Important News. . .
Legislative Action Alert issued. The second year of the 97th Illinois General Assembly just began January 31 and ICUL has issued an Alert. For all of the details in the Alert, please see the League's Web site.
ICUL Board election ballots due February 15! Ballots for affiliated credit unions to vote on the slate of 2012 League Board of Directors nominees were mailed on January 12, 2012 to all affiliated credit unions. Ballots need to be received by the independent teller of elections, Selden Fox, no later than February 15, 2012. Winners will be announced on or before March 1, 2012. If you have any questions regarding the election process and/or view the nominee profiles, please see the League's Web site or contact Vicki Ponzo, ICUL Senior Vice President, Member Services.
Annual Convention goes mobile! Information and resources related to the 82nd Annual Convention have been significantly enhanced and are now available, including a new mobile web site. With the location and other changes related to the Convention this year, this is an opportune time for a mobile site as a way to provide more information at the fingertips of attendees. The mobile site is intended to work with smartphones via either scanning what's called a QR Code or if a user enters the Annual Convention page URL directly from their smartphone, they will be automatically re-directed to the mobile site. In addition, users of "tablets" (e.g., iPad, Kindle Fire, etc.), will still see the regular site as it still shows well on those devices. Check it out today! For assistance with using the mobile site, please contact William Wille, ICUL PR Coordinator.
REAL Solutions enhanced FiCEP program offered for second year in Illinois. In bringing back the REAL Solutions® Enhanced Financial Counseling Certification Program (FiCEP) for the second year, two significant modifications are being made to enable as many Illinois credit unions as possible to participate in the program. These enhancements include a reduction in cost and an increase in number and locations of proctored test sites. The Illinois Credit Union Foundation board of directors has generously agreed to cover the cost of the REAL Solutions enhancements, which had been shared among the participants last year, so the only cost to Illinois credit unions is the purchase of the FiCEP books and exams from CUNA. Relative to testing sites, exams took place last year only at the ICU System offices in Naperville. However, the expansion of new testing sites for the 2012 program will include Chicago, Danville, Gurnee, Moline, Rockford and St. Louis. In the first year of the Illinois program, 23 individuals from 11 credit unions "graduated" as Certified Credit Union Financial Counselors (CCUFC). Information about FiCEP and Illinois’ REAL Solutions effort may be found via the League's Web site.
Illinois movement loses long time leader. Robert Albrecht, a member of Sherwin Williams Credit Union board of directors for 62 years, passed away January 20. Even at 95 years old, he was still active with the credit union. There he chaired the finance committee, provided his help to both the insurance and building committees and held the offices of president and treasurer. Robert was also a member of the Illinois Credit Union Hall of Fame, inducted in 1996. For over a quarter of a century, he held the title of Governor of the Southeast (now Chicago Metro) Chapter and won the Illinois Credit Union League Merit Award in 1981. He helped start two credit unions and served as the financial advisor to a third. Robert wished for his body to be donated to science. The family planned to hold a memorial service.
Young professionals have until February 17 if they want to "Crash Illinois". Young professionals age 30 or younger will have the opportunity to “crash” the League's 82nd Annual Convention. This initiative is part of The Cooperative Trust (formerly The Crash Network), a grassroots organization comprised of hundreds of young credit union professionals. With most credit union employees under 30 having limited or no access to networking, professional development and growth opportunities, the idea behind Crash Illinois, like other Crash events, will be to create a low-cost event within and alongside major credit union conferences, such as ICUL’s Convention. Sponsored by ICUL and CUNA Mutual, Crash Illinois will give young credit union professionals the opportunity to participate in the event by attending the full convention as well as additional mentor sessions with industry thought leaders each day and building relationships with other young credit union professionals. After a Crasher welcome on Thursday, prior to the Annual Convention kick-off, a half-dozen other sessions and a lunch will be held for this special group. Crash Illinois is limited to 15 people and those interested must apply by February 17 via the Crash Illinois Web site. Crash attendees will be announced during the week of February 20.
Dates & Events. . .
Please consider entering the annual Spirit of Service Award competition. Nominations are being sought for Volunteer of the Year and Employee of the Year and are due by February 24. For more information and/or an entry form, please see the League's Web site or contact William Wille.
The registration and hotel information to participate as part of the Illinois delegation at the 2012 CUNA GAC is available. The 2012 GAC will be held Sunday March 18 -Thursday March 22. Please note the registration deadline is February 12. To download the packet with all the details, please see the League's Web site. Please don’t hesitate to contact Pat Huffman with any questions. Scholarships from the ICU Foundation are also available to attend this event.
Early bird Convention deadline approaching. Be sure to register for ICUL’s 82nd Annual Convention by February 24 to take advantage of early bird rates (save $25 per regular attendee, $5 per guest)! As the League has been announcing, this year’s Convention will take place April 26 – 28 at a new location – the Schaumburg Renaissance Convention Center. For all the registration details as well as all event information, please see the League’s Web site.
Legislative Day and Governor’s Mansion Reception. Please mark your calendar to attend the League’s annual Legislative Day event, which is scheduled for May 9. The 2012 event will include a trip back to the Governor’s mansion for the reception as well as an earlier shift in the schedule to hopefully provide better opportunities in which you can visit your local state lawmakers. Complete details for the 2012 event will be provided soon via a brochure mailed to all credit unions.
Educational Opportunities. . .
Statistics show that online ad budgets are on the rise. Are you taking advantage of the digital wave? The Ins and Outs of Paid Advertising on the Internet QuickBites, to be held on February 7 (session code: 421), will cover tips and strategies for getting started with online advertising and getting the most out of your online ad budget. The program will also look at which venues make the most sense for a credit union, which ones to stay away from, and the do’s and don’ts of online advertising.
The Introduction to Lender Flood Compliance, a special 90 minute QuickBites on February 15 (session code: 426), will provide a basic introduction to flood insurance compliance. It targets staff new to the industry and/or flood compliance. This session will introduce attendees to the National Flood Insurance Program and how it works, its compliance history, and the basics of the mandatory purchase requirements as established by the National Flood Insurance Reform Act of 1994.
The Internet Lending QuickBites on February 22 (session code: 428) will present trends in the financial area that reflect the consumer's preference in doing banking. As a matter of fact, Ally Bank, ING and USAA have already positioned themselves nicely for capturing future business -- have you? This session will give ideas and best practice programs that allow for your members to find remote channels to be a great solution for "time starved" individuals.
Cyber thieves have been compromising accounts through online banking systems at break-neck speed. Once cyber thieves gain access to an account through the online banking system, they transfer funds to accounts at other institutions, foreign and domestic. They are even compromising credit union accounts at third party providers. The Online Banking Risks Quickbites, to be held February 23 (session code: 429), will include an overview of these issues.
The Robbery - Premise and Building Security QuickBites, to be held February 28 (session code: 430), will provide a detailed review of the fundamentals of the crime of robbery and theft prevention for small to mid-sized to large credit unions. We will focus on "Premise and Perimeter Security" and a credit union's response protocols.
During 2012, ICUL is continuing to host webinars with the Michigan League. This month’s webinars include: Tips to Managing Interest Rate Risk Webinar on February 9, Strategies to Increase Non-Interest Income Webinar on February 14, and Getting Serious About Remote Deposit Webinar on February 16. For more details on these sessions, please see the League’s Web site.
Bank Secrecy Act training is available on demand! The Bank Secrecy Act requires that all frontline personnel be trained on money laundering and the responsibilities of the financial institutions on currency reporting and suspicious activity every year.
Also on available on demand for 2012: Financial Exploitation of the Elderly. Elder abuse training – regarding financial exploitation of the elderly -- is now required for employees and officers with direct customer contact. See the ICUL education calendar for the schedule or contact the Education Department for assistance.
Play it again! The audio archive of all QuickBites and telecourses for 2012 has been increased to 60 days with paid registrations for most sessions. Whether you were unavailable for the scheduled date and time of a particular call or just want to hear the session again, you will have 24/7 access for the entire 60 days after the scheduled session. This feature enhances the value of audio training and is included for no additional charge. Archives are activated within 48 hours of the live event.