Foundation’s CU Philosophy Training held September 10-17 in Madison
MADISON, WI (September 26, 2014) -- Forty-four credit union professionals became certified Credit Union Development Educators (CUDEs) last week after being guided by eight dedicated program facilitators and mentors through the intensive Credit Union Development Education (DE) Training from the National Credit Union Foundation (NCUF). The Fall DE training was held September 10-17, 2014 at the Lowell Center on the University of Wisconsin campus in Madison, Wis.
After attending the Fall DE Training, Laida Garcia, NCUF Chairman and President/CEO of floridacentral Credit Union in Tampa, Fla, said, “NCUF’s DE training was an enriching experience that will stay with me for years to come. While I have 35 years of experience in the credit union industry, my week at DE Training re-kindled my passion and spirit for our cooperative movement and roots.”
Team Projects
DE Training provides critical lessons in cooperative principles, credit union philosophy and international development issues while incorporating challenges credit unions face today. During the recent week-long program, participants were involved in group exercises, field trips, discussions with speakers from around the credit union system, and are required to complete team projects proposing solutions for credit unions to help alleviate or eliminate challenging situations in any given area. For this class’ final case studies, participants worked through and presented solutions to critical issues that included opening an Islamic banking center, board development and recruiting including the debate over compensation, credit union solutions to payday lending, microfinance to women in the Philippines, credit union membership growth and engagement, and a small credit union merger dilemma.
Class Graduates
The Fall 2014 graduating class included credit union movement representatives from across the U.S., Trinidad and Tobago, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The class graduates are: Mike Akers, Tallahassee-Leon FCU in Florida; Arlene Babwah, Coastal FCU in North Carolina; Lynne Bjorgo, Credit Union National Association (CUNA) in Wisconsin; Nicole Bowen, Fairfax County FCU in Virginia; Kyle Brisendine, Resource One CU in Texas; Yola Charles, COPOS Credit Union Society Limited in Trinidad and Tobago; Sherry Conroy, MECU in Maryland; Carol Davis, American Airlines FCU in Texas; Nicole DeAngelis, Seasons FCU in Connecticut; Judy Ensweiler, Cornerstone Credit Union League in Texas; Danny-Lee Francis, General Employees Co-operative CU Limited in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; Danielle Frawley, Fort Community CU in Wisconsin; Jared Fredeking, First Priority FCU in West Virginia; Laida Garcia, floridacentral CU in Florida; Pascual Garrido, SCE FCU in California; Patti Hazlett, Mountain West CU Association in Colorado; Dave Hinchey, Wepawaug-Flagg FCU in Connecticut; Dallas Kaiser, Peach State FCU in Georgia; Melanie Liddicoat, CUNA Mutual Group in Wisconsin; Carin McClain, Montana Credit Unions for Community Development in Montana; Gina McNeal, Border FCU in Texas; Nelson Medina, Guadalupe CU in New Mexico; Nikki Moore, Space City CU in Texas; Biutel Moreno-Emeric, American Airlines FCU in Texas; Hope Newton, MECU in Maryland; Connie Paniagua, San Mateo CU in California; Aerik Radley, Edge FCU in New York; Krista Raines, WV Central CU in West Virginia; Phil Redmond, Peach State FCU in Georgia; Jamie Saunders, Coastal FCU in North Carolina; Susie Scadlock, First CU in Arizona; Jessica Scheidler, Filene Research Institute in Wisconsin; Judy Scott, League of Southeastern CUs in Florida; Tiffany Sharpensteen, Amarillo Community FCU in Texas; Natalie Sherry, CUNA Councils in Wisconsin; Frances Tiger, American Airlines FCU in Texas; Debra Trautman, Maine CU League in Maine; Lisa Vandys, Carolina Foothills FCU in South Carolina; Maria Vigil, Guadalupe CU in New Mexico; Michelle Wallace, COPOS Credit Union Society Limited in Trinidad and Tobago; Sharon Weinberg, TwinStar CU in Washington; Ben Weismer, CUNA Mutual Group in Wisconsin; Tammy Williams, Best Advantage CU, a Division of CitizensFirst CU in Wisconsin; and Debbie Ybarra, Peoples Trust FCU in Texas.
2015 Winter & Spring DE Training Registrations Still Open
Registration is still open for the first two DE training programs of 2015, which will take place January 14-21, 2015 at the American Airlines Training & Conference Center in Dallas, Texas and April 29-May 6, 2015 in Madison, Wis.
Registration for the trainings can be found on the NCUF website by clicking the “Register for DE Training” button on the homepage or anywhere on the website under “Foundation Programs>Development Education>Register for 2015 DE Trainings” at the top of every page.
More Fall DE Training Testimonials
“DE training is by far, a life changing event,” said Frances Tiger, Administrator-Business Development at American Airlines FCU in Fort Worth, Texas. “I had no idea about the depth of what I was a part of in the credit union movement and would recommend this training for all employees of credit unions.”
"There are a lot of tough decisions having to be made in the credit union industry right now,” said Danielle Frawley, Vice President- Marketing & Communications at Fort Community CU in Fort Atkinson, Wis. “DE Training is a solid reminder to always ask ourselves ‘What's best for our members?’, and when we keep that as our focus, those tough decisions aren't so tough anymore."
“Getting back to our credit union roots and what makes our movement unique was really important to me and I head back to my organization with a clear understanding on how we can do things better,” David Hinchey, Marketing Manager for Wepawaug-Flagg Federal Credit Union in Hamden, Conn. "Simply put, I can tell our credit union story better than I ever imagined."
“NCUF’s DE Training is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to learn deeper and broadly experience the movement you are a part of – more than any other credit union industry education you may ever go through,” said Debra Trautman, Vice President-Corporate Marketing for the Maine Credit Union League in Portland, Maine. “By mentoring, team-building and engaging in hands-on exercises and simulations, you leave this week-long session as a devoted advocate for credit unions in the U.S., and around the world. You are committed to action – looking at ways to improve our financial cooperative structure and outreach to be the best for our members … now and into the future.”
*Note to editors: a high-resolution version of the graduation image above is available here:
Also, there are some candid shots available from Andy Janning that are available here: