By Torii Brawdy, Secretary, Young Professionals Commission

Earlier this month, members of the Young Professionals Commission met to plan for 2020. CFCU Community Credit Union hosted the meeting at their new Transformation Center located in Ithaca. The session included brainstorming, idea-sharing, collaboration and important discussions on how the Commission can engage more young professionals throughout the state.

Commission Chair Cassie Fortney of Sunmark FCU kicked off the day by challenging commission members to think about who else in their credit unions or communities might want to be involved in the Commission or YP Network.

It is the overarching goal of the Commission in 2020 to engage more young credit union professionals and volunteers than ever before – a thought that grounded the planning session throughout the day.

New York Credit Union Association VP of Governmental Affairs, Kendra Rubin, then gave a briefing about the New York credit union movement’s current legislative activities and successes. Rubin serves as a liaison between the Commission and the Association, and offered her expertise and input throughout the planning session.

The annual autumn planning session helps the Commission set goals and plan events for the upcoming year. They work in task forces, made up of four to six Commission members, who work on: advocacy; education; awareness and communication; and fundraising and EXCEL/Convention.

Together, the task forces, with input from the rest of the Commission, decide on important goals, such as expanding engagement on social media and increasing attendance at young professional events throughout the year.

The 12 individuals that make up the Young Professionals Commission left Ithaca energized and inspired for the upcoming year, which will be packed with events and opportunities for young professionals throughout all of New York.

Credit unions, CEOs, young professionals or volunteers, and anyone else who wants to learn more about the Young Professionals Network and Commission are encouraged to join the YP Listerv and follow The YP Network on Facebook. They can also keep an eye out for the following events in 2020:

• Young Professionals Track at State GAC;
• Educational Session at EXCEL/Convention;
• Young Professionals Track at the Danielle Downey Credit Union Classic;
• YP Hike the Hill in Washington, D.C.; and
• YP Educational Summit.

To learn more about the Commission and its work, visit the Association’s website.

Torii Brawdy is the marketing & community relations manager at Western New York FCU, and the secretary of the Young Professionals Commission.