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McKeever receives AICPA’s highest honor

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Lester McKeever Jr., CPA, J.D., is a partner with Mitchell Titus in Chicago and is a former chairman of the Chicago Federal Reserve. He was presented with the AICPA Gold Medal Award of Distinction in October.
Lester McKeever Jr., CPA, J.D., is a partner with Mitchell Titus in Chicago and is a former chairman of the Chicago Federal Reserve. He was presented with the AICPA Gold Medal Award of Distinction in October. (Photo by Alyssa Schukar/AP Images)

Lester H. McKeever Jr. is the recipient of the 2018 AICPA Gold Medal Award of Distinction, the highest honor given by the AICPA. Since 1944, it has been awarded to CPAs whose influence on the accounting profession has been especially notable.

McKeever has served as chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, chair of United Way of Metro Chicago, chair of the Chicago Urban League, and University of Illinois board of trustees treasurer. A founding member of the CPA Endowment Fund of Illinois, McKeever has paved the way for numerous African-Americans and members of other underrepresented minorities interested in pursuing careers as CPAs.

He has served on the AICPA’s Small Business and Minority Business Development committees. He also received the Illinois CPA Society’s Lifetime Achievement Award, and in 2016, the society renamed its awards for members working to advance diversity in the profession after McKeever.