RALEIGH, N.C. - One credit union that has come to the rescue of a state student lending program has found a way to make up for other lenders’ decisions to pull out of student lending in a significant way–but it won’t be making a single loan itself.

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. - CUNA Mutual CEO Jeff Post is among those who believe student lending holds great promise for credit unions.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. - NCUA said last week it paid $107.4 million to Patelco CU to induce the San Francisco credit union giant to acquire the remnants of Cal State 9 CU, the biggest credit union failure ever.

CARLISLE, Penn. - CUs that want the benefits of offering student loans without the potential downside of creating their own program have a variety of alternatives available to them.

NEW LONDON, Conn. - NCUA closed and liquidated New London Security FCU, a $12.7-million credit union that holds almost no loans.

WASHINGTON - In a rare Saturday session, the Senate approved the massive housing rescue package, which includes provisions to bail out both troubled homeowners and secondary mortgage market giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The bill was signed into law last week by President Bush.

St. Mary’s Bank, Manchester, N.H., elected Ovide M. Lamontagne to chairman and Daniel J. Healy to vice chairman.

Events

PORTLAND, Maine - A radio ad campaign launched by Maine’s credit unions promotes the benefits of shared branching during the summer travel months.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - Federal banking regulators have shuttered two banks owned by First National Bank Holding Company and sold them to Mutual of Omaha, the Nebraska insurance giant that operates a banking subsidiary.

NORTHFIELD, Ill. - The race to implement solutions that provide members the convenience of at-home banking may be a double-edged sword, as that same technology pushes members away from the branch and potential cross-selling opportunities.

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. - Northeast CU announced special loans to help all homeowners and renters in the community affected by July 24 storms to recover from physical losses to their homes and apartments.

ATLANTA - Credit unions seeking to increase branch traffic need to realize technology is not just changing the branch, but the type of traffic it is getting.

SAN DIEGO - It’s widely recognized more credit union facilities are striving to be “green.”

CINCINNATI - With location critical to the success of a new branch, more design/build firms are customizing geographic interface system (GIS) engines to identify ideal sites.

ATLANTA - Architectural and project management technology is changing the way new credit union facilities are being designed and built, and those changes could make significant contributions to the bottom line.

SAN DIEGO - The ATM as a consumer destination?

MEMPHIS - Employees and members of Memphis Area Teachers’ CU can breathe a little easier knowing that the CU’s Senior Security Officer Steve Garces is back on duty at the credit union–instead of Iraq.

MADISON, Wis. - The CUNA Councils have released new white papers on evaluating the effectiveness of credit union branches and the viability of corporate universities. Sponsored by the CUNA CFO Council, “Comments on Evaluating the Effectiveness of Branches” addresses two related questions that deal with evaluating the profitability and/or effectiveness of branches: is it possible to develop a complete profit and loss statement for a branch office, and the managerial reluctance to closing an unsuccessful branch due to the funds already expended. “Corporate Universities” by the CUNA HR/TD Council touches on both the advantages and disadvantages of developing corporate universities, utilizing case studies from two credit unions.

WASHINGTON - Determining how a credit union stands relative to its peers in terms of returning value to its members is a complex issue. Callahan & Associates, Washington, has attempted to do just that with its Return of the Member (ROM) ranking system.