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Another credit union is set to strengthen its brand through a partnership with a local college: Wings Financial Credit Union, which has teamed up with the athletics program at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn., the $7.9 billion, Apple Valley, Minn.-based Wings Financial Credit Union announced Tuesday.
Wings Financial is now the exclusive banking partner of St. Thomas Athletics, the private Catholic university's athletic program, according to a joint announcement from the credit union, St. Thomas Athletics and its multimedia rights holder Tommie Sports Properties. The partnership will include the release of a co-branded debit card, financial literacy programs for student athletes, a presence during game days and an annual contribution by Wings Financial to the 1904 club, a fund supporting the mission of St. Thomas athletics.
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Financial terms of the deal, which was finalized with assistance from the Minnesota-based sports marketing firm The Sports Consulting Team, were not disclosed.
"Wings is looking forward to our partnership with Tommie Athletics to support student athletes and the broader community through our nationally recognized financial products and great service while reinforcing our commitment to higher education," John Wagner, SVP – member experience for Wings Financial, stated. "We look forward to engaging with students and the entire team at Tommie Athletics at many games and special events while having some fun at the same time. We'll be developing programs unique to the St. Thomas community we hope students will find valuable."
St. Thomas Athletics runs 21 varsity sports programs – all of which Wings Financial will have the opportunity to engage with as a result of the partnership. In 2020, the athletic program received approval from the NCAA to make the rare jump from its Division III classification to Division I. The University of St. Thomas has approximately 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students, and is the largest private school in Minnesota.
"We are excited to partner with Wings Financial as the official banking partner of Tommie Athletics," Dr. Phil Esten, vice president, director of athletics for the university, stated. "Wings is fully committed to the future of St. Thomas Athletics and the comprehensive student-athlete experience. This partnership will allow us to continue our exciting transition to Division I athletics through further investments in enhanced fan experience programming, student and alumni engagement and community involvement."
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Natasha Chilingerian
Natasha Chilingerian has been immersed in the credit union industry for over a decade. She first joined CU Times in 2011 as a freelance writer, and following a two-year hiatus from 2013-2015, during which time she served as a communications specialist for Xceed Financial Credit Union (now Kinecta Federal Credit Union), she re-joined the CU Times team full-time as managing editor. She was promoted to executive editor in 2019. In the earlier days of her career, Chilingerian focused on news and lifestyle journalism, serving as a writer and editor for numerous regional publications in Oregon, Louisiana, South Carolina and the San Francisco Bay Area. In addition, she holds experience in marketing copywriting for companies in the finance and technology space. At CU Times, she covers People and Community news, cybersecurity, fintech partnerships, marketing, workplace culture, leadership, DEI, branch strategies, digital banking and more. She currently works remotely and splits her time between Southern California and Portland, Ore.
