Emcee
Crystal Cooke
Director - Diversity & Inclusion
AICPA & CIMA
Crystal joined the Association in early 2020 and oversees the AICPA & CIMA's member facing Diversity and Inclusion team where they encourage and promote diversity, equity, & inclusion (DEI) within the accounting and finance profession and its workforce. Her team focuses their efforts on advancing DEI and increasing representation in the primary areas of ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+, women, and supporting the profession's emerging professionals. She serves as the Vice-Chair of the AICPA & CIMA's National Commission on Diversity & Inclusion, whose mission includes making diversity and inclusion a priority in the areas of recruitment, certification, and advancement of ethnic minorities. Her work requires collaboration with senior executives of partner organizations and accounting firms who also seek to increase and advance DEI in their workforces. In 2022 and 2023, Crystal was named as one of Accounting Today's Top 100 Most Influential People in Accounting. This listing identifies the thought leaders, change-makers, regulators and other leaders who are shaping the profession. Prior to the Association, Crystal spent 12 years at the Center for Audit Quality where she managed Governing Board operations, financial reporting and budgeting processes, and talent, which included leading efforts around Diversity and Inclusion. She was also employed at KPMG LLP for 7 years as an auditor in their assurance practice in Washington D.C. Crystal holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Accounting from the University of Cincinnati. She and her family reside in Bowie, MD.