New Jersey Society of CPAs Announces 10 Student Loan Debt Lottery Winners

ROSELAND, N.J. — The New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants (NJCPA) has awarded 10 of its members with $1,200 each towards their student loan debt, which was accumulated on the way to becoming a CPA. The lottery was created by the NJCPA Student Loan Debt Task Force in conjunction with the Society’s Scholarship Fund to lessen members’ debt burden.

Out of 174 lottery applicants, the total amount of student loan debt recorded was more than $5 million. The 10 selected winners had student loan debt ranging from $11,000 to $231,314, averaging $69,000.

The winners are:

• Seth Boadi, ACCA, MS
• Bennie Eneh, CPA, partner, Bece Consultants, LLC
• Regina M. Ficarra, CPA, staff accountant, WilkinGuttenplan
• Rushil Jain, staff, EisnerAmper LLP
• Courtney A. McLaughlin, CPA, senior tax analyst, Johnson & Johnson
• Matthew J. Mojica, CPA, Staff 1, WithumSmith+Brown
• Larissa Ng, audit assistant, Deloitte
• Shuoyi Portelli, CPA, owner, Portelli Consulting, LLC
• Benjamin W. Prill
• Kevin E. Roenian, associate, WilkinGuttenplan

“It’s truly a pleasure to be able to give back to CPAs amid hefty student loan debt. It is an issue affecting many in the United States, especially those studying accounting,” said Melissa A. Dardani, CPA, MAcc, managing member of MD Advisory Services and a member of the Student Loan Debt Task Force. “We created the lottery to lighten the debt load of accounting professionals and give them an incentive to stay in the profession.”

Zachary Cohen, CPA, manager at CFGI, and a member of the Student Loan Debt Task Force, added, “College costs have soared in recent years. This lottery is a step in the right direction towards acknowledging that and assisting where we can. Today’s accounting professionals are especially in need of financial savings as they fulfill the requirements to become a CPA or just recently completed their CPA and have considerable debt.”

“It’s important to understand what financial burdens accounting professionals may be carrying and try to assist where we can. Undergraduate and graduate degrees are a huge financial strain today,” said Ralph Albert Thomas, CPA (DC), CGMA, CEO and executive director at the NJCPA.

The lottery was made possible by the NJCPA Scholarship Fund, which, through the generous backing of members and accounting firms, has supported more than 2,000 New Jersey students totaling more than $7 million in awards since 1960.

For more information on NJCPA Scholarship Fund, visit njcpa.org/scholarship.

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The New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants (NJCPA), with more than 14,000 members, represents the interests of the accounting profession and advances the financial well-being of the people of New Jersey. The NJCPA plays a leadership role in supporting the profession by providing members with educational resources, access to shared knowledge and a continuing effort to create and expand professional opportunities. Visit njcpa.org.