LAS VEGAS-Three college students interning at credit unions were exposed to the broader industry picture during the African-American CU Coalition's Annual Conference here.
Danny Evans, a student at Morgan State University and a staffer at Atlanta City Employees CU; Amber Ware, who studies at Towson University and is a teller at Municipal Employees CU of Baltimore, and Briana McPherson, a Morgan State student who also works at MECU, said they were excited to see how credit unions work and expressed an interest in careers in the movement. "I want to be a regulator and work at NCUA," Evans told CU Journal.
According to Ware, being a teller at a CU means, "You think you know everything, but being involved in this program has taught me I didn't know anything."
Evans and Ware, along with Adria Johnson, a student at Drexel University who works for State Employees CU, each were recipients of the AACUC's Pete Crear $2000 Scholarships. The scholarship is open to those participating in the AACUC's Reaching Toward to the Future Intern Program, as well as any junior or senior enrolled in an accredited college or university.
Sheilah Montgomery, secretary of the AACUC board and a member of the Coalition's Scholarship Committee, said the internship program has "really exposed the interns to the credit union movement."
"They've been able to talk one-on-one with credit union CEOs, which you don't normally get," she said. "They really value that experience, and they value being a part of the credit union, as opposed to just being employed. They are much more passionate than a normal summer worker."
