Scholarship & Grant Deadline. The first review for 2008 scholarships and grants (Community Service, Small Credit Union Development, Marketing and Business Development, and Financial Independence & Revitalization Effort (FIRE)) will take place following the March 31 application deadline. Printable application forms are available on the ICUL Web site. Grant application review deadlines are March 31, July 31, and October 31. Grant seekers are encouraged to complete and return the application form to the Foundation as early in the year as possible since grants are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. Applications will be reviewed as long as grant funds are available. March 31 is the main scholarship application deadline. Scholarship seekers are encouraged to complete and return the application form to the Foundation as early in the year as possible since most scholarships are awarded following the March 31 deadline. During the remainder of the year, scholarships will be awarded on a first-come, first served basis for as long as funds are available. If you have any questions about the grant programs, contact Vicki Ponzo or Melanie Murphy at the Foundation using the toll-free number 800-942-7124.

Celebration Weeks Announced. National Credit Union Youth Week is set for April 20-26, 2008, go to www.cuna.coop to access promotional materials. The fifth annual National Youth Week Savings Challenge, sponsored by the Credit Union National Association (CUNA), is held in conjunction with National CU Youth Week. The theme for both is "Got Green?" and features an environmental/natural resources conservation theme. Money Smart Week, which is sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, is holding two Money Smart Weeks in the state. The first is April 6-12, 2008 and will be held in Rockford, Peoria, Bloomington/Normal, Champaign/ Urbana, and areas in between. The second is April 20-26, 2008 and will be held in the Chicago metropolitan area. Go to www.moneysmartweek.org for more information. International Credit Union Week is set for October 13-17, 2008, with Thursday, October 16 designated as International CU Day. These celebratory times are always held during the third week and third Thursday of October, respectively. Go to www.woccu.org for more information or to purchase promotional materials.

Award Deadlines Announced. Applications for the League's Spirit of Service awards is February 28. Applications for the 2007 Desjardins Youth Financial Literacy, Dora Maxwell and Louise Herring awards is August 1. Applications for the League's Hall of Fame award is December 31. Information and application forms for all of the award programs can be accessed online at the League's Web site.

IYIC Donates $18,500. The Illinois Youth Involvement Council (IYIC) raised money during 2007, primarily through candy bar sales, and donated proceeds to CUPAC ($6,000), the ICU Foundation ($6,000), the new membership outreach campaign "I-Belong" ($3,500), and the Washington CU Foundation ($3,000) for the Biz Kid$ Program.

CUDE Exchange. Selfreliance Ukrainian American FCU has been selected as one of the first four credit unions to participate in a week-long staff member exchange with a community development credit union, Vernon-Commerce CU (Commerce, CA). This project is part of the Credit Union Development Corps, a new exchange program from the National Credit Union Foundation and the National Federation of Community Development Credit Unions. Individuals involved with the program are Credit Union Development Educators (CUDE).

Milestone Anniversaries. Congratulations to the following credit unions who will celebrate milestone service anniversaries during 2008:

75 Years
Bloomington Postal ECU
Community Trust CU

50 Years
CPT CU
Credit Union 1
Earthmover CU
Greater Institutional AME Church CU
IBEW Local 146 CU
Joliet Firefighters CU
MEA CU
MWPH Grand Lodge of Illinois FCU
New Trier FCU
Niles Township Schools CU
NIU EFCU
School District No. 9 CU
Springfield City ECU
St. Jude CU

25 Years
Funeral Service CU

New CEOs. Welcome to the following new CEOs of Illinois credit unions: Abbot Laboratories ECU - Thomas Frohne, Chicagoland Electrical Industry CU - Suzanne Kuh, Motor Coach ECU - James Kerner, School District No. 9 CU - Lisa Reeves, an USA One National CU - Jerry Haley.

Grand Openings. The following credit unions recently opened new facilities: Baxter CU in Vernon Hills, Chicago Fire Officers Association CU in Chicago, Corporate America Family CU in Crystal Lake, DuPage CU in Glen Ellyn on the College of DuPage campus, Great Lakes CU in Zion, IAA FCU in Bloomington, Illinois State Police FCU in Springfield, Peoria Hiway in Peoria, R.I.A. FCU in Milan, Scott CU in Millstadt and in Mascoutah, Streator Onized CU in Dwight, and Tee Pak CU in Danville

Retirements. Best wishes to the following CU CEOs who recently retired: Abbott Laboratories ECU - Thomas Reimholz, and Area Educational CU - John Swick

Passings. The credit union movement mourns the loss of William F. Schraft, former board chairman at Bensenville Community CU.

Certificate Program Changes. Effective February 1, 2008, all certificate programs (STAR, MERIT, VAP/VLP) will be available direct via CUNA’s Center for Professional Development in an effort to improve the correspondence program by giving you more convenient and timely processing. Through this new partnership, Illinois credit unions will see lower prices for the materials as a result of volume pricing via CUNA. All questions regarding certificate program material orders, invoices, or purchase returns should now be placed through CUNA Customer Service and credit unions will be invoiced directly for all purchases. The grading of tests, sending grade letters, and maintaining the participant’s academic records will be handled by CUNA and transcripts will be housed at their offices. In addition, all certificates of completion will still be signed by Dan Plauda, ICUL president/chief executive officer. Please note all courses and exams are available at CPDOnline - CUNA’s eLearning System. At this site, your students can take all exams and receive their grade results within seconds. Students and credit union trainers also have 24/7 access to individual transcripts, plus more options are available for trainers. You may call contact Cheryl Washington, ICUL Educational Marketing Coordinator at 630-983.3417, or CUNA CPD at CPDOnline@cuna.com or 800-356-9655, ext. 4131 for general information on all certificate programs. In addition, to find out more about CPDOnline, visit www.cuna.org/training.html, and click on CPDOnline.

Education Calendar. Add to your knowledge or sharpen your skills by attending one of more of these outstanding educational events.