The 2023 Wisconsin CUNA Award winners have been announced! These programs are designed to encourage and recognize distinguished credit unions which demonstrate social responsibility, credit union philosophy, and financial education.
Dora Maxwell Award
The Dora Maxwell Social Responsibility Community Service Award recognizes the charitable work and external programs of credit unions that benefit local communities, including fundraising and volunteering.
- Altra Federal Credit Union received the Dora Maxwell Award for their “Best Life Community Awards (BLCA) which are member driven community grants. Members of Altra nominate non-profit organizations that they have supported in the last 12 months with time, talent, and/or treasure. Altra then awarded nearly $90,000 to those organizations in the communities.
Alphonse Desjardins Award
The Alphonse Desjardins Financial Education Awards recognize outstanding involvement in financial education. Two separate awards recognize credit unions' efforts to financially educate youth and adults.
- Adult - Altra Federal Credit Union received the Alphonse Desjardins Award for its development of a robust financial wellness program which includes financial coaches, education programs and resources, a financial wellness quiz, and collaboration with other are groups, vendors, and organizations.
- Adult - Royal Credit Union received the Alphonse Desjardins Award for their Correctional Facility Financial Education (CFFE) program. This program has proven to be a catalyst for change and a beacon in the credit union movement’s commitment to financial well-being for all. Justice-involved individuals are an underserved population that often struggle to receive access to legitimate financial services and educational support. Since Royal began the program 2015 with one partner facility in Wisconsin, it has grown into a respected CFFE model that has helped thousands of people take positive steps towards achieving financial well-being.
- Adult - WESTconsin Credit Union received the Alphonse Desjardins Award for its 4-week incentivized challenge that encouraged employees to complete weekly financial education courses on our online financial education program, Banzai. In just four short weeks, over 200 employees completed more than 500 interactive Banzai courses that focused on managing a budget, saving for a financial goal while balancing unexpected bills, and making tough choices when it comes to saving and spending. In addition, employees read over 110 Banzai articles that covered more complex financial topics. Not only were employees able to shift focus to their own personal finances, but it also gave them the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the program to confidently refer it to members.
- Youth - Altra Federal Credit Union received the Alphonse Desjardins Award for its commitment to financial education efforts, including launching the Zogo app for Gen Z to "earn while they learn," continuing its partnerships with Altra Jr., Banzai!, and Balance, and providing financial literacy presentations to over 4,179 students in the past year.
- Youth - WESTconsin Credit Union received the Alphonse Desjardins Award for its use of Banzai. Since 2011, WESTconsin has offered Banzai, the interactive financial education resource that uses courses to teach basic and advanced financial concepts. In partnership with Banzai, WESTconsin has served over 600 teachers and educated over 55,000 students in 208 schools across 18 counties in Wisconsin and Minnesota. Using Banzai, teachers can sign up for a virtual classroom where they can assign courses, download worksheets, and order workbooks for their students, all for free. In the 2022-2023 school year alone, students have spent over 10,000 hours in the program engaging in and learning financial concepts and life skills that often are not taught in the traditional classroom setting.