WILLISTON, Vt. – New England FCU partnered with the Vermont Children’s Hospital for the Big Change Roundup, an annual event during which Change Bandits round up loose change and donations from their friends, family and members of the community.

DALLAS – Texas FCU has chosen TRC Interactive to deliver the company’s First Line of Defense – Fraud Detection and Loss Prevention Challenge, an online exercise to keep staff focused on the latest frauds.

BETHPAGE, N.Y. – Bethpage FCU said it signed with cuautocoupon, based in nearby Hauppauge, to offer the company’s member discounts coupon program.

WASHINGTON – Long-term mortgage rates moved lower this week after jumping the week before, according to Freddie Mac.

PASADENA, Calif. – A federal appeals court this week affirmed a lower court’s conviction of a former ATM specialist at Pacific Marine CU at Camp Pendleton, who walked out of work one day in 2002 with a tissue box-sized brick of 1,000 $100 bills stuffed into a backpack.

DULUTH, Ga. – Georgia United CU on Thursday announced CEO Warren Butler is retiring after 29 years with the credit union and Douglas Foote, its chief operating officer since 2003, is being promoted to president of the recently $900-million credit union.

MIAMI – A federal magistrate has ordered Space Coast CU to a non-binding mediation session with lawyers from five Wall Street banks and two rating agencies regarding the credit union’s $100-million claim related to a failed investment the banks sold Eastern Financial Florida CU, a failed Miami credit union acquired by Space Coast in 2009.

MALVERN, Penn. – Akcelerant Holdings, the provider of loan origination and collections software, said today it has acquired CU Data Miner, LLC, a Phoenix provider of business intelligence reporting customized for credit unions.

WASHINGTON – An angry group of Republican lawmakers decried President Obama’s recess appointment to direct the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and vowed this morning to challenge the controversial maneuver that bypassed the Senate’s confirmation process.

SAN ANTONIO – Generations FCU celebrated the grand opening of five new branches inside H-E-B Grocery Stores Tuesday.

BALTIMORE – Horsetail Technologies and Credit Union Journal have partnered to make an extraordinary offer that will result in one credit union receiving a $100,000 Extreme Network Makeover.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana University CU on Wednesday said it awarded a $10,000 grant to support the Graduation Coach Initiative, a financial literacy program of the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce.

THREE RIVERS, Mich. – The CEO of a now-defunct St. Joseph Valley Community FCU yesterday pleaded guilty to theft charges for using her credit union credit card to rack up more than $100,000 of personal expenses.

FORT DODGE, Iowa – Citizens Community CU announced the retirement of Paul Becker, who has headed the one-time Hormel CU since 1976, building it into a $145-million credit union.

RALEIGH, N.C. – State Employees’ CU is partnering again with the State Employees Association of North Carolina to offer discounted tickets to the state’s major amusements, including Busch Gardens, Carowinds, Jungle Rapids Family Fun Park, Kings Dominion, Myrtle Waves, NASCAR Speedpark, Pavilion Nostalgia Park and Wet’nWild Emerald Pointe.

EL PASO, Texas – El Paso Employees FCU is celebrating its rebranding as Evolve FCU with a film festival featuring local filmmakers.

DENVER – Bellco CU has extended its contract with local marketing company GroundFloor Media to provide the $2-billion credit union with comprehensive media support.

FORT WAYNE, Ind. – 3Rivers FCU broke ground on its headquarters Wednesday, part of a $15-million project.

KAILUA-KONA, Hawaii – Hawaii Community FCU yesterday said employees improperly accessed personal information of several hundred members nearly a year ago.

WASHINGTON – Sen. Dick Durbin has proposed legislation that would allow private student loan debt to be discharged in bankruptcy, as all non-mortgage debt can be, although borrowers still would be responsible for paying federal student loans.