The Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants President and CEO Peggy Dzierzawski has once again been honored with the Walsh College Jeffery W. Barry Award – the only second-time recipient in the award’s history.
Dzierzawski was recognized on Thursday, Oct. 10 at the college’s awards dinner at Townsend Hotel in Birmingham, Michigan. Named for a beloved president of Walsh College, who was also a mentor of Dzierzawski’s, the award honors exceptional leaders for their achievements in community service and educational excellence.
U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow praised Dzierzawski for her work in creating “an association that has tremendous respect in the community” and for mentoring women and other professionals in the community, resulting in her first award from Walsh College in 2012.
Dzierzawski has instilled in her team the power of relationships and partnerships, a focus on initiatives that promote diversity and inclusion and the importance of building the pipeline for future CPAs. She hosts events for high school students to increase awareness of opportunities within the profession and supports the scholarship program of the Michigan Accountancy Foundation as secretary of its board of trustees. She has served on the AICPA’s National Commission on Diversity and Inclusion and currently serves on the AICPA Financial Literacy Commission.
“Receiving this award again is an incredible honor, one that I know I could not have accomplished without Jeff’s guidance early in my career,” Dzierzawski said. “Jeff was a wonderful mentor who became a dear friend, making an immense difference in my life which still impacts me and my work to this day.”
Since graduating from Oakland University in 1973, Dzierzawski has served the MICPA for 45 years, working her way up from a booking assistant to president and CEO. Under her leadership, the organization has grown from six employees serving 4,500 members to more than 45 team members serving more than 19,000 CPAs.
Throughout her career, including the past 22 she has served as president and CEO, Dzierzawski’s mission has been to create an association that maintains the highest standards of the CPA profession through quality education, integrity and leadership.
Heavily involved in the community, Dzierzawski has served on numerous state and national committees, supporting professional and philanthropic initiatives including hospice, cancer and education. Her work has received many awards, including recognition by Crain’s Detroit Business as one of the Most Influential Women in the state.