NEW YORK — A new resource for small, minority-owned and faith-based credit union made its debut earlier this month.
The My Credit Union Mentor program is a joint project of the National Federation of Community Development Credit Unions (Federation), the African-American Credit Union Coalition (AACUC), and the Network of Latino Credit Unions and Professionals (NLCUP).
The three groups pointed out that in many of the communities where Federation, AACUC and NLCUP members operate, community development CUs are the only financial institution providing safe and affordable financial products and services to low-income families, immigrants, seniors and young people who are looking for alternatives to mainstream banks.
The program intends to bring in mentors from all corners of the credit union community to provide, "the expertise small credit unions need to remain a vibrant resource in their communities," the three groups said in a statement.
Mentorship opportunities are available in a number of subject areas, including: strategic planning, lending, marketing, secondary capital, board governance, compliance, operations, budgeting and collections.
"Very small credit unions face all the same challenges as larger credit unions, often with fewer resources. Preserving these credit unions — many of which are minority or faith-based — is critical," said Cathie Mahon, president and CEO of the Federation. "This mentorship program calls upon the cooperative nature of our industry to share expertise across our industry to the benefit of all."
Maria Martinez, NLCUP board chair and president and CEO of Border FCU in Del Rio, Texas, said the mentorship program will "open opportunities for members and affiliates of NLCUP to use their expertise by assisting others within our credit union movement."
"In the past our NLCUP members have successfully transmitted their knowledge of our industry to our peers. Mentoring is a mutual process where everyone benefits; we've learned so much from others," Martinez said.
Mentors will share their skills and experience on a volunteer basis. The Federation, AACUC and NLCUP said they will jointly run the program, supported by a database of mentors, prospective and participating CUs.
Credit union professionals interested in becoming mentors are invited to complete applications at
