In the first-of-its-kind event that marked the culmination of Filene’s Racial Economic Equity (REE) Incubator program, the Catalyst Award winning project was announced amidst a gathering of credit unions, community partners, and industry experts. The capstone projects showcased at Spark! 2024 on July 10 demonstrated the innovative spirit and commitment to social change that is the hallmark of the credit union movement.
“Collaborating with credit unions and community partners through our Racial Economic Equity Incubator has been a profoundly inspiring experience,” expressed Filene’s Head of Incubation, McKaye Black. “The significant impact each team has achieved in advancing racial equity in their communities, coupled with the thoughtful support and camaraderie they’ve extended to one another, truly reflect the core mission of credit unions – people empowering people.”
A Movement of Social Innovation
Launched to address racial economic disparities, the REE Incubator facilitated deep collaboration between credit unions and community stakeholders, leveraging Filene’s innovation method and expert coaching provided by Peter Holmes, CEO of CEII (Community Entrepreneurship and Innovation Institute) and his team. Over 18 months, the cohort-model program brought together 9 credit unions, 11 community partners from New York to Hawaii and coaches, enabling a network of support that would test the idea that organizations addressing societal problems can be stronger together while creating greater improvements in economic equity within their communities.
While 9 credit union teams with their community partners worked on programs to address Racial Economic Equity, four teams competed to win the prestigious Catalyst Award.
Catalyst Award Winner: A Testament to Community Impact
The Catalyst Award project top two finalists presented their stories to the entire Spark audience. They were celebrated for their exceptional contributions to economic equity.
Hazelmae Overturf from Kaua’i Federal Credit Union and Makana Reilly from Hawaiian Community Assets demonstrated a profound commitment to serving their community and addressing racial economic disparities. Their coach Beverly Wolfe shared this sentiment stating, “Working with Kaua’i Federal Credit Union and Hawaiian Community Assets was a rewarding experience, showing me what true partnership and community compassion is. Their understanding of community needs and implementation of valuable programs led to their success in the REE Incubator challenge.”
Angela Weekley and Ana Hernandez from Veridian Credit Union, in collaboration with Ali Parrish and Amanda Herold-Mahncke from Iowa Heartland Habitat for Humanity, Karin Rowe and Susan Backes from House of Hope, Lekeisha Veasley, Madelyn Ridgeway and Sharina Sallis from 24/7 BLAC, Sarah Helleso from Try Pie Bakery, and Stephanie Shavers from City of Waterloo, Iowa worked to develop “Achieve,” a financial empowerment program to serve African Americans in their community. Weekley stated their project goal together “is to make sure African Americans in Blackhawk County are liberated to have financial stability and build wealth.”
The winning team, Kaua’i Federal Credit Union and Hawaiian Community Assets, was selected through voting by the audience at Filene’s Spark event.
Their work was to create downpayment assistance and cesspool to septic conversion green lending programs to build Native Hawaiian homeownership on Kaua’i. They won the audience vote and were awarded $10,000, made possible by sponsor organizations Target Foundation and TruStage Foundation, to continue the project work which is projected to reach $1 million in green lending in 2024.
In closing, Overturf and Reilly shared a Native Hawaiian saying: “No task is too big when done together by all.”
Filene thanks all presenting teams in the REE Incubator Catalyst Award competition which also included:
- Municipal Credit Union and The Bronx Community Foundation
- MSU Federal Credit Union and GreenPath Financial Wellness
- Chartway Credit Union and Norfolk State University
Thanks to a generous additional contribution by Renée Sattiewhite of AACUC, all teams competing walked away with financial contributions to the ongoing success of their project work.
Judges and Coaches: Voices of Experience and Encouragement
During the judging portion of the competition, Filene CEO Mark Meyer emphasized the significance of the work being done by the participating teams. “Credit unions are there for people, and while it is important to focus on the business, there is no credit union business without the work that these teams are doing. How do you take a bite out of a problem so big? It is this work right here, being done credit union by credit union, community by community.”
The esteemed panel of judges, including Meyer, Emily Gnam of TruStage, Renée Sattiewhite of AACUC, and Filene Fellow Jeffrey Robinson, provided insightful feedback and guidance to the teams.
CEII program coaches Peter Holmes, Terri Quinton, Beverly Wolfe, Howard Holley, and Shellee Mitchell offered unwavering support and mentorship to the participants throughout the program. CEII coaching provided the “catalyst” to help the teams better focus their solutions and examine ways to make it scalable and repeatable by other credit unions and their partners. Their dedication to fostering growth and innovation within the credit union movement was evident in the success of the capstone projects.
Coach Holmes echoed Meyer’s sentiment at the conclusion of the capstone presentations, stating, “we are just at the end of the beginning. Through these handful of projects alone, credit unions in communities across the country were talking to individuals they had never reached before — imagine the possibilities of this work at scale.”
Gratitude for Support and Collaboration
What began with 9 credit unions, 11 community partners, and 5 expert coaches has grown into a movement that is much more than the sum of its parts. Those credit unions that were unable to present during the Spark program due to resource changes and time commitment challenges, but still committed to the overall direction of REE included:
- Allegiance Credit Union & Scissortail Community Development Corporation
- FAMU Federal Credit Union and Capital City Chamber of Commerce
- Hiway Credit Union & Right Track
- Marine Credit Union & Marine Credit Union Foundation
As Judge and Fellow Dr. Robinson aptly put it, “social innovation is the superpower of credit unions!” The REE Incubator program has laid the foundation for a future where credit unions continue to lead the way in addressing racial economic disparities, one community at a time.
For more information about Filene’s REE Incubator, visit filene.org/REE. Those interested in learning more about lessons learned from the project teams can register now for Filene’s “Empowering Change” webinar on Aug. 20, see filene.org/events for details.
About Filene: Filene Research Institute strengthens organizations through innovative research and incubation to improve consumer financial well-being. As an independent cooperative finance think tank, Filene’s membership network connects a community of leaders and bright minds to change lives through innovation, truth and cooperation. In addition to delivering cutting-edge, actionable academic research, Filene also provides incubators to test and scale solutions, events to spark organizations into action and advisory services to help accelerate and implement innovation. For more information, visit filene.org and follow on LinkedIn.
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