LA HABRA, Calif. — American First CU has offered select members in good standing an opportunity to dodge a potential financial bullet.

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. — The majority of credit union CEOs across the country interviewed by Credit Union Journal say the agency is not, although to be sure NCUA also has its defenders.

NCUA's recent guidance on corporate restructuring has many CEOs contending the regulator has "pulled the rug out" from under them, reversing its original "hands-off" policy regarding reconstitution of the corporate network.

We must reject the notion that the volunteer nature of many credit union directors absolves them of being held to the highest standards.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's broad and undefined powers promise to exact a high price on Main Street financial institutions.

I believe credit unions can — and will — meet their challenges successfully, either by focused effort or merely by being what they are: Cooperative institutions that are the best options for consumers of financial services. Here's what brings me to my sunny outlook ...

With the issuance of NCUA's Letter to Credit Unions (10-CU-03) on concentration risk, many credit unions are taking a long look at their overall risk-management processes.

Credit union executives today need a new model of leadership. Yesterday's autocratic and chain of command models don't fly anymore.

They'll come. They'll speak. And for many of them, they'll thank God they're not attached to a lie detector. And so it will go again this week as CUNA hosts its Governmental Affairs Conference (GAC) in Washington.

WASHINGTON — John McKechnie will retire from the credit union movement next week after 25 years, the first 20 as a CUNA lobbyist and the last five as NCUA's congressional liaison and public affairs spokesman.

SHREVEPORT, La. — For 2011, the African-American Credit Union Coalition expects it will place as many as 30 minority students in internship positions at credit unions, with the goal of developing more minority leaders within the credit union movement.

CHICAGO — North Side Community Federal Credit Union (NSCFCU) has entered into a joint venture with the Howard Area Community Center (HACC) in Chicago's low-income Rogers Park neighborhood.

MADISON, Wis. — The pursuit of young people to keep credit unions both alive and relevant has increasingly become the Holy Grail, especially since the average membership age continues to hover around 47 years old, well past the borrowing prime and 10 years older than the mean age of the US citizen, according to the U.S. Census.

SANTA ANA, Calif. — In the recent debate about immigrants, one of the points often lost in the discussion is the valued contributions that so many have made to this nation. Rudy Hanley is a noteworthy example

What is to be made of Dan Mica, the Herb Wegner Award winner for Individual Achievement and the only CEO of this time period who left on his own terms and was not shown the door like his predecessors?

DES MOINES, Iowa — After a two-year hiatus from credit unions, JoAnn Johnson has returned as head of Iowa's credit union agency.

Credit Union Journal Asked: When meeting with a newly elected official our most effective strategy for explaining the credit union difference is...

DES MOINES, Iowa — To hear Iowa State Rep. Bob Kressig tell it, getting involved in both credit unions and politics isn't unlike the first day of school as a child.

FLOODWOOD, Minn. — Jeff Kletscher hopes he can someday move up the political ranks to help out many small towns in Minnesota.

REXBURG, Idaho — Credit unions need to watch their backs or risk losing their advamtages, according to Kimber Ricks, who believes credit unions should become even more involved in politics.