The National Association of State Boards of Accountancy has recognized three CPAs for their leadership and efforts in pushing the accounting profession forward. Recipients were honored at NASBA’s 11th Annual Meeting, held in Scottsdale, Ariz., last month.

Recipients and their awards include:

• Gaylen Hansen of Denver, Colo., received the William H. Van Rensselaer Public Service Award, which recognizes professionals who have developed a new program or improved a current program for Boards of Accountancy, or who have shaped the passage of rules or statutes to strengthen accountancy regulations. Hansen, a retired partner at EKSH, has been a member of the Auditing Standards Board since 2016 and is a regular speaker at industry conferences and seminars. Hansen also represents NASBA on the advisory committees of the International Audit and Assurance Standards Board and the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants. He is a former NASBA chair, as well as the former chair of NASBA’s Ethics, Nominating and Strategic Initiatives Committees and a past chair of the Advisory Council. From 1995 through 2012, Hansen served as a NASBA representative on the AICPA’s Professional Ethics Committee.

• Harry Parsons of Reno, Nev., received the NASBA Distinguished Service Award, which highlights professionals who have “demonstrated an unswerving commitment and dedication to enhancing the mission of NASBA.” Parsons is a former NASBA director-at-large, regional director, chair of the Enforcement Resources and Ethics Committees and a former member of NASBA’s Strategic Initiatives, Legislative Support and Communications Committees. He currently serves as the managing shareholder and audit principal for Pangborn Co., serves on the Finance Committee of the First United Methodist Church in Reno and is a chapter advisor for the Reno Chapter of DeMolay.

• Susan Somers of Topeka, Kan., received the Lorraine P. Sachs Standard of Excellence Award, which recognizes current state board executives or administrators who have contributed to improving the effectiveness of accounting regulation on the local and national levels. Somers has been the executive director of the Kansas Board of Accountancy since 1996 and is a member of NASBA’s CBT Administration Committee. She is also a former member of NASBA’s Committee Resource Panel and Ethics, Litigation Response and Assistance and Uniform Accountancy Act Committees.

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