Forty-two credit union professionals were certified as Credit Union Development Educators (CUDEs) after completing the National Credit Union Foundation’s Credit Union Development Education (DE) Training.

The November DE Training was held Nov. 2018 at the Lowell Center in Madison, Wis. and was attended by employees and volunteers from credit unions and system partners across the United States and the world.

“Attending DE Training was incredibly transformational for me,” said Zachary Churchill, vice president of Lending at USF FCU, Tampa, Fla. “The experience reinvigorated my passion to do extraordinary things and showed me how much credit unions can do to not only serve our members, but to truly transform our local communities. Talk about motivation to come to work every day!”

DE Training is an experiential training program that provides lessons in credit union structure, purpose and how they differentiate from other financial institutions. During the National Credit Union Foundation’s week-long program, participants are involved in group exercises, field visits and interactive speaker sessions that provide insights into how credit unions can leverage their unique business model to help their members and communities overcome the financial and developmental issues they face.