Misti Hodges
Dear members, colleagues, friends, and potential new members,
I am proud to serve as your 2017-2018 International Secretary/Treasurer. With over 20 years of membership in the International Association of Workforce Professionals (IAWP), I have been involved in all levels of the association. IAWP has been and will always be a vital part in a continual effort to make myself a better person, public servant, and volunteer.
I started my career with the Kentucky Division of Unemployment Insurance back in 1992. I became a member of IAWP shortly thereafter and loved everything about it, my job and my coworkers. But honestly, I dreamed of bigger and better things than state government work.
After successfully passing the certified public accountants exam, I found myself in a position in which I was unable to fulfill the work experience requirement for the license. When the opportunity became available to transfer to the Kentucky Revenue Cabinet in order to work with a currently licensed CPA, I jumped at the chance. After all, I just had to earn those three little letters behind my name…CPA. And earn them I did in 1997, just a couple of months prior to the birth of my daughter.
Once my daughter arrived, everything changed! The yearly number of out of state trips to conduct Kentucky Sales Tax audits became almost too much to bear. In fact, my first trip after her birth was to Oklahoma City, OK. While there, my coworker and I visited the site of the terrorist bomb attack on the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. Keep in mind; this was prior to the memorial site. All that was present was a chain link fence where thousands of people had left notes, stuffed animals, and pictures for all the individuals lost on that horrible day. But it was the items left in memory of all the children lost that broke my heart the most. I knew, in that moment, that my dream of a candy apple red Mazda Rx7 with a personalized “CPA” licenses plate was no longer important. Financial success and prestige were no longer my goals. Instead, my focus became family first and then helping and serving others. Educating ourselves on how to better help and serve others is a fundamental part of IAWP!
It took nearly three years, but I found myself back where I started at the Kentucky Division of Unemployment Insurance. I now have 20 years of experience in Kentucky Unemployment Tax and have spent the last 10 years as an UI Tax Audit Area Supervisor While, I have continued to maintain my CPA license and complete my bi-annual continuing education requirement, it’s not for any prestige or recognition. My CPA license and work experience, along with my various involvement with IAWP through the years, have equipped me with the knowledge to be a better person and volunteer. That’s my motivation regardless of where I am. If I’m at work, working as a band booster treasurer, church volunteer, or being a wife and mother, I always strive to go over and above what’s required to help someone. Again, that’s what IAWP is all about? Educating and equipping our members to successfully serve others.
What we all do matters! Because of that, I give you my word to be an effective, fiscally responsible International IAWP Secretary/Treasurer. I’m excited to see what the future has in store for IAWP – International Association of Workforce Professionals and I hope you are too! Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.