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Prairie Trail CU opened in-school, student-run branches in two District 204 Joliet Township High Schools during the first week of September.
JT Credit Union is a collaboration between Prairie Trail Credit Union, Joliet Township High School District 204, Will County Regional Superintendent of Education Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant, and Will County Treasurer Pat McGuire. McGuire proposed the idea to Prairie Trail CU in December 2007. McGuire, a past board member of the Joliet Township High School board of education, considers District # 204 to be the perfect community for this project.
During the fall of 2007, Prairie Trail CU's board of directors identified membership growth as the focus for 2008 with strong emphasis on the youth, unbanked or underbanked, and Hispanic markets. This project fits into the CU's goals. The student-run branch targets the youth market and increases the community's awareness of the credit union by reaching more than 5,200 students and 650 employees in Joliet Township. Additionally, 51.5 percent of students from the district are from low-income families.
“We are as excited about opening these branches as the students are. Our goal is to help teach students the basics of money management and bring the value of mainstream banking to life by giving each student a solid foundation on which to make financial decisions for their future,” said Matthew Thraen, President/CEO of Prairie Trail Credit Union. “The school-based branches are a unique opportunity for the students working in JT Credit Union and all the students at JT Central and West who now will have access to basic money management skills including budgeting and saving.”
The student workers will be part of the Cooperative Education program. They will perform teller transactions and plan and implement marketing promotions. In addition to working in the school branch, they will have an opportunity to work at the CU's main office.
The credit union received a Financial Independence & Revitalization Effort (FIRE) grant from the Illinois Credit Union Foundation to set-up operations at both schools. The purpose of the FIRE program is to provide assistance to credit unions to expand their ability to build and maintain viable communities by providing credit and financial services to residents and businesses in low-income and underserved areas of Illinois. Grants of up to $15,000 are available to credit unions to provide a variety of membership programs.
Prairie Trail CU has an award-winning history of youth outreach. The CU received the First Place Award in the 2007 Desjardins Youth Financial Education competition for the $35 to $75 million-asset category.
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