Congratulations to Lorena Hernandez, CPA, who was honored as one of the TXCPA’s 2021 Rising Stars. She is currently the Cameron County Auditor and oversees all financial aspects and audit oversight of the county and also is responsible for the preparation of the county’s Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR). Previously she managed the finances of the Port of Brownsville as CFO, as well as audit and tax services in public accounting and internal auditing.
Lorana earned her CPA license at the age of 24. She completed her Master of Accountancy from UTRGV where she also adjuncts, having taught an undergraduate course on “Ethics for Accountants”. She is an active member of TXCPA, AICPA and GFOA.
She volunteers her time and accounting expertise to assist local non-profits and has been a guest speaker at UTRGV to share her experience as a first-generation student, encouraging accounting students to obtain their CPA license.
The Rio Grande Valley Chapter of TSCPA survives because of its members! We welcome new members, and strive to maintain a professional, informative relationship with our membership.
Your local chapter works to keep you informed of current events, and communicates legislative issues that could effect our profession. Your volunteerism and continued support is the life blood of our Chapter.
The Rio Grande Valley Chapter of the TSCPA provides newsletters that will inform you of upcoming events, CPE, news, tax tips, and other important or amusing information.
Specific links are offered on our website as an avenue to other information, both local and regional. We hope that you find the website useful. Your comments and suggestions are welcomed.
Congratulations to the Chapter’s 2021-2022 PCAOB Scholar
The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) announced the 253 students from U.S. colleges and universities who were selected to receive a $10,000 scholarship for the 2021-2022 academic year. Congratulations to Javier Trevino who attends The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.
CAROL COLLINSWORTH SCHOLARSHIP FUND
Read about our newly established scholarship fund.
Governor Abbott Appoints Local CPA to Texas Real Estate Commission
AUSTIN – Governor Greg Abbott has appointed Leslie Lerner Benjamin “Ben” Pena to the Texas Real Estate Commission for a term set to expire on January 31, 2027. The commission’s primary purpose is to protect the public in its dealings with real estate brokers and salespersons.
Benjamin “Ben” Pena of Bayview is Assurance Services Partner at Burton, McCumber & Longoria, LLP. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants. Additionally, he is a board member of the Brownsville Chamber of Commerce and a member of the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts and the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners. Pena received a Bachelor of Business Administration from The University of Texas Pan American.
This appointment is subject to Senate confirmation.
CONGRATULATIONS!
The 2020 Chapter’s annual scholarship of $500 was awarded to Javier Trevino, Jr., who just graduated with his BBA in Accountancy and started the Master of Accountancy program at UTRGV. Javier has maintained a perfect GPA while working two part time jobs and accepting other responsibilities not common for a college student.
This scholarship was made possible because of your annual donations. To those members who donate to their local chapters when paying their annual dues, your TXCPA RGV chapter board extends a big Thank You! So that we can impact more students, we want to invite firms to sponsor at least one student through our local chapter. We invite interested firms to contact Katherine Martin or any of the current board members.
Steve Tillinger, CPA
I am very sad to be sharing with you the news of Steve Tillinger’s passing earlier this week. Steve was a brilliant CPA and incredible resource for the profession on the state and national levels. He taught Partnerships and S Corps for many years to Chapter members’. There will not be a service in Texas, and Steve will be buried out of state.
In Memoriam 2021
It is with great sadness that we report the passing of the following RGV Chapter member this year:
• Gilbert Saenz, CPA
EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES
New job posting!
NEW MEMBERSHIP OR RENEWAL
Renewable June 1st of each year, payable directly to TSCPA.
CONTACT US
MEMBERSHIP TYPES
• Texas CPA’s
• Out of State CPA’s
• Dual Licensed Attorneys/CPAs
• International Affiliates
• Non-CPA Academic Affiliates
• Students
OUR MISSION…
The Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants exists to support its members in their professional endeavors and to promote the value and high standards of Texas CPAs.