Credit Union National Association honored CORE Federal Credit Union as a national Desjardins Award winner for the sixth consecutive year for its work in promoting youth financial literacy.
This is the first time in the history of the Desjardins Award that a credit union has received the award in six consecutive years. The award was presented at CUNA’s Governmental Affairs Conference in Washington, D.C. on March 1, 2017.
The Desjardins Awards are named for Alphonse Desjardins, the founder of the North American credit union movement, and honors credit unions for their commitment to youth and adult financial literacy.
CORE was named as an award winner from among all state-wide winners throughout the country for credit unions in the $50 million to $250 million dollar asset size range. CUNA currently has over 1,000 member credit unions in the $50 million to $250 million range.
CORE opened the first student-run credit union in Central New York at ESM High School in 2005. The credit union operates an extensive financial literacy program that includes three student-run credit unions at ESM, Cicero-North Syracuse, and Morrisville-Eaton high schools, in addition to several K – 6 school banking programs in both public and private schools and student facilitated adult education seminars.
Using a unique “Students as Educators” model, all of CORE’s programs provide high school students the opportunity to learn about personal finance, to teach their peers, to serve as mentors and role models for younger students in the school district, to team-teach adult education sessions with school board members and credit union personnel, and also to become certified as volunteer tax preparers under the IRS VITA program.
CORE has presented its program nationally at credit union conferences and actively works with other credit unions and school districts to assist them in enhancing their own student financial literacy programs. “CORE Federal Credit Union’s commitment to youth financial education is outstanding among their peers,” said CUNA Judge Kathy Chartier, President and CEO of Members Credit Union in Connecticut. “They are filling a gap in our education system and preparing youth to be financially smart young adults. Their method of training high school students to teach elementary and middle school students is ingenious. Congratulations to CORE Federal Credit Union!”