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GW
GW

Learn more about our initiative.

Our mission here at the GWUCUI is to strengthen the GW community by helping students bank affordably, build credit, better manage their finances and develop valuable skill sets that they can bring to their careers. We seek to accomplish this goal by chartering a student-run Credit Union. A Credit Union is essentially a not-for-profit bank. This will allow us to not only offer small loans with low rates, but also pay higher interest on member deposits! In addition to banking services, we will offer a unique credit building program that builds credit score and knowledge of finances. All these services aim to empower the GW community while also providing job experience for GW students interested in any field.


  Meet Our Team


GW

PROPOSED PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

Once we are granted a charter from the NCUA, we will offer:

Share Accounts

Our share accounts will be savings accounts that offer higher interest than any of our competitors, partial ownership of the Credit Union, and voting rights on Credit Union policies.

Internship Loans

After 3 rounds of surveying and over 1,000 conversations with students, we have identified the areas where students are willing to take out small loans. Internship-related expenses that happen before a student’s first pay day will be met with an internship loan.

Credit Builder

Our credit building program will be an effective, cheap, and risk-free way of building credit through the use of a small secured loan.

GW

We're developing a free curriculum for students.

We aim to solve a critical problem that our peers face: a lack of financial literacy education and training to manage their personal finances. Fellow GW undergraduate and graduate students have told us they feel underprepared for the transition to financial independence after graduation. A lack of financial literacy follows into adulthood, affecting the ability to plan and sustainably spend. We have already hosted events and are now working with partners on campus to develop a curriculum around financial literacy. These resources will help students understand their personal finances and utilize our products.


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Discover the many ways to support our initiative's goals.

  • Newsletter
  • Stay up to date with the George Washington University Credit Union Initiative. Sign up to recieve our newsletter below.
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  • Students
  • Join our initiative to be one of the Credit Union's founding members. Being totally student-run is a core feature of our initiative and soon-to-be Credit Union. We have open positions across our organization and currently seek diverse talent. You will gain hands-on experience working in a grassroots, entrepreneurial organization. We take pride in our initiative and would love to have you on the team. Please Apply on Handshake using the link below. If we are not currently accepting applications on Handshake, please send a Resume and Cover Letter to gwucuioprt@gmail.com and we will get back to you in a timely manner if we believe you would be a great fit for GWUCUI.
  • Apply on Handshake

  • Professionals
  • Your assistance will help us get this Credit Union operational. A strong Advisory Committee is critical to achieving our goals. To join the Advisory Committee, send an email to info@gwucui.com, and a core team member will be assigned to personally work out details with you.
  • Email Us

The Team

Get to know us.

Julian Daszkal is an undergraduate student from South Florida majoring in International Affairs and Finance. He joined the GWUCUI in June 2020.

Julian Daszkal

Chief Executive Officer

Griffith Evans is a sophomore from Long Island, New York who is pursuing a double major in International Affairs and Finance. He works on the Operations Team as the Operations Manager.

Griffith Evans

Chief Operating Officer

Umar Mahdi is an undergraduate student from Northern Virginia. He is concentrating in Finance and Business Analytics. Umar joined GWUCUI in October 2020.

Umar Mahdi

Chief Technology Officer

Augie Burkhardt is a Sophomore from New Jersey majoring in Finance and Economics. Augie joined GWUCUI in 2020 as a Analyst.

Augie Burkhardt

Chief Marketing Officer

Jack Conway is from Springfield, New Jersey. He is a sophomore studying Political Science and Finance. He joined the initiative in Summer 2020 and currently serves as the Chief Compliance Officer.

Jack Conway

Chief Compliance Officer

Shania Kellison is from Annapolis, MD. She is currently studying International Business in the School of Business. Shania is a Core Team Member in the Financial Literacy team.

Shania Kellison

Co-Chief Financial Literacy Officer

Madisen Haugen is a Freshman from Portland, Oregan. She is pursuing a major in Finance. She works on the Financial Literacy team as a Core Team Member.

Madisen Haugen

Co-Chief Financial Literacy Officer

Matan Rosenberg is a Freshman from Potomac, Maryland. He is pursuing a major in Finance. In addition to his studies, Matan is also a member of the George Washington University Men’s Rowing Team.

Matan Rosenberg

Operations Manager

Jack Bentley is from Boston, MA. He is currently studying Finance in GWSB and Philosophy in CCAS. Jack Bentley is a Core Team Member in the Marketing team.

Jack Bentley

Core Team Member

David Rosenberg is a Sophomore from New York. He is studying Systems Engineering with a minor in Business. He works on the Information team as a Core Team Member.

David Rosenberg

Core Team Member

Matthew Lobel is a sophomore from Newport Beach, California. He is pursuing a Bachelor’s of Science in Business with a concentration in Information Systems, as well as a Bachelor’s of Science in Economics. He works on the Finance team as a core team member.

Matthew Lobel

Core Team Member

Seymur Huseynov is an international student from Azerbaijan. He is pursuing a bachelors of science degree in International Affairs and in Economics. He works in the Compliance team as a Core Team Member.

Seymur Huseynov

Core Team Member

Aashish Aswani is a Junior from an island in the Caribbean called St. Maarten. He is pursuing a major in Information Systems. He works on the Technology Team as a Core Team Member.

Aashish Aswani

Core Team Member

Sarah Ahmed is an undergraduate student from Ellicott City, Maryland. She is double majoring in Economics and Finance at GWSB. Sarah joined GWUCUI June 2022.

Sarah Ahmed

Core Team Member

Andrew Ungar is an undergraduate student from Baltimore, Maryland. He is double majoring in International Affairs and Finance. Andrew joined GWUCUI in June 2022.

Andrew Ungar

Core Team Member

Arya Mehran is a senior at GWSB, pursuing a double major in Finance and Economics. Arya joined the GWUCUI in May 2022.

Arya Mehran

Core Team Member

Aahil Virani is an undergraduate student from Houston, Texas studying International Business. Aahil joined the initiative in the summer of 2022.

Aahil Virani

Core Team Member

Bradley Taber is an undergraduate from Raleigh, North Carolina working towards a B.S. in business with a concentration in finance. Bradley joined GWUCUI in August 2021.

Bradley Taber

Core Team Member

Cameron Earls is a Sophomore from Northern Virginia majoring in Finance with a minor in Economics and works as an analyst on the finance team.

Cameron Earls

Core Team Member

Jacob Mitovich is a sophomore from northern New Jersey. At the George Washington University, he studies economics, finance, and mathematics. He has been a member of the GWUCUI since June 2022, where he looks forward to making an impact.

Jacob Mitovich

Core Team Member

Rishabh Raval is an undergraduate from India, pursuing a double major in Economics & Finance. Rishabh joined the GWUCUI in May 2022.

Rishabh Raval

Core Team Member

Clendenin Stewart is an undergraduate from Alpharetta, Georgia. Finance major with a minor in economics. Member of the men’s rowing team at GW.

Clendenin Stewart

Core Team Member

Board of Directors

Meet our board of directors

Cisco Malpartida Smith is the Director of Mortgage Lending for Express Credit Union ($18M), located in Seattle, WA where Cisco leads the nationwide mortgage lending efforts. Prior to Express, Cisco served as the Assistant Vice President of Strategic Initiatives at Gesa Credit Union ($4.6B), where he was responsible for key strategic initiatives, corporate business development and partnership activities, including having completed the single largest credit union sponsorship in the State of Washington with WSU (Washington State University) to become the Universities largest sponsor and renaming their Div. 1 football field Gesa Field. Cisco developed and led the “Gesa College Strategy” which partnered with over 15 higher education institutions in WA State in support of financial literacy & education, fair financial access, student experiential learning, and exemplary member value. Cisco also ideated and led the novel development of a multi-million-dollar technology solution that is poised to transform financial services. Prior to Gesa, Cisco served as President & CEO of The Florist Federal Credit Union, a nationwide digital federal credit union, which was the only credit union to serve the US floral industry. Prior to The Florist, Cisco served in various strategic and product management roles with GTE Financial ($3B FCU) in Tampa, FL, as well as BECU ($22B CU), in Seattle, WA. Originally from Hawaii, Cisco is a graduate of Seattle University with a degree in Political Science, and an Executive MBA from the University of South Florida (USF) in Tampa, FL. While at Seattle University, Cisco served as student-body president and designed a Student-Run & Operated Credit Union for students, faculty and staff, and becoming a recognized subject matter expert in the College and Student strategies for Credit Unions. Cisco currently serves on the boards for Green River College Foundation, Bellevue College Foundation, and the George Washington University Credit Union Initiative.

Cisco Malpartida Smith

Chair

Ms. Lyon directs Ncontracts’ compliance program, which includes product development and content. Prior to joining Ncontracts, she was a senior compliance counsel at NAFCU Ms. Lyon received her J.D. at the George Washington University.

Stephanie Lyon

Vice-Chair

Brian joined OUCU Financial as CFO in 2019 after almost two decades of serving credit unions from coast to coast. He has extensive experience in advising client institutions on balance sheet management strategies, interest rate risk, investments, liquidity management, and other strategic efforts. He has been a frequent speaker at industry events and previously served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors at Catholic Family CU. He was recently elected by his credit union peers to serve on the CUNA Finance Council’s Executive Committee, where he also serves as Chair of the Finance Forum Committee, Vice Chair of the Sponsorship Committee, and a Member of the Conference Committee. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and a Master of Business Administration from Rockhurst University. He also holds a Doctorate in Business Administration from the Grenoble Ecole de Management (Grenoble, France), with a research focus on the role of investments and capital markets on the performance of credit unions.

Brian Smith-Vandergriff

Second Vice-Chair

Sahil Pankhaniya is a GW finance and statistics Alumnus from Florida who founded the initiative in 2017. He was the CEO of the initiative before graduating in 2021.

Sahil Pankhaniya

Treasurer

Christian Trummer is a GW Alumnus from Pennsylvania who studied Mechanical/Aerospace Engineering. Christian was previously the CTO before he graduated, where he worked with software vendors and oversaw website development and IT operations.

Christian Trummer

Secretary

William (Bill) Kennedy is the new CFO of SecurityPlus. He started his Credit Union career as CFO at Department of Justice FCU, after working as Senior Accountant at the FSLIC Receivership Division under Mr. William Linane Sr. who encouraged him to bring his talents to Credit Unions when the FSLIC Division was moving to Atlanta. At the time Mr. Linane was also HUDFCU Chairman and a Board member at Cap Corp. Bill’s Credit Union career since then has mainly been in Credit Union turnaround situations. Because of his strong leadership, turnaround skills and his overall extensive involvement in the community he was honored and recognized with the NAFCU Professional CEO of the Year and the Judith A. Burgin Memorial Professional of the Year Award’s and the 2019 Credit Union Rock Star Award. Nationally and locally, he is heavily involved in giving back to the Credit Union movement and community at large. He is the founder and for six years, until 2019, directed the quarterly Mid Atlantic Finance and Accounting events held at the Association. Other past experience includes being elected by CFO peers to two separate terms on the CUNA CFO Executive Board; ten years of full and part time College Business Faculty, NJ CU Foundation Board, Police Athletic League Board member/Treasurer, Argyle Country Club Board member/Treasurer, Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) Camp and Huddle leader, Board member of Maryland Credit Union League, and Board member/ Treasurer of National Capital Central FCU, CUNA Mutual CEO Select Group, a MACUMA Board member and an advisor to the George Washington Credit Union startup initiative. Bill is passionate about bringing recent college graduates and current college students into the movement. As business faculty it disappointed him that students did not have a Credit Union career on their radar. He set about to change that by offering internships whenever possible , and to date he has mentored over 80 college interns, many who entered and remain involved in the movement. Bill a CCUE and NCCO, holds an MBA through the Executive Program at Loyola College, additional Masters Level Accounting courses from Liberty University, and a Bachelor of Science in Business and Accounting from the University of Maryland, College Park. Bill and his wife Ann live in Frederick, Maryland. During his free time Bill enjoys golf with his adult children, serving the FCA, and is itching to get golf clubs in the hands of his five grandchildren.

William Kennedy

Board Member

Brian Bodell is VP of Partnerships & Client Success at CUNA Mutual Fintech Solutions. Prior to CUNA Mutual, Brian was CEO & Co-Founder of Finivation Software (purchased by CUNA Mutual) where he was active in several initiatives driven by the CUNA Tech Council and other industry groups. Before Finivation, Brian was President of qbt Systems, which was purchased by Corillian and subsequently Checkfree and Fiserv. Brian's focus for over twenty years has been delivering software and services to credit unions, banks, and their technology partners. Brian is passionate about helping credit unions, students, and George Washington University, where he received his Masters in Cybersecurity.

Brian Bodell

Board Member

Chip Filson is a co-founder of Callahan & Associates and currently serves as the company’s Chairman of the Board. A nationally recognized leader in the Credit Union industry, Chip is an astute author, frequent speaker, and consultant for the Credit Union movement. He has more than 40 years of experience in government, financial institutions, and business. Chip’s breadth of experience makes him an authority on a wide range of topics, including analysis of Credit Union trends, Credit Union public and market-facing opportunities, and strategies for enhancing member value. Chip’s contributions to the cooperative movement have been demonstrated with his analysis and advocacy for the corporate Credit Union system, NCUA’s Corporate Stabilization role, and the need for regulatory reform. He is an avid believer that cooperative principles are a key to Credit Union success and founded Coops4Change (www.coops4changes.org) to reestablish cooperative principles as the foundation for the Credit Union regulatory system. Chip has held concurrent positions at the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) as president of the Central Liquidity Facility (CLF) and Director of the Office of Programs, which includes the NCUSIF and the examination process. Chip holds a magna cum laude undergraduate degree in government from Harvard University. After being awarded a Rhodes Scholarship, he earned a master’s degree in politics, philosophy, and economics from Oxford University in England. He also holds an MBA in management from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School in Chicago.

Chip Filson

Board Member

PJ Tabit is a senior analyst at a federal financial regulatory agency working on policy issues related to central bank digital currency and stablecoins. With more than a decade of experience as a policy professional, he has previously held positions on the legislative staff of a member of the House of Representatives and at the Congressional Research Service. He also chairs the board of directors of the Wiki Education Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to addressing systemic bias on Wikipedia through engaging with higher education institutions.

PJ Tabit

Board Member

Barton H. (Bart) Kogan (Mr. Kogan) is an alumnus of the George Washington University with BBA and MEd degrees, and resides in Los Angeles, CA. After a successful professional career in operating affordable multifamily apartment communities in CA, NV, AR and TX, Mr. Kogan remains a recognized expert in HUD sponsored subsidized housing programs, being called upon to give expert testimony when legal issues between property owners and HUD are in dispute. He is currently an owner of single user industrial Concrete “Tilt-Up” properties in TN, MO and TX. In the greater community Mr. Kogan has been a member of the International Executive Committee of the Federation of Jewish Men's Clubs, NYC; Pacific Southwest Region President, United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, NYC; Treasurer of the Community Counseling Service of Los Angeles; and a longstanding Dean’s Advisory Board member of the George Washington University School of Business, (1999-2014) Currently, Mr. Kogan serves on the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Hebrew High School; the Board of Advisors of the Zeigler School of Rabbinic Studies at American Jewish University, Los Angeles and Co-Chair of the Sinai Temple Board of Governors, Los Angeles; and an engaged alumnus of the Kappa Sigma and Alpha Kappa Psi Fraternities.

Bart Kogan

Board Member

Advisory Committee

Meet our advisors

Mr. Lake is a Teaching Instructor of Finance, the Deputy Chair of the Department of Finance, the Director of the GW Investment Institute, and a GW Faculty Member in Residence at the George Washington University School of Business. Mr. Lake teaches graduate and undergraduate investment courses, where students manage real capital. To date, the Assets Under Management (AUM) across the GW Investment Institute’s student funds are approximately $5.2 million. As the deputy chair of the Department of Finance, Mr. Lake assist the chair of the Department of Finance with administrative tasks on classes and ways to enhance the student experience. Additionally, Mr. Lake is the director of the GW Investment Institute, where he raises capital for the GW student investment funds portfolio and manages employees of the institute on a daily basis. Mr. Lake has also served as a mentor-in-residence supported by the GW Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Instructor Lake provides guidance, coaching, support and connections to students with a goal to enhance entrepreneurship at GW. Prior to Mr. Lake’s current appointment in the GWSB Department of Finance and the GW Investment Institute, Mr. Lake worked as a senior investment officer in the George Washington University Investment Office. The GW Investment Office was responsible for managing the university’s then $1.5 billion endowment fund. Prior to that, Mr. Lake was a senior financial analyst in the Executive Vice President and Treasurer’s Office at GW, where he served as an internal consultant for projects ranging from financial and optimization modeling to developing spin-out strategies and valuations for internal businesses. Prior to joining GW, he was a financial analyst in portfolio management at a mortgage banking subsidiary of California Federal Bank (now part of Citi). Mr. Lake graduated cum laude from West Virginia Wesleyan College with a Bachelor of Science degree in business. He received his MBA from the George Washington University.

Rodney Lake

Advisory Committee Chairman

Jeffrey Staw is a Digital Transformation & IT Operations Executive who loves delivering large-scale business transformation initiatives. He has over 20 years of experience in digital technology implementation, and has been intrumental in charter guidance and vendor management.

Jeffrey Staw

Advisory Committee

Ander Tebbutt is a GW Alumnus from Iowa who studied accounting at GW. He was the COO of the initiative before graduating in 2021.

Ander Tebbutt

Advisory Committee

Christopher Myers is a Strategy Manager for Real Estate Lending at Navy Federal Credit Union. He supports executive leadership in identifying growth opportunities, executing innovative initiatives, and setting the long-term vision and goals for the Real Estate Lending organization. Christopher earned his MBA from the George Washington University School of Business and his undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia.

Christopher Myers

Advisory Committee

Melissa is the COO at Credit Union Student Choice, the foremost provider of higher education financing solutions to America's credit unions. She has more than 30 years of senior executive experience in the credit union and higher education finance industries and earned Bachelor of Science in Management and Master of Business Administration degrees. Melissa is passionate about the credit union movement and is committed to empowering the next generation through higher education and financial wellness initiatives in both her personal and professional endeavors.

Melissa Hunt

Advisory Committee

Matt lives in Baltimore, MD with his wife Marion and chocolate lab Elsie. Matt graduated from Towson University with a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing and enjoyed a few years playing baseball with the Tigers. When he is not meeting with a Credit Union you can probably find him on the golf course or firing up the grill for Ravens football games. Matt is an avid boater enjoying time on Chesapeake with friends and family as well as fishing some of the local streams and reservoirs.

Matthew Fulford

Advisory Committee

CONTACT

Lets get in touch. Send us a message:

info@gwucui.com

Foggy Bottom, D.C.