DakCU announces Board of Directors
BISMARCK, ND (May 18, 2022) — The Dakota Credit Union Association (DakCU) held their annual meeting on May 11, 2022, at the Holiday Inn – Rushmore Plaza in Rapid City, South Dakota. Order of Business was the election of the DakCU Board; two incumbent seats up for election were uncontested, and one new candidate ran unopposed.
The DakCU board is made up of seven members consisting of three North Dakota division members and three South Dakota division members, along with one multi-state at-large position. The board oversees the association as well as the Dakota League Service Corp (DLSC), the for-profit service corporation of DakCU. Following a reorganizational meeting, we are pleased to announce our 2022 board members and their roles.
Katie Bredvik – Bredvik was elected by acclamation – SD Division C. Katie was named CEO of Coteau Valley FCU in 2017. She is a lifelong resident of the Sisseton area. She attended Black Hills State University in Spearfish, and later graduated from Lake Area Tech in Watertown with degrees in business and photography. She completed CUNA Management School in 2021, earning her Certified Credit Union Executive (CCUE) designation.
Lacey Fetsch – uncontested – ND Division B. Lacey began working at University FCU (Grand Forks, ND) in 2004 while attending the University of ND. After graduating from UND with a BA in Banking and Financial Economics, she became a full-time employee and held the titles of Loan Officer and Director of Operations before becoming CEO in 2016. She graduated with High Honors from CUNA Management School in 2018 and holds the Certified Credit Union Executive (CCUE) designation. She has served on the Maurie C. Byrne Chapter since 2011. She was elected to the DakCU board in 2019.
Jarrod Reisner – uncontested – SD Division A. Jarrod began working at Black Hills FCU (Rapid City, SD) in 2009. His current title is Chief Financial Officer. He graduated from SD State University with a BS in Management and holds a CPA license. He has been on the association board since 2016, is a member of the SD GAC, and is a board member for Midwest Business Solutions, LLC dba Pactola.
Sean Rinkenberger – Multi State At Large. Sean has worked at First community Credit Union (Jamestown, ND) since 2015, starting as Controller, and taking on the CFO role in 2016. He holds a CPA license, making his start in public accounting where he worked with financial institutions ranging in size from $20 million to over $1 billion in total assets. He was elected to the association board in 2018.
Darla Schafer – ND Division C. Before becoming the Manager of Flasher Community CU (Flasher, ND), Darla served on the credit union’s board of directors. She holds an Associate Degree in Electronic Technology from Bismarck State College and an Associate Degree in Theology from Yankton College. Darla is a longtime member of the Dakota Credit Union Foundation Board and has been a member of the ND GAC for more than ten years.
Melanie Stillwell – ND Division A. Melanie is the CEO of Western Cooperative CU (Williston, ND) and was first elected to the association Board in 2017. She has vast experience in the credit union industry, as a senior vice president of finance, as a former NCUA examiner, as an executive vice president, and as CEO. She holds degrees in both accounting and finance as well as a CPA Certificate.
Dawn Van Ash – SD Division B. Dawn has been involved with credit unions for 35 years. Starting as a teller, she was promoted to several roles including loan officer and assistant manager, prior to becoming CEO of Oahe FCU (Pierre, SD). A South Dakota native, she is a graduate of CUNA management School and was elected to the DakCU board in 2020.
L to R: Jeff Olson, DakCU President/CEO; Katie Bredvik, CEO Coteau Valley FCU; Melanie Stillwell, CEO Western Cooperative CU; Jarrod Reisner, CFO Black Hills FCU; Dawn Van Ash, CEO Oahe FCU; Lacey Fetsch, CEO University FCU; Darla Schafer, Manager Flasher Community CU; and Sean Rinkenberger; CFO First Community CU.
About Dakota Credit Union Association (DakCU)
The Dakota Credit Union Association (DakCU) is the professional financial trade association serving 64 credit unions that employ nearly 2,200 individuals across the Dakotas. With more than 531,000 members in North and South Dakota, Dakota credit unions have assets exceeding $10.6 billion. In our mission to help credit unions succeed, DakCU plays a key role in growing membership and helping to provide service excellence to members from offices in Bismarck, ND and Sioux Falls, SD. For more information visit our website.
