Debra Cope, CPA, ATA, ATP
NSA President

I would like to present my name to the Nominating Committee as a potential candidate for election to the office of President of the National Society of Accountants.

I am a CPA in Chattanooga, TN and have owned my own firm since 2001. In addition, I hold ACAT credentials of ATA, and ATP. I have been a member of the National Society of Accountants since 2002 and currently serve as Vice President.

I have served NSA as Audit Committee Chair, two terms as District VI Governor, Executive Committee board representative for two years and several other board positions over the last six years. During my time as an active board member, NSA has been through two strategic plans.We have made many changes to update governing documents and procedures.

The leaders of NSA have worked very hard to make decisions that will benefit our members both current and future members. I look forward to continue being a part of the changes that we have implemented over the last few years. My goal as President would be for NSA to grow our membership so that more members of the tax and accounting profession will be served.

Since COVID our lives and industry have changed in so many ways. I want to serve as President of NSA to help the organization grow and become more relevant to all of our members. We have a wealth of information and services for our members and I would like to see that each and everyone takes advantage of what NSA has to offer.

Over the past few years, I have had the privilege to serve with members of the Board that have great insight and have exhibited excellent qualities of leadership. As President, I would work very hard to help NSA continue to increase Member Value, to continue progress on the strategic plan, and to work with the Board, NSA Staff and to help meet the members’ needs.

Thank you for considering my nomination for President.

Debra Cope, CPA

After an extensive public accounting career and over thirty four years of membership in the National Society of Accountants I believe that I am ready to serve our organization as its Vice President for the upcoming year. We are very much at a crossroads in the history of the National Society of Accountants. We can be proud of a strong and rich tradition of excellence. However, currently we face membership concerns as well as choices that will have to be made to allow this great organization to flourish in the years to come. I stand ready and willing to serve on the board as its Vice President (if fortunate enough to be elected) and to assist fellow board members in any and all challenges we will face to maintain the excellence we have come to know.

I would like to continue serving on the NSA Board to help NSA grow.It is a well-known fact that it is easier to keep a member than it is to get a new member and NSA needs to work on that. Even though the membership is getting older, these members can be used as mentors which would help give NSA an advantage over other organizations. We may want to re-implement the member get a member program.

As a member of NSA since Sept 2004, I have noticed some of the changes that have taken place over the years. Some of these observations are the same issues that are currently affecting other organizations such as loss of membership. An increase in membership can be obtained by offering potential members something that entices them to either join NSA or continue as a member, looking at bringing in younger members by offering mentoring. If the new members are kept engaged, they could remain a member for years as they would feel that the cost of membership is worthwhile and they continue as a member.Of course, NSA can still accept older members since they will increase membership, but younger members if they are kept engaged, may stay a member for a while which helps with dues revenue.

Even thoughNSA communicates fairly often, as a member I still feel I’m not always aware of what NSA is doing, such as “on the hill”. Where do our dues go? How are members helped? Through transparency and increased information being passed along to members it will help members feel a value in membership.

Comments from NSA members state that they don’t know what the benefit of membership is and it’s up to the Board to discuss different ways to help spread the word as to why NSA membership pays off and that the benefits exceed the cost of membership.
If NSA can help members with different issues, regardless of what type of issues are present, they will help make NSA the organization to belong to. I remember when I joined NSA the large certificate I received, not only for NSA but also for ATA and ATP. My clients pay more attention to those certificates than they do to my EA certificate.

I previously worked as an Accounting Manager, at a non-profit organization with revenue of $9.3 million and assets of $20 million. I could directly see how important members were for a member-driven organization. If you don’t keep the members engaged, happy and satisfied then they leave the organization which affects not only the bottom line but also what you can do for the members. If the members or former members post something negative on social media it can impact the number of future members that want to join.

At this non-profit, I provided monthly reports summarizing profit and loss statements in an easy-to-read format summarizing how each department was managing within the budget. Occasionally,I reviewed this with department heads, in an easy-to-understand way, so they would understand what it meant and how they could implement plans that stayed within their budget.

I have served as Secretary and/or Treasurer to various groups, and most recently with the National Association of Enrolled Agents (NAEA) Board when the Board debriefing occurred after the Board meeting, I was the secretary providing notes as to what was discussed during the debriefing. The debriefing was done since the Board meetings were done in person in front of the members. These minutes were distributed to Board members prior to the next Board meeting and debriefing so that they could review what was discussed. When I was serving as President of the Washington State Society of Enrolled Agents, the Treasurer and I had ultimate responsibility for ensuring that the financials were done correctly.

In the American Red Cross, I have been a Financial and Statistical Management supervisor and have overseen other programs. This position is similar to the Treasurer of a disaster operation.

I have taken non-profit accounting courses at North Seattle College gaining additional current knowledge on budgets and financial statements.

NSA can help promote accountants by continuing to educate the public about accountants and what they do. It would be helpful if on websites when someone searches taxes or tax preparers then an NSA member shows up. NSA can help differentiate different kinds of tax specialists such as CPA, EA, ATA, ATP, ABA, etc. from other preparers so that the public understands that these professionals may specialize in tax, representation, business setup, closure, etc. and keep up with continuing education.
The NSA needs to focus on working on issues that are pertinent to NSA members.

To increase the number of NSA members, leadership needs to listen to member concerns and remember to thank our members. A pin that shows someone is a member could be given for milestone membership years. This could potentially be less expensive than giving everyone a membership pin.

I just received an annual renewal invoice from another association and the invoice was in front and behind was a letter of what they had done for members during the year. I almost missed it, as the association is so worried about getting me to pay, due June 30, that the part that is important about why I should renew was relegated to the back. This is something that other organizations should keep in mind.

One opportunity that NSA could pursue is to continue with the free education that was offered the past couple of years. This made the classes exciting as everyone felt like they were getting a good deal and it was worth being a member.
One of the threats facing NSA members is the fact that some members may not have the right to practice in the state where their practice is located. NSA needs to know about this sooner so that they can act on it.

I have been a member of the National Society of Accountants (NSA) since 2007. During this time, I have had the pleasure of working with financial and tax professionals that uphold the same core values as this illustrious organization. As a successful business owner and tax professional for over 30 years, I strive to provide the best service to my clients. In leadership roles, I believe information exchange is key to empowering an organization. By taking an interest in those I work with, I have been able to propel others to achieve greater success. I function with the belief empowering every facet of NSA with a progressive, comprehensive goal is key to success. Over the years I have worked on various committees within NSA.

I have served on the Leadership Development committee where we functioned to prepare recruits for leadership roles through introductory leadership development training. We provided comprehensive leadership training to include how to navigation through industry pitfalls. Working on the Leadership Development committee was a genuine pleasure. At leadership conferences, I functioned as one of the key presenters. I presented various leadership topics varying from “Basic Leadership 101” to “Managing Difficult People”.

As a member of the Constitution Bylaws committee, I worked diligently to ensure organizations adhered to the bylaws and constitution governing tax professionals. In this committee, we reviewed organizations ensuring updates and necessary changes were made in a timely manner. Within the Membership Committee, I facilitated recruitment, networking and general expansion of this society. I also championed for members to ensure they had programs and benefits necessary to ensure further advancement in this society.

I also served as the Maryland State Director for five years. In this capacity, I recruited members for NSA from varying regions to include Maryland, Virginia, Washington, DC and Delaware. This gave me an opportunity to network and introduce NSA to professionals across several states. During these experiences, I championed for NSA. Sharing the goals of NSA within this community has fostered an atmosphere designed to champion for accountants, financial and tax professional. This has been one of the driving factors that compels me to work towards the continued betterment of this organization.

In each capacity I have worked with NSA, I have seen growth within the organization. I have a strong desire to see continuous expansion and elevation of this society. By partnering with NSA, I hope to foster communications with IRS with the goal of progressive legislative implementation changes targeted towards benefiting individual accountant and tax practices. With targeted legislation, drafted and introduced by NSA, under dynamic leadership, individual practices have the capacity to bolster trendsetting standards. Historically, NSA has been a great resource to its members. I seek to ensure NSA remains a continuous source of support and progression within the field of accounting, financial and tax practices.

I will be a great asset to NSA. NSA remains a great organization for professionals seeking to provide the best accounting, financial and tax services to their clients. This aligns with my core values and how I operate not only my business but throughout all areas of my professional and personal life.

I am interested in being on the Board of Directors for the NSA. This is the first year that I meet the 5year requirement, in accordance with the Bylaws.

My resume indicates that I am very professionally engaged in many organizations, but it also reflects how I engage in those activities for long periods of time while I seek to add value to the organization. From my experience in both professional organizations and with local charities, I understand that it takes several years to really understand and implement the vision of the organization. It takes time to build up the relationships and the knowledge to have a positive impact. The succession planning of any organization depends on the organization having a mix of both experienced and new board members to direct the organization.

Being a member of the NSA Board of Directors is a professional volunteer role that seeks to grow the reputation, membership, and influence of the organization in the accounting and tax professions in the United States. I will certainly be dedicated to this goal. I have appreciated the assistance and insight that the NSA has provided me with difficult client issues. Having free access to a CPA to help me with tax policy and IRC requirements research has been beneficial to my practice. I have also been actively involved in the Federal Taxation Committee, the Emerging Leaders Program, and have been a user of the continuing education programs. I look forward to attending future meetings of the entire membership. This organization has the potential to double in size if we can just create and communicate our value statement to the membership and other members of the accounting and taxation professional discipline. We want all CPA, PTIN Tax Preparers, IRS Enrolled Agents, and ATA credentialed individuals to join us and value their membership.

My professional experience with other similar organizations, expertise, and active interest in the success of this organization will make me a valuable member of the Board off Directors as it seeks to achieve its strategic goals. I appreciate the nomination and hopefully theconfirmation to the role as NSA Board Member or Regional Director.

I have enjoyed serving on the NSA Foundation for two terms as Secretary as Treasurer, and would be honored to continue to serve. But if I could be of more service as a Director I would also be honored to serve in that position.

As an NSA member for 16 years I have benefited from the contributions of many other tax and accounting professionals. Serving on the board will give me the opportunity to work to position NSA to continue its strong track record of assisting professionals.