Chapter visit reinforces TEI's vitality.

• Author: McCormally, Timothy J.
• Position: Less Taxing Matters

When George Figueroa of Molina HealthCare, president of the Arizona Chapter, called in August to invite me to attend the chapter's September or October meeting, I looked at the calendar and sighed. I had a conflict for the September date, and the October meeting was slated with just a few days before I was to leave for the Institute's 64th Annual Conference.

Sandwiching in another cross-country trip before the trip to San Antonio was not high on my list of priorities, but George was both persistent and persuasive. He pointed out that it had been several years since I had visited the Arizona Chapter, noting that the chapter had done a good job of recruiting several new members who, because of travel restrictions, would likely not be able to attend Institute-level events in the near term. They, in particular, would be interested in learning about the new continuing education benefits that TEI was rolling out with Thomson Reuters (which are discussed in Nell Traubenberg's column), as well as the plans for the Institute's new website. George also said the whole group would be interested in learning about TEI's involvement in the tax reform debate and getting the "skinny" from Washington on both health reform and tax reform.

The clincher, however--in addition to a very reasonable airfare thanks to Southwest Airlines--was George's informing me that Professor Don Goldman of Arizona State University would be there to discuss ASU's Master of Tax program and to thank the chapter for its ongoing support for the program through a scholarship grant. Since the expansion of TEI's Social Responsibility Initiative in general and its Scholarship program in particular remain top goals, I welcomed the opportunity to meet Don, a former Deloitte partner who joined the full-time ASU faculty in 2001, and to show support for the Arizona Chapter's exemplary efforts.

Don provided the chapter with an excellent overview of ASU's Masters program, including the recent decision to offer both a one-year, full-time option and a two-year, part-time option. He also eloquently thanked the chapter for funding a scholarship for a worthy student. Meeting him did indeed make my visit to the Arizona Chapter special.

Even without it, though, the trip to Phoenix would have been worthwhile. For one thing, it allowed me to catch up with good friends like Marty Brandt, Grace Lalicata, and Bob Buns, who have all served as president of the chapter and continue to contribute. I also had the opportunity to...