2025 Governmental Conference

Scott Reeser is a senior project manager with the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) in Norwalk, Connecticut. He is currently working on GASB projects related to the reexamination of the financial reporting model and infrastructure assets. Previously, he has worked on several projects, including those leading to statements on accounting and financial reporting for post-employment benefits, public-private partnerships, fiduciary activities, and transactions reported as deferred outflows of resources and deferred inflows of resources.

Before joining the staff of the GASB in 2010, Mr. Reeser spent ten years working for the Office of the Comptroller in the State of Illinois. During that time, Mr. Reeser was responsible for the coordination and preparation of the state's Comprehensive Annual Financial Report and the development of statewide accounting policies. His previous experience also includes over five years with a public accounting firm performing financial and compliance audits of not-for-profit entities and governmental agencies.

Mr. Reeser is a graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Illinois CPA Society.

Dr. Johnnie Bejarano is a Program Directorate Analyst for the Strategic Energy Analysis Center, with the Alliance for Sustainable Energy. Alliance is the management and operating contractor for the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), in Golden, Colorado. NREL is owned by the U.S. Department of Energy and is a Federally Funded Research and Development Center. It is the nation’s primary research and development laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency. At Regis University, he teaches forensic and fraud audit, accounting ethics, governmental and non-profit accounting, financial communication, and other accounting courses. In the local community, he conducts public presentations on anti-fraud and ethics-related topics. In 2022, he earned the Professional Practice Achievement Award, Anderson College of Business and Computing, Regis University, and other numerous teaching excellence awards from other universities. His area of interest is in ethics and anti-fraud mitigation techniques. He holds DBA, MBA, and MA degrees.

He’s a combat veteran with 26 1/2 years of service in the U.S. Air Force, Arizona, and Colorado Air National Guard units. He spent three years as base comptroller at Buckley Air Force Base and was involved in inspector general investigations and reports of surveys as an assistant U.S. property fiscal officer. Over his part-time career, he spent multiple tours in Arizona, Alaska, Florida, New York, Georgia, New Mexico, Wisconsin, HQ/Washington DC, HQ/PACAF Hawaii, and HQ/USAFE Germany. He served a final tour of duty as deputy base commander for support in the Sultanate of Oman during Operation Enduring Freedom in 2002 under combat field conditions. He retired as a lieutenant colonel in 2003.

In 2011, Dr. Bejarano was elected to the Board of Regents of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), which is the largest anti-fraud-fighting organization in the world with over 90,000 members worldwide. At ACFE, he worked with Cynthia Cooper, author, and WorldCom whistleblower. He recently completed a four-year gubernatorial appointment with the State Board of Accountancy. He is also a member of the editorial advisory committee for Fraud Magazine, a board member for the ACFE’s Colorado Chapter, and involved with the American Institute of CPAs, the Colorado Society of CPAs, Association of Military Comptrollers, Government Finance Officers’ Association, and member of the U.S. Golf Association. For fun, he enjoys spending time with his family and two granddaughters, plays golf, loves sports, and is an avid semi-pro photographer. He studied professional photography at the New York Institute of Photography and Digital Photography at Cornell University (eCornell). He is a firm believer in continuous improvement and is an advocate for lifelong learning. “Never stop learning.”

Crystal Dorsey is the Local Government Audit Manager for the Colorado Office of the State Auditor (OSA). The Local Government Audit Division tracks over 4,000 Colorado local governments for compliance with the Local Government Audit Law, which requires submission of an annual independent financial audit to the OSA. Crystal and her team review audit reports and requests for exemption from audit for compliance with generally accepted accounting and audit principles, and state statutes.

Prior to joining the OSA in February 2008, Crystal first started her career in governmental accounting with the City of Golden. After nearly 13 years there, she worked for a CPA firm auditing local governments in Colorado for 4 years.

Crystal holds a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from Regis University, and is a licensed Certified Public Accountant in Colorado. Crystal and her husband have three daughters and six grandchildren.

With nearly two decades of expertise in governmental and nonprofit accounting, Alex helps facilitate the development of governmental training programs for Galasso Learning Solutions. Her engaging presentation style, passion for connecting with attendees, and ability to make complex topics accessible have made her a sought-after educator in the field.

Prior to joining GLS, Alex served in executive leadership roles, including Chief Financial Officer and Director of Finance, within governmental entities, worked as an auditor for a public accounting firm, and earned both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Accounting from Colorado State University. Her contributions to the accounting field have been widely recognized, including being named one of the Top 50 Women in Accounting (2022, 2023) and receiving the AICPA’s Outstanding Young CPA Award in 2022.

Alex serves on AICPA Council and is a member of the Governmental Performance Accountability Committee. She previously served on the Emerging Professional Initiative Committee of the AICPA. She is currently serving as the Vice President of the Educational Foundation Board of Trustees for the Colorado Society of CPAs and is a member of their Young Professional Council.  Alex loves Disney and running so in January 2024, she completed the 48.6 mile Dopey Challenge at Walt Disney World!

Allison Slife is a CPA and Principal with CliftonLarsonAllen LLP’s (CLA) Denver office and has more than 16 years of auditing and consulting experience serving state and local governments in Colorado and across the country. She is well versed and experienced in single audits as most of her clients receive some level of federal funding and is heavily involved with consulting services related to this area. She has presented on the Uniform Guidance, single audits, and governmental accounting both nationally and locally, including sessions at the Colorado Government Finance Officers Association (CGFOA) annual conference, and other state and local training conferences. Allison is the West Region Strategy Leader for CLA’s state and local government national team. She received her bachelor of science in accounting and finance from Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio and is an AICPA, COCPA, CGFOA, and GFOA member.

Morgan Mauricio is the Controller for Cherry Creek School District, bringing more than 17 years of experience in governmental accounting and public-sector financial management. She oversees the district’s financial reporting, compliance, and fiscal operations, ensuring resources are managed effectively to support student success.

Before joining the district, Morgan worked in public accounting, serving state and local governments by providing financial statement audits, single audits, and consulting services. Earlier in her career, she worked in county government, assisting with budgeting, accounting, and property management. These roles strengthened her expertise in public-sector finance, auditing, and compliance, providing a strong foundation for her leadership in school district finance.

Morgan is committed to advancing school finance practices statewide. She serves on the Colorado Department of Education’s Financial Policies and Procedures Advisory Committee, the Education Data Advisory Committee, and the Colorado Statewide Investment Program Board of Trustees, helping promote transparency and data-driven decision-making in education.

A graduate of Regis University, Morgan earned both a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science in Accounting and is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). She values collaboration, integrity, and innovation in public financial management.

Justin serves as the Director of the City and County of Denver’s Budget and Management Office, where he oversees the city’s budget process and multi-billion-dollar budget and leads efforts to ensure fiscal responsibility and strategic resource allocation. Prior to this role, Justin served as Finance Director for Denver Human Services. He began his career in public service with the city in 2014 as an analyst in the Budget and Management Office.

Justin holds bachelor’s degrees in political science and economics from the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton School, as well as a master’s of public affairs from the LBJ School at the University of Texas at Austin.

A proud Denver resident, Justin is passionate about public service and the opportunity to help shape policy in the city he calls home. Outside of work, he enjoys road trips, exploring Colorado, and hiking with his dog, Zuus. Justin has summited all 58 of Colorado’s 14ers and is currently working toward completing the state’s 100 highest peaks, the centennial 13ers.

Richard L. Wobbekind is Associate Dean for Businesss and Government Relations, Associate Professor of Business Economics and Finance, and Faculty Director of the Business Research Division at the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado at Boulder.

He participates annually in the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank Regional Economic Roundtable and is a contributor to the Western Blue Chip forecast newsletter and the National Association for Business Economics (NABE) economic outlook and policy surveys. He is a member of the Boulder Economic Council. He serves as a board member for the Western Regional Science Association. Rich is past President of the NABE.

He is frequently interviewed by local and national broadcast and print media. He has received numerous awards for his teaching research and service including the University of Colorado Community Outreach Award (1997); member of Distinction by the Boulder Chamber of Commerce (2002); the Robert L. Stearns Award from the University of Colorado Alumni Association for career achievement in teaching, research and service(2006); the Thayne Robsen award from the Association for University Business and Economics Research for career achievement in applied regional economic analysis (2008); key contributor by the Boulder Chamber of Commerce(2010); and named a fellow by the National Association for Business Economics. (2011). In 2022 and 2023 he was been named to the top 50 list of influential business leaders in Northern Colorado by Bizwest.

Dr. Wobbekind teaches MBA students in macroeconomics and public policy. He has received four awards for teaching excellence from the students of the Leeds School of Business. Richard Wobbekind has lived in Colorado for over 43 years and has spent much of his time studying the development of the Colorado and regional economies. Dr. Wobbekind received a BA in Economics from Bucknell University and an MA and Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Colorado-Boulder.