Debra Hopkins, the previous head of the NIU CPA review and my first accounting teacher back in the early 90s, died in an auto accident yesterday. She was a great, great woman who was one of the people responsible for making the NIU Accounting program one of the top in the country.

http://www.wifr.com/home/headlines/Semi-...60961.html

Oh wow....terrible to hear, I know she was a grandmother and she was such a vibrant and enthusiastic woman...

Never had her as a teacher and did my CPA studying outside of NIU,so we never connected while in school....but she did the CPA training for the Audit Firm I worked at out of school...was a sweetheart of a woman....prayers for her family...

Debra will be missed. She is a personal friend and I worked for her all through my college years. For those of you unfamiliar, she was a huge role in putting NIUs accountancy department on the map and with the credentials it has. For those that knew her, she will be remembered for her unshakeable positive attitude and energy.

wow, yes, a great lady and incredible teacher

Very sad and prayers go to her family and friends. I did not have her as an instructor, but knew her through various alumni and recruiting functions.

Our son knew her well when he recently graduated from NIU and took the NIU CPA Review Course. The NIU Accountancy department was already on the map (through legends like Don Kieso, Pat Delaney, John Simon and others), but Debra kept NIU on the map (no easy task) and enhanced our reputation by continuing the tradition of great instruction and CPA exam results. She is also a legend at NIU and I am proud to have known her.

A little more about her:

https://www.icpas.org/hc-media.aspx?id=22184

http://www.niutoday.info/2012/06/07/reti...a-hopkins/

(09-02-2014 03:27 PM)niuaccy1976 Wrote:  Very sad and prayers go to her family and friends. I did not have her as an instructor, but knew her through various alumni and recruiting functions.

Our son knew her well when he recently graduated from NIU and took the NIU CPA Review Course. The NIU Accountancy department was already on the map (through legends like Don Kieso, Pat Delaney, John Simon and others), but Debra kept NIU on the map (no easy task) and enhanced our reputation by continuing the tradition of great instruction and CPA exam results. She is also a legend at NIU and I am proud to have known her.

A little more about her:

https://www.icpas.org/hc-media.aspx?id=22184

http://www.niutoday.info/2012/06/07/reti...a-hopkins/

Dr. Delaney for accounting and Dr. Wright for law... Dr. Wright can still be seen at the basketball games!

Email regarding services and memorials today from the NIU College of Business:

It is with great sadness that we share with you the news of the sudden passing of Debra Hopkins, former Director of NIU’s CPA Review and NIU alumnus (MAS, 1987). Debra was involved in a fatal auto accident near Rockford on Monday, September 1. Debra was a key faculty member in the College of Business and the Department of Accountancy and led the highly acclaimed CPA Review Course from 1991 until her retirement in 2012. Her enthusiasm and passion for teaching helped thousands of accounting students pass the CPA exam on the first attempt – a notable feat. She was a CPA, Certified Internal Auditor, former chair of the Illinois CPA Society Board of Directors and former Illinois representative to the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Council. She was named the Illinois CPA Society Educator of the Year in 1997 and received their Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013.

Debra was named one of NIU’s 25 Amazing Women in 2006 - a title that unquestionably fit Debra. She was a member of NIU’s family for 27 years, and she will be sorely missed by everyone.

Visitation is Friday, September 5 from 3:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Anderson Funeral Home, 2011 South Fourth Street, DeKalb. Her Memorial Service is Saturday, September 6 at 1:00 p.m. at the First Lutheran Church of DeKalb, 324 North Third Street, DeKalb.

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to the Debra Hopkins Memorial Fund, sent to the Hopkins Family in care of Anderson Funeral Home.

http://northernillinois.imodules.com/con...7e25a2ead1