ELBRIDGE, N.Y. — SECNY Federal Credit Union and the Jordan-Elbridge Central School District on Oct. 19 formally opened a student-run credit-union branch at the high school. The Eagle branch, as SECNY is calling it, will be open on Tuesdays and Thursdays during lunch periods when school is in session at the high school, located at […]
ELBRIDGE, N.Y. — SECNY Federal Credit Union and the Jordan-Elbridge Central School District on Oct. 19 formally opened a student-run credit-union branch at the high school.
The Eagle branch, as SECNY is calling it, will be open on Tuesdays and Thursdays during lunch periods when school is in session at the high school, located at 5721 Hamilton Road in the town of Elbridge. It will be used to assist students with real-life financial education, personal-finance activities, and employability skills.
The student branch is designed specifically for staff and students — and potential family members — who are authorized to be in the building during hours of operation. It is not open to the general public, Courtney Fulmer, chief experience officer at SECNY Federal Credit Union, tells CNYBJ in an email.
The program came to fruition through the involvement of Meghan Voit, a teacher at Jordan-Elbridge and Mark Schermerhorn, principal at Jordan-Elbridge High School, SECNY said.
Services at the branch will include a traditional teller line with the ability to complete basic transactions as well as account opening and online/mobile-service offerings. Students and staff within the school may become SECNY members, make deposits, and access free e-services.
A select group of students will perform various credit-union job functions as member-service representatives, with “opportunity for growth” as the year progresses. SECNY and Jordan-Elbridge staff will oversee the branch.
During this process, students completed interviews, orientation activities, and training sessions. They learned about financial products and services, security and confidentiality processes, and got a “full scope” look at the inner workings of a financial institution.
The addition of the Eagle branch marks the third student-run credit-union branch SECNY has opened in the last three years. The other two branches are at Onondaga Junior/Senior High School and LaFayette Junior/Senior High School.
“The student branch programs are incredibly beneficial not only for students and school staff but also for their families and our communities,” Fulmer contended in a SECNY news release. “They foster real-world financial responsibility combined with learned job skills and the sense of teamwork necessary for future success.”