Novogradac Names Nine New Principals, Expanding Coast-to-Coast Expertise

SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 24, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- National accounting and consulting enterprise Novogradac elevated nine managers to principal Sept. 1–Dan Emerman and Chris Horning of the Cleveland office; Heath Hawkins, Travis Vance and Nathan Wacek of the Dover, Ohio, office; Anthony Nguyen and Grace Yu of the Long Beach, California, office; David Ortega of the Fort Lauderdale, Florida, office; and Andrea Sivells of the Austin, Texas, office.

"My partners and I are proud to recognize this exceptional group of professionals," said Michael J. Novogradac, managing partner of Novogradac. "Promoting from within strengthens our leadership and ensures our clients benefit from deep, proven expertise."

Emerman has more than 10 years of public accounting, tax and auditing experience. Emerman's primary practice areas are the new markets tax credit (NMTC) and historic tax credit (HTC) communities, performing compliance testing, audit, taxation and consulting services. He received a bachelor's degree in finance from The Ohio State University and a master's degree in accounting at Cleveland State University. He is licensed in Ohio as a certified public accountant.

Hawkins specializes in NMTCs, renewable energy tax credits, HTCs and the opportunity zones (OZ) incentive. Hawkins performs numerous services related to these industries, including financial statement and cost certification audits, tax preparation, general and compliance consulting, and financial projection and forecasting services. Hawkins is also involved in the Novogradac Employee Leadership Council, as well as the Novogradac Women and Allies and Novoco Pride employee resource groups. He earned bachelor's degrees in accounting and business pre-law from Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, and he is a licensed certified public accountant in Ohio.

Horning provides audit, tax and consulting services for real estate partnerships, developers, investors and nonprofit organizations within the low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) and HTC world. Horning's primary expertise includes services for developments subject to the regulatory requirements of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and has experience with the regulatory requirements of the California Housing Finance Agency and California Department of Housing and Community Development. He received a bachelor's degree in accounting from Cleveland State University and is licensed in the state of Ohio as a certified public accountant.

Nguyen specializes in providing audit, final cost certification, tax, attestation and consulting services to a variety of clients in the real estate industry. Nguyen has experience working with the LIHTC, with tax-exempt bond-financed developments and those subject to the auditing requirements of HUD. Nguyen received bachelor's degrees in accounting and management information systems from California State University, Long Beach. He is licensed in California as a certified public accountant.

Ortega joined Novogradac in 2022 and focuses on providing audit and consulting services to the privately held companies, with a focus on the renewable energy industry. Before joining Novogradac, Ortega was a manager at Marcum LLP (now CBIZ), where he oversaw assurance engagements for more than six years. Ortega has extensive experience with clients in many industries, including renewable energy, manufacturing and distribution, health care, and employee benefit plans. He earned his bachelor's and master's degrees in accounting from Nova Southeastern University and is licensed in Florida as a certified public accountant.

Sivells offers a range of services to clients, including audit, tax and development consulting, specifically for real estate developers in the affordable housing sector. She left Novogradac between 2021 and 2023 to work as a development consultant. This period allowed her to acquire crucial experience in areas such as site selection, managing LIHTC applications from start to finish, and navigating HOME and national Housing Trust Fund financing procedures. She successfully presented requests before the state agency board, secured multiple LIHTC awards for her clients and dedicated a significant amount of her time to financial modeling and deal restructuring. This helped developers overcome challenges related to labor shortages, inflation and fluctuating interest rates. Upon her return to Novogradac in fall of 2023, she has returned to audit and tax work, while also continuing to offer a range of development and consulting services to the firm's clients. Sivells holds a bachelor's degree in accounting from Texas State University and is a certified public accountant licensed in Texas.

Vance provides audit, tax and agreed-upon procedures services in the NMTC, HTC and renewable energy arenas. Vance specializes in providing services in the renewable energy sector, including transaction consulting, financial forecasting and cost segregation studies. He is also a frequent speaker at the firm's NMTC preconference workshops. He received a master's degree in accounting from the University of Akron and is licensed as a certified public accountant in Ohio.

Wacek has 10 years of experience with a strong emphasis on audit, specifically for real estate partnership entities. His experience in the real estate world is highlighted by expertise with affordable housing developments, including LIHTC cost certifications, mortgagor's and contractor's cost certifications, and those subject to the auditing requirements of HUD with Section 8 contracts and those financed under HUD Sections 221(d)(4) and 223(f). Wacek received a bachelor's degree in business administration with concentrations in accounting from Ohio University and is licensed as a certified public accountant in Ohio.

Yu, who joined the firm in 2022, specializes in providing tax compliance and planning services for high-net-worth individuals, trusts and estates. She has experience working with closely-held partnerships in the real estate industry. Yu received her bachelor's degree from the University of California, Berkeley, her master's degree in taxation from Golden Gate University, and her designation as an enrolled agent to practice before the Internal Revenue Service.

About Novogradac
Novogradac, which has been in business for more than 35 years, has grown to more than 800 employees and partners with offices in more than 25 cities. Tax, audit and consulting specialty practice areas for Novogradac include affordable housing, community development, historic rehabilitation and renewable energy.

For additional information on Novogradac's personnel and areas of expertise, visit www.novoco.com or call (415) 356-8000.

SOURCE Novogradac & Company LLP