6 Credit Unions Hire & Promote 18 Professionals

WEST

Oregon State Credit Union ($2.1 billion, Corvallis, Ore.) hired Derrick Peterson as EVP/CFO. Peterson brings more than 25 years of experience in the credit union industry, including 10 as CFO for the $990 million Deseret First Federal Credit Union in West Valley City, Utah. In his new role, Peterson will lead, organize, plan and control the financial operations division and payment systems at Oregon State CU, including preparing the credit union budget, and leading the development of the credit union’s annual plan and financial projections. He will also direct the design and implementation of accounting, investments and asset liability management, and oversee CUSO management. Peterson began his career at Credit Union One in West Jordan, Utah (now the $370 million American United Federal Credit Union), where he filled roles that included loan officer, branch manager, IT specialist and accountant. He then went on to serve as CFO at Colorado Credit Union ($373 million, Littleton, Colo.), Public Employees Credit Union ($452 million, Austin, Texas) and Greater Texas Credit Union ($971 million, Austin).

The $1.1 billion, Albuquerque, N.M.-based Sandia Area Federal Credit Union promoted Robert Nagaki to CFO. Nagaki previously served as treasury and ALM officer. He has been in the financial and credit union industry for 14 years, holds a Chartered Financial Analyst certification and received his MBA from the Anderson School of Business at the University of New Mexico.

EAST

The $2 billion, Lowell, Mass.-based Jeanne D’Arc Credit Union announced a new hire and six promotions.

Mark McDermott was hired as assistant vice president – operational risk management. McDermott brings more than eight years of experience in risk management. In his new role, he will oversee a small team and be responsible for the credit union’s vendor management, risk assessments and application safety. He holds an MBA, cyber policy degree and Juris Doctor from Utica University in Utica, N.Y.

Robert Boley was promoted to vice president – business services. Boley began his career at Jeanne D’Arc in 2016 as manager of the Westford Branch in Westford, Mass., and shortly after, he joined the business services team. In 2020, he was named assistant vice president of business services. In his new role, Boley and his team will look for new, innovative products to offer members.

Catherine Casey was promoted to assistant vice president – financial wellness. She joined the credit union in 2010 as a teller in the Lowell Branch. Throughout her career at Jeanne D’Arc, Casey has held numerous positions including her most recent role as branch manager of the Dracut Bridge Branch in Dracut, Mass. In her new role, she will oversee the financial wellness and high school branch teams, and develop and implement various educational programs to serve local schools and community groups.

Emily Farnham was promoted to vice president – payments and loan servicing. She joined Jeanne D’Arc in 2004. In her new role, Farnham will oversee the loan servicing department and continue oversight of the credit union’s traditional payment features. She will also look for ways to improve both internal and external loan experiences for members.

Amber Overko was promoted to assistant vice president – mortgage and secondary market servicing. Overko joined Jeanne D’Arc in 2002 and spent most of her career with the credit union on the member experience team. In her new role, she will manage the department that is responsible for maintaining federal and state compliance regulations for numerous loan programs. Overko received an advanced financial services diploma in 2014 and a financial services management diploma in 2017 from the Center for Financial Training.

Rachel DaSilva was promoted to cybersecurity officer. In her new role, Rachel will collaborate with current and new security vendors and manage documentation, vulnerability and risk assessments, intrusion prevention and many other activities to keep the credit union and its members safe. She is certified in IT Security and Project Management.

Scott Vandemark was promoted to assistant treasurer – technology operations support manager. He joined the credit union in 2021, and prior to that worked in IT at Newburyport Bank for seven years. In his new role, he manages a team of technical support specialists who are responsible for technology repairs, facilitating software updates, and establishing IT and security protocols.

Daniel (Dan) Belanger was promoted to assistant vice president – financial analytics. He joined Jeanne D’Arc’s finance department in 2011, and his new role, Belanger will be responsible for a myriad of financial analytics and be a key contributor to the credit union’s budget and financial planning. In addition, he will continue to manage a team while overseeing the reporting and analytics capabilities of the finance department. He holds an MBA from the University of San Diego.

MIDWEST

The $1 billion Marine Credit Union in La Crosse, Wis., hired Joumana Mcdad as its first chief service delivery and experience officer. In her new role, Mcdad will be responsible for supporting the teams that plan and execute all aspects of the member experience, including branch locations, the contact center, marketing, member experience and digital product solutions. She most recently served as EVP and chief strategy and innovation officer for One Detroit Credit Union ($55 million, Detroit, Mich.), where she drove the credit union’s strategy and oversaw human resources, marketing, community partnerships, sales and member experiences. She is a graduate of CUNA Management School with a Certified Credit Union Executive designation.

Tigers Community Credit Union, a division of the $433 million, O’Fallon, Mo.-based West Community Credit Union, promoted Nick Cox to branch manager of the Grindstone branch in Columbia, Mo. In his new role, Cox is responsible for leading all operational aspects and member experience of the branch, as well as managing the Grindstone location team. He has seven years of experience in banking as a branch manager.

SOUTH

The $636 million, San Antonio, Texas-based Air Force Federal Credit Union announced six new hires.

Ricardo (Rick) Ledezma was hired as vice president – CFO. In his new role, Ledezma will oversee the accounting department and develop the credit union’s investment strategy. He brings 17 years of experience in treasury management, corporate compliance and sustainable lending. He holds an MBA from the University of Texas at San Antonio, and prior to joining AFFCU, Ledezma served as treasury manager and director of sustainable lending at the $3.6 billion Credit Human Credit Union in San Antonio.

Erika Lanciault was hired as director of the project management office. In her new role, she will develop and direct project management operations and strategic planning. With over 26 years in the banking industry, her experience spans across project management and corporate facilitation to include instructional design, vendor management, systems/operations management and technical support. She brings expertise in stewarding executive level project governance, overseeing large technology implementations and aligning software product development with strategic business initiatives. Lanciault holds certifications as a Program Management Professional, Agile Certified Practitioner and Microsoft Office Master. She most recently served as SVP, program manager at Broadway Bank.

Eric Sanchez was hired as assistant vice president – sales and service performance. In his new role, Sanchez will spearhead a consultative sales and service culture while driving member engagement within AFFCU’s seven financial centers. He holds an MBA in human resources from UIW in San Antonio and brings over 15 years of experience in development, training and financial services organization leadership from his time with the CUSO Credit Union Student Choice, Generations Community Federal Credit Union ($729 million, San Antonio) and Wells Fargo.

David Lancaster was hired as SVP – chief lending officer. In his new role, Lancaster will oversee the lending and asset recovery departments, developing and executing lending strategies while creating innovative loan promotions. He brings over 30 years of experience and most recently served as vice president of lending at Pen Air Federal Credit Union ($2.3 billion, Pensacola, Fla.).

Andrew Ramos was hired as vice president – digital and product integration. Under his leadership of the account services department, his team will focus on digital, credit and debit products, deposit strategy and project management. Ramos joins the organization with more than 18 years of leadership experience in consumer lending, and digital and product management. Most recently, Ramos was vice president – consumer and private bank product manager for Broadway Bank.

Yvonne De La Rosa-Flores was hired as director of compliance and risk management. In her new role, she will oversee the organization’s compliance programs and focus on enhancing risk strategies. De La Rosa-Flores brings over 30 years of experience in audit, corporate compliance, and governmental and legislative affairs. She holds an MBA from UIW. Before joining AFFCU, De La Rosa-Flores served as senior compliance and legislative affairs officer at Credit Human Credit Union.

Please send your People news items to Natasha Chilingerian at nchilingerian@cutimes.com.