BOARD OF ACCOUNTANCY

WILLIAM BLEND, CPA, CFE

Bill Blend, CPA, CFE, is chair of the Florida Board of Accountancy and a shareholder of MSL CPAs & Advisors. He is a member of the firm’s Governmental Practice Group and shareholder in charge of quality control. Blend has over 23 years of public and private sector accounting experience. He has performed audits on over 30 governmental entities, including counties, municipalities, utilities, airports and special districts. Blend served in and received an honorable discharge from the U.S. Navy before earning his bachelor’s in accounting from Long Island University.

BRENT SPARKMAN, CPA, CFF, CITP

Brent Sparkman, CPA, CFF, CITP, is vice chair of the Florida Board of Accountancy and a senior partner and shareholder of Carr, Riggs & Ingram in the Tallahassee office, responsible for the firm’s government consulting with the state of Florida; corporate and individual matters; developing related firm policies and procedures; and ensuring client satisfaction. Sparkman, a Florida native, was born in Tampa and raised in Tallahassee, graduating from Florida State University with a bachelor’s in accounting and a degree in finance, cum laude. He is the proud father of two sons and in his spare time enjoys the outdoors.

WILLIAM G. BENSON, CPA

Bill Benson, CPA, is the managing partner in the CPA firm of Keefe McCullough, LLP, in Fort Lauderdale. Benson joined the firm 37 years ago and has been a partner for the past 30 years. He is the partner in charge of the governmental, not-for-profit and educational divisions, which provide accounting, auditing and consulting services. He is a graduate of Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, with a bachelor’s in business administration and accounting, with special attainments in commerce. He and his wife of 35 years, Sharon, reside in Plantation; they have two children and three grandchildren.

TRACY L. KEEGAN

Tracy L. Keegan most recently served as president, CFO and director at BankFlorida, a $90-million franchise in Jupiter recently sold to a private investor. With close to 30 years of experience, Keegan has held significant senior executive officer and director roles and has extensive experience in starting, recapping and growing financial organizations from the de novo stage to amassing more than $6 billion in assets. Keegan holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting.

JASON LAFSER, CPA, CFE

Jason Lafser, CPA, CFE, is the tax managing director for BDO USA, LLP. He focuses on business management consulting as well as tax planning and preparation for commercial businesses and individuals. Jason has over 15 years of public accounting experience in the health care industry. Jason centers his public accounting practice on the health care and professional services industries, with an ancillary focus on real estate. Jason earned his master’s in business administration from the University of North Florida and his bachelor’s in accounting from Murray State University.

MICHELLE MAINGOT, CPA

Michelle Maingot, CPA, is an audit partner with Ernst & Young and the leader of the firm’s Florida and Puerto Rico audit practices. She has more than 25 years’ experience serving a variety of mid- to large-sized companies, specializing in SEC-registered companies. She has extensive experience auditing companies with high-volume, low-dollar transactions and a strong background in accounting for leases and real estate transactions and with multi-location and international businesses. She graduated from Florida State University with a bachelor’s in accounting and lives in Tampa with her husband, Chris, and their three children.

STEVE PLATAU, CPA, J.D.

Steve Platau, CPA, J.D., is an accounting professor at the University of Tampa, where he has served on the faculty since 1984. He is the immediate Past Chair of the Florida Board of Accountancy. He is a principal consultant to the CNA Insurance Companies, providing loss control programs to CPA firms nationally. Platau’s business experience includes time with two of the “Big 5” international accounting firms, private law practice and industry accounting, along with financial interests in several hospitality businesses. Steve earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting from The Ohio State University and his juris doctorate from the University of Cincinnati.

Shireen Sackreiter

Shireen Sackreiter is the Tallahassee office managing director for Accenture, a multinational management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company. She has spent her entire career at Accenture, working for public sector clients throughout North America, with a focus on Florida. Sackreiter has an extensive background in the design and delivery of large system integration engagements across a variety of industries in state and local government. Sackreiter is a Florida native and graduated from Florida State University. She lives in Tallahassee with her husband, John, and their daughters, Lauren and Jaclyn.

CARIDAD VASALLO, CPA

Caridad “Carey” Vasallo is a partner at VMBG Accounting and practice leader for the firm’s Consulting Services division. With over a decade of experience providing litigation support services, Vasallo specializes in assisting high net-worth individuals in marital dispute cases and business valuation matters. Under her direction, the practice has been listed on the South Florida Business Journal’s Top 25 Litigation Support Accounting Firms. Vasallo serves on the FICPA Scholarship Foundation Board of Trustees and has served on the Miami-Dade Advisory Board for the 13th District; the FICPA Board of Directors and Council; and the Florida Bar Grievance Committee for the 11th Judicial Circuit Court.