New Hires Announced at Valley First, STCU, Corporate Central & Wildfire CU

WEST

The $1 billion, Modesto, Calif.-based Valley First Credit Union announced two new hires.

Charles Ciapponi was hired as director of compliance. Ciapponi brings nearly 20 years of credit union experience, including at Educational Employees Credit Union ($4.6 billion, Fresno, Calif.) and Pacific Service Credit Union ($1.4 billion, Concord, Calif.). He began his career in financial services as a customer service rep in the Fresno call center of a large national bank. Ciapponi worked his way up through lending, operations and compliance over 16 years with EECU, where he was a compliance supervisor when he left to join Pacific Service in 2020. He graduated from Western CUNA Management School in July.

Lindsay Sansen was hired as director of marketing. Sansen brings more than 16 years of experience in the financial services industry, the past eight and a half years with Patelco Credit Union ($9.6 billion, Dublin, Calif.), where she served in a variety of marketing roles including product, community, brand and channel marketing. Prior to joining the credit union movement, she held marketing positions with Safeway and Blackhawk Network, Inc,. in Pleasanton, Calif. In her new role, Sansen will lead all marketing efforts including research/development, brand management, creative development, direct marketing, advertising, product launch, website, digital marketing, social media, event planning, and project and program management.

The $5.6 billion, Liberty Lake, Wash.-based STCU hired David Rosenau as director of business banking. Rosenau joins STCU from Banner Bank, where he served as SVP and retail division manager of Banner’s Spokane, Wash.,  branches. He is a graduate of the executive development program at the Washington Bankers Association.

EAST

April Gleason, chief lending officer for the $468 million, Orono, Maine-based University Credit Union, was honored by the Maine Credit Union League as the recipient of its annual Political Involvement Award. She received the award for her contributions to the League’s legislative advocacy on behalf of Maine credit unions and their members statewide. As chief lending officer, Gleason is a member of UCU’s senior leadership team and has been with the credit union since 2003. Since 2011, Gleason has served on the board of the Maine Association of Mortgage Professionals, promoting education within the mortgage industry and providing a legislative voice to mortgage professionals in Maine. She has also served on the board of HoMEworks since 2013, helping to promote homebuyer education across the state. Gleason earned her MBA from Husson University in Bangor, Maine and is a Credit Union Business Lending Professional, a designation from CUNA.

MIDWEST

The $2.5 billion, Muskego, Wis.-based Corporate Central Credit Union hired Ken Pardon as a senior software engineer. In his new role, Pardon will deliver business process improvements and automations that provide a positive return on investment for the organization, as well as design, develop, and integrate efficient business intelligence and database systems appropriate for the business environment. He will also design and maintain front-end user interfaces, identify users’ complex problems and recommend appropriate resolutions, while understanding client needs and translating requirements into business applications. Pardon brings over 30 years of experience in various industries including manufacturing, warehousing, health care and financial services, during which time he has focused on the areas of software design and development for systems integration, data conversions, web scraping, installations, data analysis, user interfaces, web development and reporting. He has also worked in systems support troubleshooting and resolving customer software and hardware issues.

The $1 billion Wildfire Credit Union in Saginaw, Mich., hired Laura Szpont as vice president, commercial lender. Szpont brings over 20 years of experience in the banking industry, having begun her career at Independent Bank, where she worked on small and middle market commercial loans. In 2004, she moved to Commercial Alliance, where she served as COO/EVP and worked with leadership to create a commercial lending program for owner and affiliate credit unions in Michigan. She holds a master’s degree in finance with dual specialization in corporate finance and bank and financial institution management. In addition, she received a certificate for planning and zoning in the State of Michigan and formerly served as chairman of the Sterling Heights Zoning Board of Appeals.

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