Education Committee

Membership:

The Education Committee (“EC”) consists of a minimum of eight (8) active FIRMA members. All members must be in good standing. One member will be the current Executive Director of FIRMA and at least one member will be a current member of the Board of Directors of FIRMA. The Board member will chair (or may co-chair) the committee. Except for the Executive Director and the EC chairman, there will be a five-year term for each member. Members will rotate on and off the committee annually to preserve the continuity of the committee. New committee members will be invited by soliciting the Board and the membership for possible candidates to serve.

Mission Statement:

Through our commitment to educational excellence, we will be the premier fiduciary and investment risk management association in the financial services industry, providing essential continuing education and world-class best practices.

  • The EC is committed to assisting the Board in meeting and exceeding the continuing education needs and expectations of all FIRMA members.
  • The EC is committed to assisting the Board in providing comprehensive risk management knowledge and support through training opportunities and networking forums.
  • The EC is committed to promoting exemplary professional conduct and high ethical standards in the practice of audit, compliance and risk management.
  • The EC is committed to assisting the Board in identifying training vehicles to address emerging issues within the fiduciary and investment risk management environment.

Functions:

The Board of Directors of FIRMA has delegated the implementation and administration of the continuing education (CE) program to the Education Committee. The Education Committee will be responsible for the following:

  • Developing and updating the CE Program
  • Communicating CE Requirements to all members
  • Monitoring the annual attestation process of FIRMA members and providing periodic reports to the FIRMA Board of Directors.
  • Contacting members who have not submitted their annual Attestation Form
  • Performing a CE documentation validation for a selected sample of members
  • Notifying members of results of CE documentation validation, reviewing appeal requests (if applicable) and making appeal recommendations to the FIRMA Board
  • Assisting the FIRMA Board in developing training topics and speakers (including new contacts for speakers) for regional training workshops and the annual national training conference
  • Assisting the FIRMA Board in developing and maintaining a library listing of speakers/topics that can be utilized in FIRMA training conferences and seminars
  • Providing quarterly Education Committee updates to the FIRMA newsletter
  • Providing support to the FIRMA website Discussion Forum
  • To carry out such responsibilities, the Education Committee should have the authority (with the approval of the FIRMA Board) to establish such Sub-Committees as deemed appropriate to meet the needs of the FIRMA Board.

Committee Meetings:

The Education Committee will hold an annual onsite meeting to perform the annual validation of the CE attestations; however, throughout each term year, telephone meetings are encouraged every other month to conduct other committee business.

Committee Members:

Co-Chairs:

Danielle Albrecht, CFIRS, CAMS
The Glenmede Trust Company
Philadelphia, PA

Michael Bridgeman, CFP, CFIRS
Trust Company of the South
Raleigh, NC


Members:

Bradley Beshea, CRP, CFIRS, CAMS, AMLP, CCS
Frost Bank
San Antonio, TX

Kimberly D. Breithaupt, CFIRS
Argent Fiduciary Consulting Services
Ruston, LA

Lisa C. Carroll, CIA, CFIRS
Edward Jones Trust Company
St. Louis, MO

Jennifer L. De Vries, CTA
MB Financial Bank, NA
Rosemont, IL

Nanna Goodfellow, CTA, CPA
Comptroller of the Currency
New York, NY

Judy Herndon, CFIRS, CTFA
Frost Fiduciary Compliance
San Antonio, TX

Michael Horning, CFIRS, CFE
TIAA-CREF
Charlotte, NC

Carolyn E. Hughes, CTA, CPA
TD Ameritrade
Fort Worth, TX

David Jonke, CTA, CPA
Fifth Third Bank
Chicago, IL

Justin Lindberg, CPA, CFIRS, CISA
US Bancorp
Minneapolis, MN

Gary E. Pelcak, CTA, CFSA, CFE
Central National Bank
Junction City, KS

Sharita Perkins, CTA
Wilmington Trust Company
Wilmington, DE

Brian Pinkerton, CFIRS, CAMS
First Federal Lakewood
Lakewood, OH

Marilyn Smith, CFIRS, CISA
Wells Fargo
Chicago, IL