2025 Higher Education Accounting Forum (Recordings)

Terri Albertson is the vice president for finance and administration at Ursinus College. She was previously with Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and Haverford College. She has spent over 25 years in public accounting at national firms with an industry focus on colleges and universities, healthcare entities, and not-for-profit organizations. She is the current chair of NACUBO's accounting principles council and is a graduate of NACUBO's Fellows program. She is a member of the board of trustees of Salus University and is on the audit and compliance committee and the finance committee.

Since first joining RPI in 2010 as the Associate Director for Contract Administration, Rachael has managed the Institute's contract review and negotiation process in its Procurement Services Department in conjunction with the Office of the General Counsel.  She currently serves as the Institute’s Chief Procurement Officer and provides vision, leadership and support on all matters related to RPI’s comprehensive and coordinated strategic procurement program.  

In addition to her role as Director, Rachael is as a member of the Institute’s Conflict of Interest Committee and its Emergency Operations Group.  She has been actively involved with the E&I Cooperative Services’ Strategic Advisory Board, the National Association of College and University Attorneys (NACUA), and is a past president of the Rensselaer County Bar Association.  Rachael recently served on the Rensselaer County Regional Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors and was the Chair of the Chamber’s Leadership Institute Class of 2024.

Rachael received her Juris Doctor from Albany Law School and her Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology/Criminal Justice from Fordham University in the Bronx.  A Troy, New York native, Rachael currently resides in Troy with her husband, Vincent, and sons Dominic (7) and Micah (4).  

As the Associate Vice President and Systemwide Controller for the University of California, Barbara is responsible for the development and implementation of accounting and financial policies for the University and its ten campuses, six academic health centers, the UC Retirement System, the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and ten campus foundations. She oversees accounting and financial reporting, tax services, costing policy and analysis, financial systems and payroll compliance, as well as a new operational excellence unit. Barbara provides system-wide campus support from a business, financial, and regulatory perspective for all major business transactions of the University.

Barbara brings to UC more than 20 years of finance experience in higher education. She comes to UC from the University of Massachusetts, where she was the Assistant Vice President and University Controller. She has also held leadership roles at KPMG, Harvard Medical School and PwC.
 
Barbara holds a BA from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and an MBA and Master’s Degree in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University; she is a CPA and a member of the AICPA. She serves on the NACUBO Accounting Principles Council.

Lori Ciccone is the Executive Director for Sponsored Programs at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). In this role, she works closely with faculty and students to secure grants and increase research, particularly in STEM fields and college access programs. 

Lori earned her BA in Communication Studies from UNLV and is passionate about supporting research efforts within the university. Outside of her professional role, Lori enjoys scrapbooking, reading, and taking family vacations. She is married to Symaron, and they have two sons, Christopher and Andrew.

Chris has more than 15 years of experience providing auditing, accounting, and consulting services for nonprofit and higher education clients. He has worked extensively with a variety of nonprofit clients, including social service organizations, foundations, museums, sport and membership associations, and colleges and universities. Chris has significant experience performing audits in accordance with Uniform Guidance and has led many consulting projects in both the nonprofit and governmental industries. Chris is a member of the AICPA's Not-for-Profit Expert Panel.

Henry Friedman is a Professor of Accounting at the UCLA Anderson School of Management. His research encompasses how information is produced and utilized within firms and capital markets, addressing topics such as corporate governance, regulation, disclosure, lobbying, investor preferences for environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria, audit quality, executive compensation, entrepreneurship, and common ownership.  

Professor Friedman teaches core financial accounting and co-teaches an elective on sustainability and ESG. He has previously taught at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).  

He earned his Ph.D. in Accounting from the University of Pennsylvania in 2012, and currently serves as an editor for the Review of Accounting Studies and the Journal of Financial Reporting, and sits on the editorial board of The Accounting Review.

Dave is an audit partner in KPMG’s Boston Office who serves as the U.S. Sector Leader, Higher Education & Other Not-for-Profits. He has over 30 years of experience serving not-for-profits, including private and public higher education institutions, as well as public and private companies and is a specialist in applicable FASB and GASB standards, federal regulations governing grant compliance, and internal controls.

In addition to performing financial statement and internal control audits, Dave’s experience includes: serving as a Firm-designed Certified Uniform Guidance Concurring Review Partner; assisting clients in public and private debt and equity offerings, as well as mergers, acquisitions, and real estate-related transactions; and sharing leading practices on governance and the audit committee agenda. He also authors, co-authors, or contributes to various industry publications and is a frequent presenter at industry-related conferences and training.

Jodi Kessler is the Director of Tax and Global Operations at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She leads the Tax and Global Operations teams to manage the Institute’s tax advisory, planning, compliance and reporting needs in the U.S. and internationally. 

Before working for MIT, Ms. Kessler was the Tax Manager at Harvard University and The Ohio State University. She has her law degree and an LL.M. in Taxation. Her focus areas have included tax compliance, investment and real estate related tax issues, tax analysis for major transactions, analyzing international tax and employment obligations for remote employees, and global operations reporting requirements. She also maintains a private practice client base for individual tax advice and preparation services.

Joel Levenson is assistant vice president for tax, payables, and procurement at the University of Central Florida. He served as chair of the NACUBO Tax Council, member of the Inter-Institutional Committee on Finance and Accounting Officers (ICOFA), Tax Sub-Committee, and the University Tax Peer Group. He is also a former member and co-chair of the Internal Revenue Service Advisory Committee (IRSAC), a four-year appointment.

Sadie is a Principal at Plante Moran with almost 17 years of experience serving higher education clients. As a Grants Compliance Industry Technical Leader at the firm, she oversees the development of firm guidance and internal trainings and leads the firm's Single Audit engagement quality review process. Sadie is also a member of the AICPA's Governmental Audit Quality Center Executive Committee.

Jeff Mechanick is senior project advisor, not-for-profit organizations at the FASB. In this role, he provides organization-wide technical and strategic advice on all standard-setting activities affecting the not-for-profit sector, guides and facilitates stakeholder outreach with the sector, chairs the FASB’s Not-for-Profit Advisory Committee, and participates in some of the FASB’s broader educational activities. 

Prior to joining the FASB staff in 2006, Mechanick spent 20 years working in and with the not-for-profit sector, as the CFO of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., and before that, as a Senior Manager with KPMG, LLP, in the firm’s New York office. Mechanick received his MBA from Rutgers University and his AB from the University of Chicago.  He is also an adjunct instructor in Columbia University’s MS program in Nonprofit Management.

Lindsey Oakley has worked in the government, non-profit and education industry for more than 18 years. 

Lindsey is a member of Forvis Mazars National Nonprofit, Education, & Public Sector Group and serves in Forvis Mazars professional standards group, where she provides technical support to Forvis Mazars auditors, implements new professional standards, and performs concurring reviews on engagements. She also serves as Forvis Mazars firmwide national financial reporting partner for nonprofit, education and public sector industry.

Lindsey is a member of the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) and Missouri Society of CPAs. She is the chair of the Executive Committee of the AICPA Governmental Audit Quality Center. She also serves on the Comptroller General’s Advisory Council on Government Auditing Standards.

Marissa Pace is a solutions enabler that enthusiastically serves as the Associate Vice President for Financial Planning and Analysis at Emory University. In her role, Pace has responsibility for the overall budgeting and planning process, providing routine and timely financial reporting and analysis across all funds and activities and fostering a culture of responsible fiscal management, accountability, and stewardship of resources.

Previously, Marissa was Associate Vice President for Business and Financial Affairs at Spelman College where she led the College’s financial operations, including reporting, budgeting, taxes, and capital planning. She oversaw significant growth in college-wide finance functions and partnered across campus to manage risk, drive strategic initiatives, and support strong fiscal management.

Before joining Spelman College, Marissa had over 15 years of progressive experience in financial analysis, business modeling, and process improvement with leading Fortune 500 companies, including KPMG, LLP, The Coca-Cola Company, and AT&T. In addition to her professional experience, Marissa has taught as an associate and adjunct professor for local colleges. She combines her financial and analytical background with a strong desire to serve her community.

Marissa is a licensed CPA and certified fraud examiner. Pace holds a Doctor of Education (EdD) in Higher Education Management from the University of Georgia, along with a Master and Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Florida A&M University. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling abroad to build cultural bridges of friendship and community.

Tracy Paglia has practiced public accounting since 1997 and is a partner at Moss Adams. Paglia is a tax and consulting team member on public charity, private foundation, university, association, and health care clients throughout the firm. Paglia is an integral part of the training programs both internally to Moss Adams and externally to groups such as the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), NACUBO, TEGE Exempt Organization Council, and the Higher Ed Tax Institute. She leads the firm’s tax committee for Not-for-Profit and Government Practices and is a member of the AICPA’s Technical Resource Panel.

Kelli Perry joined the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute as the association vice president for finance and controller in September 2010. She serves as a key member of the senior finance team and is responsible for providing overall leadership for accounting services, financial reporting, disbursements, e-business (including travel management), systems, enterprise risk management, and operations. She has served in leadership roles in finance, administration, and student financial services. She brings a wide array of experience to her position, as she has had broader responsibility beyond finance, serving as the architect of a student financial services office, worked closely with information technology to implement a range of technology-based process improvements, supervised a budget office, human resources, and business services. She has also served in an acting vice president’s role, which has allowed her to interact with college leadership and serve on a president’s cabinet. Before focusing her efforts in higher education, she worked as an auditor for KPMG. Perry co-led the reengineering of Rensselaer’s procurement process utilizing e-commerce to improve customer service and achieve cost savings. She was also the lead on the travel management implementation that has significantly increased process efficiency and mitigated risk at Rensselaer. She is currently the chair of the enterprise risk management and student employment initiatives at Rensselaer and works closely with the outsourced internal audit function facilitating the relationship with campus.

Brian Rosenberg is currently visiting professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. From 2003 until 2020, he served as the 16th President of Macalester College. He is the author of Whatever It Is, I’m Against It: Resistance to Change in Higher Education, published in 2023 by Harvard Education Press. His articles on higher education appear regularly in The Chronicle of Higher Education and have also appeared in publications including The New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Los Angeles Times. He serves as senior advisor and director at the African Leadership University and as a member of the board of the Teagle Foundation. 

Rosenberg received his B.A. from Cornell University and his Ph.D. in English from Columbia University. Prior to arriving at Macalester, he served as dean of the faculty at Lawrence University and as professor and chair of the English Department at Allegheny College. He is the author of two books and many articles on Victorian literature.

Michelle Savage manages the education, marketing, communications and outreach efforts of XBRL US, a nonprofit data standards consortium. Michelle joined XBRL US from PR Newswire where she developed services to help companies communicate key messages and information to shareholders and potential investors. During her tenure at PR Newswire, Michelle oversaw the introduction and sales of new services to corporate and agency investor relations executives. Within the XBRL US committee of the AICPA, she served as the vice chair of the Steering Committee and Chair of the Adoption Working Group. Michelle has been intimately involved in developing strategies for XBRL adoption in the US. 

Previously, she held positions as an equity analyst at Shearson Lehman Hutton and a marketing executive at Pepsi Cola. Michelle served on the Board of the New York chapter of the National Investor Relations Institute. 

She has a B.S. in Economics is from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and M.B.A. from the Stern School of Business at New York University. A former New Yorker, Michelle now lives in the California Bay Area.

Alan Skelton is director of research and technical activities of the GASB. Immediately prior to joining the GASB, Skelton was the state accounting  officer for the state of Georgia where he provided oversight of statewide financial reporting, issued accounting policy and application interpretations of generally accepted accounting principles, and implemented business process improvements. He served as deputy state accounting officer from 2009 to 2012. Previously, Skelton had more than a decade of experience in public accounting, primarily with Ernst & Young.

Skelton served on the GASB’s advisory council from 2015 to 2021, including as its vice chair since 2018. He is a graduate of Florida State University and a certified public accountant.

Jennifer Smolnik is a Senior Manager for the Maximus Higher Education Practice with 17 years of experience in University cost accounting, Indirect Cost Rate proposals, sponsored projects administration and capital assets compliance. 

Prior to working at Maximus, Jenny served as a Senior Officer for Cost Accounting and Analysis at Arizona State University, overseeing the development of two Long Form F&A proposals, including management of the University space survey, special cost studies, DS-2 preparation, proposal submission and federal negotiation. She also managed compliance for University Recharge and Service Centers for seven years. As Debt Compliance Manager at ASU, Jenny reviewed capital asset compliance and reporting for $2 billion in bond-funded capital projects. 

She has presented at several national conferences on topics of preparing for the F&A Base Year, managing University space surveys, as well as maintaining compliance for University Service Centers. Jenny is a certified Project Management Professional with experience in process improvement, organizational change management, and systems implementation for sponsored projects administration.

Cheryl Soper is the assistant vice president for financial operations and controller for the University of Michigan. Prior to joining the University of Michigan, Soper was a senior manager at PwC, where she provided accounting and auditing services to a wide variety of education, not-for-profit and other organizations, including SEC companies.

Soper has a BBA from the University of Michigan, is a certified public accountant, and past chair of the NACUBO Accounting Principles Council. Soper has received the Daniel D. Robinson Accounting Award from NACUBO and currently serves on the NACUBO Higher Education Accounting Forum Planning Committee.

Saravanan is a Managing Director at KPMG LLP where he serves as a Higher Education Technology Lead. In his role, he helps higher education institutions transform into Connected Campuses by harnessing the power of cloud and modern technologies to drive institutional outcomes. His specialization includes large business and technology transformations, legacy modernization, cloud adoption, artificial intelligence, data modernization, and modern engineering. Recognized for his creativity and innovative thinking, Saravanan's well-rounded experience includes strategy through implementation and post-implementation support for higher education, financial services, and other industries. 

Saravanan has over 20 years of experience delivering large transformations for several Fortune 100 companies, public sector and higher education institutions. He has expertise in core system modernization, platform implementations and integrations, cloud migration and modernization, data modernization, reporting and analytics, agile transformation, IT organizational effectiveness, devops adoption, and AI/GenAI strategy and implementation. With his broad experience, he excels at finding the right modern technology solutions and practices to solve client’s complex business and technology problems.

Pete Ugo has over 25 years of audit and consulting experience with Crowe and is based out of the firm’s Indianapolis office.  He is the leader of the firm’s national not-for-profit and higher education audit practice. Ugo is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and began working at Crowe after completing college.  He has spent his entire career working in the not-for-profit and higher education industries, and his client base primarily includes college/universities, foundations, cultural arts, and other not-for-profit organizations. Ugo is a member and current chair of the AICPA’s Not-for-Profit Expert Panel.

Tyler joined CapinCrouse in 2006 and has acquired a broad range of experience through serving numerous types of nonprofit organizations. He provides auditing, accounting, and consulting services for nonprofit and higher education clients. He has a passion for serving mission-minded organizations and has worked extensively with a variety of nonprofit clients, including churches and denominations, international outreach organizations, and colleges and universities. Tyler has significant experience performing audits in accordance with Uniform Guidance and is a member of the CapinCrouse higher education leadership team.

Mary Vicuna-Howe is the Associate Director for Post Award and Financial Compliance in the Sponsored Programs office at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. In this role, she oversees post-award services, ensuring compliance with financial regulations for grants and sponsored research. 

Mary holds a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) from the University of Pennsylvania. She plays a key role in supporting the financial and compliance aspects of research funding at UNLV.

Megan Glide Villasenor has 20 years of experience in higher education and currently serves as the chief of staff to the associate vice president and systemwide controller for the University of California. Prior to starting this position at the UC Office of the President, Megan has worked in positions on both the UC Davis and UC Berkeley campuses. Her leadership experience includes providing oversight and direction to a large, complex academic and translational research department, helping build the administrative structure for enrollment management at UC Davis, and helping build, implement, and lead the UC Davis Shared Services Organization. 

Megan has a Master of Science in Business Administration/Taxation. She has been volunteering for WACUBO since 2017 and currently serves as co-chair of both the Women’s Leadership Forum and the Professional Development Workshops Committee. Outside of work, she runs a youth swim team and spends all her spare time with her husband and five kids.

In his role as the Principal Applications Architect/Engineer for Boston College Mr. Wright has been leading the investigations into how Generative AI can be applied for administrative purposes. Before joining Boston College he spent over 30 years as a consultant to higher ed designing and building systems for universities both nationally and internationally. As an early proponent of services, in 2006 he participated in high level concept meetings that grew into the Kuali Student project. At Boston College he helped complete that original vision of a Next Generation Student Information System now known as EagleApps.