HEAF24: GAAP (FASB) Questions Answered

Karen Mahalo has over 30 years of experience in accounting, reporting, auditing, and compliance. She is currently the university controller for Cornell University. Prior to joining Cornell in April 2021, Mahalo was senior associate controller and served in progressively responsible financial leadership roles for over 15 years at the University of Rochester. 

Mahalo’s prior experience spans multiple industries including healthcare, domestic and international manufacturing, and public accounting. Mahalo has BS in accounting from the Rochester Institute of Technology  and an MBA from the Simon Business School at the University of Rochester. She is a CPA and a member of the NACUBO Accounting Principles Council.

Charlene Sweeney has been at Brown University for 12 years, serving the last 8 years as the University Controller. Prior to Brown University, she was a senior manager at KPMG where she worked for almost 15 years in the audit practice serving not-for-profit Universities and Hospitals. She is currently the NACUBO representative on the AICPA NFP Entities Expert Panel and a member of the NACUBO APC. She has presented at EACUBO, NACUBO Higher Education Accounting Form, and Workday Rising. She is a CPA licensed in the state of RI. 

Nicole Tirella, senior vice president, chief financial officer, and treasurer for Boston University oversees the financial operations including accounting and financial reporting, debt and treasury functions, research financial operations, risk management, sourcing and procurement, and internal audit. She is a certified public accountant and an active member of NACUBO's accounting principles council. She spent over seven years as an auditor for KPMG, specializing in higher education and not-for-profit entities. Before coming to Boston University, she was the associate controller at the University of Massachusetts within the president’s office where she led the compilation of the university system’s consolidated financial statements.

Rick Cole has more than 25 years of experience serving nonprofit organizations. He is the New York Market Industry Leader for nonprofit and education and is a member of the FORVIS higher education center of excellence. Before joining the firm in 2019, he worked at FASB, where he served as a supervising project manager for almost six years. Prior to joining FASB, Cole was vice president and controller at a large national museum in New York for seven years and a senior manager with a large international accounting firm where he worked for 14 years and specialized in audits of higher education institutions and other nonprofit organizations. He is a lecturer at the Columbia University School of Professional Studies, in their nonprofit management program.

Cole is a CPA in New York and New Jersey and is a member of the AICPA and New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants. He is a graduate of Montclair State University, with a BS degree and an MBA degree.