EAU CLAIRE, WI – Members of the Minnesota Family Involvement Council shared their knowledge and expertise about credit unions with high school students last month at the Cooperative Network’s “Co-ops YES!” Youth Leadership Conference.
Held in Eau Claire, Wis., this annual event welcomed more than 100 Wisconsin and Minnesota high school students. Attendees learned about the role and operation of cooperatives, leadership skills and problem-solving techniques.
The FIC is a committee of the Minnesota Credit Union Foundation, which places a heavy emphasis on financial education and provides credit unions and communities with the resources to prosper and thrive. A grant from the Foundation provided scholarship funding for three students to attend the conference.
The FIC works to enhance the future of the credit union movement by providing financial awareness solutions, including its annual college scholarship program. This is the fourth year that the FIC has spoken at the Youth Leadership Conference. The speakers included Bridget Moeller of Greater Minnesota Credit Union, Amanda Kissner of Wakota Federal Credit Union, and Andrea Molnau of United Educators Credit Union.
During the FIC’s session, “Credit Unions: A Financial Cooperative, A Career,” the presenters outlined for students the difference between credit unions and other financial institutions. They talked about credit unions’ philosophy of “people helping people,” and discussed various social responsibility programs and partnerships at the state, national and international levels that are led by credit unions.
Also during the session, the credit union representatives talked about the variety of careers available within the industry. The speakers took questions from session attendees and candidly discussed job likes and dislikes, while providing tips and suggestions for students as they begin their careers.
“So often we hear from leaders within this industry that they ‘fell into credit unions,’ but have ended up spending their career in the credit union movement,” said Moeller, who is the FIC Chair. “It’s pretty clear that once people discover the credit union difference, it becomes more than just a job.”
“It is an honor to be able to educate the next generation of cooperative leaders and better equip them for their future careers,” Moeller added.
The Minnesota Credit Union Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded in 1969 to serve as a charitable arm of the Minnesota credit union movement.
For more information, visit www.mncufoundation.org.
The Minnesota Family Involvement Council is a committee of the Foundation that works to enhance the future of the credit union movement by providing financial awareness solutions. It offers an annual scholarship program and supports a variety of other initiatives throughout the year.
For more information, visit www.mnfic.org.
Cooperative Network serves more than 600 member-cooperatives, owned by more than 6.1 million Wisconsin and Minnesota residents.
For more information, visit www.cooperativenetwork.coop.