Credit/Chartway Credit Union
On Monday it was announced that the $2.7 billion Chartway Credit Union in Virginia Beach, Va., earned the distinguished Juntos Avanzamos designation from Inclusiv – an organization dedicated to removing barriers to financial assistance and opportunities for those living in distressed and underserved communities.
Juntos Avanzamos, which means "Together We Advance," is an important designation as it reveals the steps a credit union has taken to empower Hispanic and immigrant communities in the areas served by Chartway, including its current 215,458 members.
According to a statement from Chartway, this important recognition solidifies the investments and work executives and staff have done to the credit union's operations that allow Hispanic and immigrant consumers navigate and understand its financial services, "including a Spanish-language Chartway landing page, Tu Perteneces Aqui (You Belong Here), guiding consumers to our bilingual branches, outlining our products and services, and providing information on how to join the credit union."
According to Inclusiv, only 134 credit unions have earned this designation in 28 states, including Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia.
Chartway SVP of Product and Innovation Melissa Cade said, "We know that representation matters and are honored that our hard work over the last year to expand and increase our services to the Hispanic community is being acknowledged. Our commitment to inclusivity is baked into our mission and drives our focus on providing safe, affordable financial solutions and creating a welcoming environment for all."
"On behalf of Inclusiv, we are thrilled to welcome Chartway to the growing family of Juntos Avanzamos credit unions committed to serving and empowering Hispanic and immigrant communities," Pablo DeFilippi, EVP of Inclusiv, said. "We commend everyone at Chartway for their commitment to financial inclusion and going deeper into the communities they serve, particularly Latinos who so often are overlooked by the financial mainstream and targeted by predatory lenders. We look forward to working more closely together to expand access to responsible products and asset building opportunities for Latinos and immigrants."
"We are proud of our culture at Chartway and work through our Mi Gente resource group and La Nueva Ola advisory committee to ensure our culture is strong and translates to our members. After all, our purpose is to unlock the potential of our members so they can thrive. The Juntos Avanzamos designation does that," Brian Schools, president/CEO of Chartway, said. "Partnering with Inclusiv allows us to meet the Hispanic community where they are and better serve members by meeting their financial needs more meaningfully."
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Michael Ogden
Editor-in-Chief at CU Times. To connect, email at [email protected]. As Editor-in-Chief of CU Times since 2016, Michael Ogden has led the editorial team in all aspects of content strategy and execution, including the creation of the publication’s exclusive and proprietary research database of the credit union industry’s economic landscape. Under Michael’s leadership, CU Times has successfully shifted to an all-digital editorial product with new focuses on the payments, fraud, lending and regulatory beats. Most recently, he introduced a data-focused editorial product for subscribers that breaks down credit union issues into hard data, allowing for a deeper and more factual narrative for readers. In 2024, he launched the "Shared Accounts With CU Times" podcast, which offers a fresh, inside-the-newsroom perspective through interviews with leaders from the credit union industry and the regulatory world. He dives into pressing credit union issues, while revealing the personalities working behind-the-scenes to push the credit union world forward. His background includes years as a radio and TV anchor/reporter and a public relations and digital/social media manager, where he covered the food and music industries, as well as cooperatives and credit unions. Over the years, he has launched numerous exclusive video and podcast series, including a successful series of interactive backstage interviews with musicians at music festivals, showcasing his social media and live streaming production skills.
