WICHITA, Kansas -
“And so are the eight other female members of the CUNA board,” said Marla S. Marsh, CEO of the Kansas Credit Union Association, and a CUNA board member. “I think the representation of women is growing; I’m living proof of that, and so are the eight other female members of the CUNA board. Representation by women in leadership positions is growing throughout the system, too.”
This topic is the next installment in a series of stories being published by the Credit Union Journal focusing on diversity among national credit union boards. Previous issues featured African-American and Hispanic representation on these boards.
Marsh said she believes diversity among the national credit union leadership should be encouraged.
“As it is,” she said. “I have been encouraged to apply for or run for leadership positions throughout my career, starting with my run for chairmanship of the National Youth Involvement Board in the 80s to my present position as president of the Kansas Credit Union Association to serving on the CUNA board. The opportunities are there.”
Marsh said she would like to see more women take part in networking groups and other forums that provide the background and contacts that are necessary to make a successful run for a board position.
“This is something I try to talk up whenever possible in my discussions with other women in the credit union movement,” she said.
One organization within the industry that has always had women on its board is the National Federation of Community Development Credit Unions, noted Cliff Rosenthal, CEO of the Federation. “And our last two board chairs were women,” he said.
Among those Federation board members is Helen Godfrey-Smith, CEO of Shreveport Federal Credit Union, in Shreveport, La.
“The hallmark of credit union philosophy is the democratic process,” Godfrey-Smith said. “That said, I do believe that organizations are more effective when setting policies and programs when the folks are likely to be affected by the policies/programs are part of the process.”
Godfrey-Smith said that although she sees better representation of women today than she did in the past, it could always be better.
“Yes, because there is a body of very competent leaders out there that could be the creative genius to bring to the table,” she said. “Yet, because those leaders do not match the profile of the desired leader, they may not offer themselves for service.”
To get more women involved, “there should probably be thought given to implementing term limits and recruitment as avenues to gain a better mix of diverse members on the boards,” Godfrey-Smith suggested.
“The organizations which are serious about change and inclusiveness will recognize that things don’t just happen,” she continued. “We must create opportunities and then make them happen. I am a big proponent of open discussion at the board tables, led by a competent facilitator, around these highly volatile and emotional issues. It is amazing how great people can agree on right courses when all is said and done.”
Mary Martha Fortney, president and CEO of the National Association of State Credit Union Supervisors (NASCUS), said it’s very important for national boards to reflect the diversity of its members.
“The credit union system serves members of all races, ethnicities and socioeconomic backgrounds,” she said. “Therefore, it’s important that the leadership at the national level is diverse and representative of the members credit unions serve.”
At NASCUS, the leadership is “well-represented by both women and men,” Fortney said.
“We’ve had a great diversity of men and women in the chairman role and other officer positions over the years,” she said. “Women are also well represented on the state and federal regulatory, credit union league and credit union executive levels.”
Teresa Freeborn, president of Xerox Federal Credit Union in El Segundo, Calif., and a board member of CUES, said that the lack of women on some boards might not be due to the choice of the organization, but instead the choice of the women themselves. She said that because women usually have a lot on their plates, between their full-time careers, and their families, they don’t always have time to sit on a board. Freeborn said that CUES is an exception, as the association makes board membership easier by allowing for such conveniences including teleconferencing when a board member cannot make a meeting in person.
“They respect we are all busy people,” she said of CUES. “It’s not that we don’t want to be at those meetings. It’s that we have demands competing for our time.”
Still, Freeborn said, she has seen many more women sitting on national boards over the years.
“There is less and less discussion about it because it’s becoming more common now,” she said. “Is it is as much it could be? Perhaps it’s not as much as it should be, because it’s all about how we are balancing life and our families. When forced to choose, you’d obviously choose your family.”
“I make sure women are involved in my credit union, from the staff level to the board,” she said. “Women are the ones usually making financial decisions. Women mirror our members.”
Though it’s important to discuss ways on how to get women more involved on these boards, Freeborn said “it will be great when it comes to a point where we don’t have to talk about it, and it’s normal.”
It’s a sentiment shared by Fortney. “I hope one day though that whether or not women are represented in leadership roles is not even a subject of discussion,” she said. “I hope in time that women’s integration and growth in leadership roles will be so inherent that we will no longer have to debate on the share of women’s representation in leadership.”
For more information:
www.cuna.org
www.cues.org
www.cdcu.coop
www.kcua.org
www.xfcu.org
www.shrevefcu.org
