47th Annual Conference - Speaker Bios

Thank you to our speakers for helping to communicate best practices and for sharing their experiences. We are so appreciative because we would be unable to provide quality CPE to our members without their dedicated time and effort.

                                                                                                         - AGFOA Board

Paul Phillips

Senior Managing Director

Paul joined Crews & Associates in 1998. His background includes a dynamic and cross-functional career in the financial services industry, including investment banking, commercial banking, and regulatory affairs. He has over 35 years of experience in the financial services industry, with specialized expertise in fixed-income securities, commercial real estate development and analytics, and financial statement analysis. His activities include the development, structuring, origination, and sale of tax-exempt and taxable bond issues and/or other debt securities to provide proceeds for capital improvements, the refunding/restructuring of existing indebtedness, and general corporate purposes. Additional responsibilities include serving as the Credit Administrator for the company’s Capital Markets Group, Chairman of the Credit Review Committee, and coordinating the municipal finance activities in Arkansas. Consequently, Paul is involved in every underwriting transaction at Crews. His clients include local governments, state governments, private and public universities, healthcare providers, utility providers, and various not-for-profit and for-profit entities. Paul has been involved in the structuring of multiple types of revenue bonds, general obligation bonds, sales tax bonds, limited tax general obligation bonds, tax increment bonds, credit-enhanced bonds, fixed-rate bonds, and variable-rate bonds. He has an extensive list of governmental and non-profit clients, particularly in the State of Arkansas. Paul has a B.S. in Accounting from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and holds various securities licenses.

Joseph D. Archer, CPA

Arkansas Legislative Audit

Joe joined the Arkansas Legislative Audit in September of 1991 as a Field Auditor in the Southwest Region, auditing cities, counties, and educational institutions. In July of 2015, Joe became a Supervising Senior Auditor. He was promoted to Supervisor in August of 2016, to Audit Manager in April 2022, and to Deputy Legislative Auditor in April 2024. Joe received a Bachelor’s in Business Administration (BBA) from Henderson State University in May of 1991. He became a Certified Public Accountant in November of 2016.  Joe is married to his wife, Shannon, and they have two grown daughters: Ashton and Jameson. The Archers reside in Prattville.

Emily S. Brock

Director of GFOA’s Federal Liaison Center

As Director of GFOA’s Federal Liaison Center, Emily leads coalition and advocacy efforts of the Public Finance Network in Washington, DC. Her advocacy includes anticipating and responding to federal legislative and regulatory activities that impact the finance functions of state and local governments and public sector entities, including tax reform, municipal securities disclosure, and public pension and benefit issues. Emily also serves as staff on GFOA’s Debt Committee, working with committee members to develop best practices that promote sound financial practices for local, state, and provincial governments. Before joining GFOA, Emily was a commercial bank relationship manager at a large national bank, serving as the sole bank liaison for government and university clients.

David M. Coleman, CPA

Audit Partner, Forvis Mazars, LLP.

David is a professional in FORVIS’ Public Sector Practice. He has over 22 years of experience providing audit and consulting services to various governmental and nonprofit organizations, including municipalities and their component units, utilities, and other service-related entities that receive federal and state assistance. He is responsible for engagement oversight and review for numerous governmental and nonprofit organizations subject to Single Audit requirements. He is a member of the American Institute of CPAs, the Arkansas Society of Certified Public Accountants, and the Government Finance Officers Association of Texas. He is licensed as a CPA in Arkansas and Texas. David is a graduate of Henderson State University, Arkadelphia, Arkansas, with a B.B.A. degree in accounting.

Katherine (Katie) R. Flores, CPA

Audit Manager, Fovis Mazars, LLP.

Katie has over five years of experience providing audit services to governmental and nonprofit organizations, including Single Audits. She performs a variety of governmental and nonprofit audit engagements, including municipalities, private colleges, and other service-related entities that receive federal and state assistance. Katie is a member of the American Institute of CPAs, the Arkansas Society of Certified Public Accountants, and the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada. Katie is a graduate of the University of Central Arkansas, Conway, with a B.B.A. degree in accounting and business administration.

Richard E. Boer Jr.

Director, Forvis Mazars, LLP

Richard E. Boer Jr. is a Director at Forvis Mazars, LLP based in Indianapolis, Indiana. Rich specializes in State and Local Tax and has more than 30 years of experience. He has worked with multistate companies on various multijurisdictional compliance and consulting tax matters, including income, franchise, sales and use, property, and payroll taxes, as well as credits and incentives, and unclaimed funds.  He currently leads the state tax credits and incentives practice at Forvis Mazars. In addition to focusing on identifying and securing state and local tax credits and incentives for his clients, Rich has also been involved with assisting clients with the federal clean energy tax credits provided for under the Inflation Reduction Act. In addition to working in the credits and incentives area, Rich’s state and local tax experience has included managing extensive refund studies, analyzing nexus issues, assisting with determining taxability decisions, negotiating voluntary disclosure agreements, managing state tax audits, developing tax savings ideas, and evaluating current compliance strategies. He also has experience providing consultation to his clients related to the state tax consequences of various business realignment projects. Rich’s clients have included large publicly traded, multistate manufacturing, retail, transportation, and oil and gas companies as well as privately held companies operating in various industries. Before joining Forvis Mazars, he worked with different international accounting firms providing similar services. Rich is a 1993 graduate of Indiana University, Bloomington, with a B.S. degree in accounting.

 John Wilkerson

General Counsel, Arkansas Municipal League

An Arkansas native through and through, John earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Central Arkansas before diving into law school at the William H. Bowen School of Law at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. In 2006, he joined the Arkansas Municipal League as a law clerk, and his hard work and legal skills earned him a position as staff litigator after he passed the bar. John's dedication to his clients and leadership within the League propelled him to the role of senior legal counsel, and ultimately to General Counsel, a position he has held since 2018. Outside of work, John calls Little Rock home, where he lives with his wife, Zara, and their three kids: Razik, Amelia, and Merah. John enjoys attending UALR Trojans basketball games and traveling to Arkansas to highlight its hidden gems on his podcast: “There’s Something Here.”

Cindy Frizzell, CPA

Arkansas Municipal League

Cindy Frizzell has been a CPA with the Arkansas Municipal League for 12 years. As CFO, Cindy directs the finance team, which is responsible for IT and financial reporting, including network security, optional program software systems, financial statements, program ratings, audits, payroll, and accounts payable. She also works with the Investment Committee to oversee the League’s investment portfolio. Her team is always available to answer membership questions regarding finance and information technology issues. Cindy has been married to Tony for 36 years and has two children, Gracie and Anthony, as well as two grandchildren, Judson and Richie.

John Albritton, CPA

Director of the Landmark’s Arbitrage and Compliance Services      

John Albritton, CPA, is the director of the Landmark’s Arbitrage and Compliance Services Department. He is directly responsible for planning, reviewing bond documents and working papers, and reporting related to our arbitrage engagements. For over fifteen years, he has served our public finance clients in the areas of arbitrage rebate calculations, accountants’ refunding verifications, parity calculations, and general arbitrage consultations. John joined the Firm in 2006 after graduating from the University of Central Arkansas with a Bachelor of Business Administration and a Master of Accountancy. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Arkansas Society of Certified Public Accountants and an associate member of the National Association of Bond Lawyers. John has been married to Allison for eighteen years. They have two wonderful daughters, Avery and Audrey.

Kent Julian, Certified Speaking Professional

 Kent Julian is many things: a family man, a champion swim coach, a CSP* professional speaker, a fish taco lover, and a proud bald guy. Yet, this hasn’t always been the case. Kent started as an at-risk child with severe learning challenges and SAT scores so low that he had to take Development Studies to get into college on probation. From these humble beginnings, Kent became the Executive Director of a national youth association, helping teenagers just like him. Then, after 20 years in non-profit work, he did something bold: he launched two successful businesses. Along the way, Kent realized that his successes were never truly “his successes.” Whether working with millennial students, coaching championship swim teams, or leading businesses, the positive outcomes resulted from the team members he was privileged to lead and the mentors who invested in his life. Now, with his expertise in leadership, corporate culture, and employee engagement, he has the opportunity to speak, write, and consult with leaders and teams across the country on what it takes to create what he calls a “DREAM-to-do” culture. You can find his work online in places like Entrepreneur.com, Success.com, and more.

A.J. Gary, Director, Arkansas Division of Emergency Management

 Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders reappointed A.J. Gary as Director of the Arkansas Division of Emergency Management (ADEM) and State Homeland Security Advisor on January 10, 2023. He has held this position since June 2016, when then-Governor Asa Hutchinson appointed him. Under Hutchinson’s administration, A.J. also served as Secretary of the Department of Public Safety (DPS) while simultaneously fulfilling the role of Director of ADEM.

Director Gary has overseen 11 federal disasters and 32 state disasters to date. As ADEM Director, A.J. serves on numerous committees, including Arkansas Safe Schools, the Infrastructure Planning Advisory Committee, the Governor’s Cyber Advisory Council, the Arkansas Governor’s Earthquake Advisory Council, and chairs the Arkansas 911 Board. He is also a member of the National Governors Association’s (NGA) Governors' Homeland Security Advisors Council (GHSAC) Executive Committee. He serves as Vice President of the National Emergency Management Association (NEMA) (President 2026). Additionally, he is on the board of directors for the Central United States Earthquake Consortium.

He is a retired police chief who served over 28 years with the Conway Police Department. During a break in his law enforcement career, A.J. worked as the Chief Security Administrator for Air Transport International LLC, an international FAA Part 121 air carrier. In this role, he was responsible for all international and domestic security-related issues concerning the airline, including flight and cabin crew security training, facility security, and ensuring compliance with TSA and FAA regulations. A.J. holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Organizational Management and a Master’s in Public Administration. He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy and attended the Naval Postgraduate School Center for Homeland Defense and Security’s Executive Leadership Program. When not working, A.J. spends time with his wife, three children, and four grandchildren. He also enjoys fly fishing.

Jodi Lee, Deputy Director of Recovery and Mitigation

Arkansas Division of Emergency Management

Jodi Lee serves as the Deputy Director of Recovery and Mitigation for the Arkansas Division of Emergency Management (ADEM), where she is also the State Coordinating Officer. Since joining ADEM in 2008, Ms. Lee has built a distinguished career in disaster recovery and emergency management. She began her service as a Public Assistance Officer in 2009 and was promoted to Disaster Recovery Manager in 2012. In 2022, she assumed her current leadership role. Throughout her career, Ms. Lee has supported disaster recovery efforts for numerous state-level disasters and 34 federally declared emergencies and disasters affecting Arkansas. Ms. Lee plays a critical role in the State Emergency Operations Center, where she has served in key positions, including Team Chief and Operations Section Chief. She has also contributed to interstate mutual aid efforts through her deployment to Albany, New York, with the Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC) Advance Team following Hurricane Sandy in 2012. An active member of the Arkansas Emergency Management Association since 2008, Ms. Lee served four years as an advisor to its executive board. She represents ADEM in the Arkansas Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) and advises its executive committee. At the national level, Ms. Lee chairs the National Emergency Management Association’s Individual Assistance and Public Assistance Subcommittee and was appointed in 2024 to the National Advisory Council’s Preliminary Damage Assessment Subcommittee. She has also served as the Region 6 State Representative to the FEMA Public Assistance Steering Committee and is a member of ADEM’s Equity in Emergency Management Working Group.

In recognition of her outstanding service, Ms. Lee was named the 2016 State Employee of the Year by the Arkansas Emergency Management Association.

Scott Bass 

Deputy Director for Preparedness and Response 

Arkansas Division of Emergency Management 

Scott Bass serves as the Deputy Director for Preparedness and Response with the Arkansas Division of Emergency Management (ADEM) at Camp Joseph T. Robinson in North Little Rock. 

In this role, he guides emergency management professionals in the State Watch Office, Community Preparedness, Field Operations, Planning, and Operations. These programs are intended to ensure the readiness and activation of the State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) and other critical response and recovery initiatives during emergencies and disasters. He has served as the State Coordinating Officer for over 27 federally declared disasters. He has experience with numerous state disaster declarations as well as over 40 federal disaster declarations, including host-state evacuee sheltering for Hurricane Katrina and Gustav, the 2009 Ice Storm, the 2014 Central Arkansas tornadoes, the 2019 Arkansas River Flooding, and the COVID-19 response. 

Mr. Bass began his career with ADEM in September 2001 as an Information Control Specialist. In 2002, he transitioned to Disaster Recovery, where he served as the State Individual Assistance Officer and State Public Assistance Officer. In 2006, he was promoted to State Disaster Recovery Manager. In August 2010, he took on the role of Deputy Director for Response and Recovery, before transitioning to Preparedness and Response in 2022. 

Mr. Bass has represented ADEM on the Arkansas Emergency Management Association Executive Board from 2002 to 2016, as well as on the Arkansas Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters (ARVOAD) Executive Board. Currently, he chairs the Emergency Management and Homeland Security Program Advisory Board at Arkansas Tech University. 

Mr. Bass holds a Bachelor’s degree in Emergency Administration and Management from Arkansas Tech University. He completed the Executive Leadership Program at the Naval Postgraduate School's Center for Homeland Defense and Security in Monterey, CA, and is a 2023 graduate of the LeadAR program at the University of Arkansas, Division of Agriculture, Extension and Research. 

He and his wife, Laura, reside in Little Rock, Arkansas