Chapter Awards Presented in Nashville

Each year at the ACFE Global Fraud Conference, the ACFE recognizes local chapters that have gone above and beyond their missions with two awards: Chapter of the Year and Chapter Website of the Year. This year’s awards were presented to the Tampa Bay Chapter and Houston Chapter, respectively.

The 2017 Chapter of the Year was accepted by Steven Hooper, president of the Tampa Bay Chapter. The Tampa Bay Chapter is dedicated to providing its members with the most valuable, current techniques used to detect and deter fraudulent acts.

Tampa Bay Chapter leaders accepting the Chapter of the Year award

The chapter held seven training events in 2016, including their Annual Fraud & Computer Crimes Seminar last May worth 16 CPE credit hours. The chapter regularly engages their members with emails that drive them to their website, and they also use social media to inform the community and chapter members of chapter activities.

The chapter has provided scholarship funding to criminology, accounting and ethics students at six local colleges and universities. Currently, each school is awarded $500-$1,000, and they each establish a scholarship selection committee to receive applications, review them and select the recipients. Since 2001, more than $65,000 has been awarded to students. 

The chapter also engages in multiple community service projects throughout the year. They were presented with a formal proclamation presented by the Hillsborough County Board of Commissioners declaring the week of November 13-19, 2016, as International Fraud Awareness Week. The result was publicity for the Chapter and International Fraud Awareness Week.

Ryan Hubbs, CFE, accepting the Chapter Website of the Year award on behalf of the Houston Area Chapter

The 2017 Chapter Website of the Year was accepted by Ryan Hubbs, former president of the Houston Chapter. The Houston Chapter’s website recently went through a significant redesign. They listened to their members and their site now provides a platform that streamlines the ability to locate relevant information and interact with the chapter safely and securely. 

The website allows members to update their chapter membership information easily, accept payments for membership and register for local events. The website highlights the benefits of chapter membership and provides a link to donate to the Houston Chapter Scholarship.

The Fraud Resources section of the website is a public resource managed and compiled by the Houston ACFE Chapter Fraud Research Director, chapter members and area fraud professionals. It is a compilation of links to online fraud information, investigative tools and research-related information. Both fraud fighters and the media use it to explore fraud-fighting topics.

Both winners were selected by the Chapter Leaders Committee and chosen from among nominations submitted between January and March earlier this year. Congratulations to both winners!