needs. She has more than 20 years of global experience with 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 was a member of BKR’s Center of Excellence Advisory Board and is on the boards of the Community Foundation of New Jersey, Together for Youth and Junior Achievement of New Jersey. AJ is a recipient of the New Jersey Business & Industry Association’s (NJBIA) Leonard C. Johnson Award, was recognized among the Top 100 Most Influential People in Accounting by Accounting Today (2023 and 2024), named on the NJBIZ Power 100 (2024) and its Accounting Power 50 lists (#1 2023 and 2024), and cited as a 2023 People to Watch in Finance. She was named to ROI-NJ’s ROI Influencers: Accounting Power List (2024), Top 50 Women in Business (2024) and People of Color (2023). AJ served on the Alumni Board of the University of Chicago (2021-2023). She completed the Senior Management Program in Business Management at University of Chicago/IE School of Business and holds a certificate in Management Accounting for Leaders.

In October 2010, Rutgers University football star, Eric LeGrand, sustained a spinal cord injury at his C3 and C4 vertebrae during a fourth quarter play at MetLife Stadium. While the initial prognosis was grim, Eric demonstrated his titan strength by shattering all expectations for his recovery and rehabilitation. However, recovery was not enough. With close to six million Americans living with some form of paralysis, including 1.3 million spinal cord injuries, Eric harnessed the national spotlight he attracted from his injury to give back to the community and inspire those living with and impacted by paralysis to bELieve. Team LeGrand was launched in September 2013 as a fundraising arm for the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation to carry forward the legacy of the late Christopher Reeve. Since its inception in 2013, Team LeGrand has raised well over two million dollars for the Reeve Foundation. Eric not only carries the torch of Team LeGrand’s mission, he continuously leads by example. During his time as a participant of the Reeve Foundation’s NeuroRecovery Network (NRN), he took part in a rigorous rehabilitation regime, including locomotor training, to re-teach his body how to walk and improve his quality of life. Since beginning therapy, he has regained movement in his shoulders and improvements to his overall health. From becoming an author, sports analyst for ESPN, Sirius, the Big Ten Network and Rutgers radio, to a much sought after motivational speaker, Eric has given a voice to the paralysis community to mobilize support for critical initiatives, policies and cutting-edge research over the past five years. Additionally, he has extended his versatility by becoming a savvy entrepreneur who is involved in a number of different business initiatives. Eric was recognized by Sports Illustrated with “The Best Moment of 2011” and the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance at the ESPY Awards in 2012. Further, he was inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame in 2017, receiving the Warrior Award. He also realized his NFL dream when his college coach and then Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach, Greg Schiano, signed him to a professional contract in 2012. In May 2014, Eric graduated from Rutgers University where he was an honored speaker at the commencement ceremony. When addressing his fellow graduates, he reminded them that “anything is possible,” and the importance of establishing a legacy of giving. Since his injury, Eric has shown the world that obstacles can be transformed into opportunities, and he will continue to drive his mission forward until he delivers on Christopher Reeve’s dream of a world with empty wheelchairs. To Eric, it is not matter of if he walks again, but rather when.

Peter is a global lead instructor at UWorld and previously was a CFA Review lead instructor at Wiley CFA Review, a CPA national instructor at Becker Professional Education and a CFA instructor at the New York Society of Security Analysts and Fitch Learning. Peter has taught CPA and CFA Exam review courses for over twenty years, and videos of him teaching the Level I CFA Program, Level II CFA Program and CPA review classes have been used by more than 300 universities, hundreds of accounting and/or financial services firms and by more than 100,000 successful CFA/CPA candidates from around the world. He has also passed all four parts of the CPA Exam and CFA Levels I and II on his first attempts.

Justin is a Wealth Advisor with nearly 20 years of experience, he provides personalized financial planning to high-net-worth individuals, families, and business owners. He focuses on plans that integrate risk management and long-term retirement objectives, ensuring his clients can achieve financial stability and security. Before joining Prosperity, he served as an Investment Advisor at Bay Colony Advisors, a boutique investment advisory firm, where he provided proactive portfolio management and strategic planning advice to clients.

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.