On 3/20/20, we announced that the 73rd Annual Meeting & Convention of the Association of Vermont Credit Unions has been rescheduled for the weekend of September 18-20, 2020 at Jay Peak Resort.
Although the new dates are in the “high summer season” when hotel room rates are higher than in May, AVCU has negotiated and signed a revised Jay Peak contract which maintains all of the provisions of our original, including room rates, for the September dates. Therefore, other than the dates themselves, every other aspect of our 73rd Annual Meeting remains the same as announced on January 31.
Each of our expert speakers has been re-booked, as has Saturday night’s Dueling Pianos Show. Friday’s Exhibitor Hall and the Scavenger Hunt cash prize contest will go on as planned, and although some minor adjustments to the weekend schedule may be necessary, at this time no major changes are anticipated. Most importantly, the rates for overnight accommodation for all room types in our Hotel Jay block remain as previously announced.
With regard to room reservations in our Hotel Jay room block, although the Resort has ceased all operations until May 1st, they asked AVCU to provide our members with the following statement: “With the decision to reschedule the AVCU convention to the weekend of September 18-20, 2020, Jay Peak Resort has adjusted all existing call-in reservations for May 15-17 to their matching September dates. If you will attend the convention in September, no further action is needed on your part. If you made a reservation for May and will not attend in September, once we resume operations on May 1st, please call our Central Reservations line at 800-451-4449 to cancel your reservation.”
AVCU thanks all our members, exhibitors, and sponsors for understanding that while rescheduling the largest and most important annual gathering of Vermont credit unions is not an ideal situation, we are very fortunate to have worked out a compromise with Jay Peak Resort, our speakers and entertainers, and our exhibitors, so that our 73rd Annual Meeting & Convention goes on. We look forward to seeing everyone at Jay Peak Resort in September and encourage readers to watch Newslines Express for further updates throughout the spring and summer months.
- Information for AVCU Member Credit Union Attendees
A revised Attendee & Guest Registration kit is being developed and will be emailed to credit unions in May. AVCU has transferred all early bird discount package registrations to the rescheduled dates, but anyone who submitted a discount package registration may cancel it on Eventbrite by clicking on the order number in their confirmation email and following the instructions. Early bird pricing for discount packages is being maintained through July 24 with the final attendee registration deadline now moving to August 28.
Registrations for the rescheduled dates may be submitted until those deadlines via our Eventbrite pages for Discounted Convention Registration Packages or A la Carte Meals and Event Registrations.
Please note that the previously announced schedule below may undergo minor adjustments for the rescheduled dates, but other than the dates themselves, AVCU anticipates no other major changes.
- Nominating Committee Solicitation for Association Board Candidates
2020 Annual Meeting & Convention – Association Director Nominations
DATE: February 7, 2020
TO: Member Credit Union Manager / CEOs
FROM: AVCU Nominating Committee
Lisa Huyer, Chair (NorthCountry FCU)
Wanda Dunham (White River CU)
Bob Lake (Green Mountain CU)
The Association’s 2020 Nominating Committee is seeking qualified persons to be considered for possible nomination for election to the Board of Directors.
Each member of the Association’s Board of Directors is responsible for representing all the Association’s members and helping set the general direction of the organization. Directors must maintain the best interests of the Association as well as its member credit unions in performing their duties and exercise the highest levels of professionalism and objectivity.
The Association’s bylaws (Art. 6, sec. 6.4) govern who is eligible to serve on the board as follows:
“To be eligible for election as a director, a person must be:
- an employee with senior management responsibilities;
- an elected director; or
- an elected committee member;
of an affiliated credit union in good standing. No member credit union shall be entitled to more than one director, except that if a director holds qualifications from more than one member credit union, he/she shall nevertheless be entitled to serve as a director if he/she fills the above qualifications and if the credit union from which he/she is elected is not represented on the board of directors.”
Three seats expire at the 2020 73rd Annual Meeting on May 16th and will be filled by candidates elected for three-year terms.
Documentation for persons interested in being considered for possible nomination by the Committee should be submitted by an authorized representative of the person’s credit union, which must be a member in good standing with the Association. Submissions to the Committee, along with any related supporting information, can be made online at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/avcu20_cqbd. Cite the person’s qualifications and include as much relevant background as possible.
All submissions must be completed online no later than March 20, 2020. The Committee may make its selections from individuals submitted, as well as others. Submission of any individuals to the Committee does not automatically insure nomination by the Committee.
More information about director responsibilities and the election timeline follows. Questions about candidate qualifications or the nomination process can be directed to the Committee Chair at elections@vermontcreditunions.coop.
2020 Director Elections Timeline
Since the Association provides absentee ballots to members requesting them, nominations from the floor of the annual meeting are not permitted. Persons not nominated by the committee, but still interested in seeking election, must do so by petition process in advance of the annual meeting in accordance with these deadlines:
Date: Deadlines for nomination by petition process:
February 7 Nominating Committee solicitation for potential nominees
March 20 Deadline for potential candidates to submit their qualifications to the Nominating Committee
April 3 Nominating Committee report sent to members
April 10 Petition nominees submitted to Nominating Committee for inclusion on ballot*
*Candidates submitted by petition must be accompanied by an authorized petition signature (per credit union) of 5 member credit unions. Candidates meeting the petition requirement will be added to the ballot with Committee nominees.
Absentee Ballots: Association Bylaws provide for member credit unions to be allowed to vote for Directors by absentee ballot. The 2020 Absentee Ballot deadline is as follows:
Date Deadlines for absentee ballot requests and submissions
April 10 Absentee ballot request deadline
May 1 Absentee ballot vote submission deadline
May 16 Annual meeting elections conducted by ballot.
Absentee ballots added to the count by the ballot clerks.
Association Director Responsibilities
As a member of the Board of Directors of the Association of Vermont Credit Unions, an elected director is expected to adhere to the following principles, common to similar positions in all cooperative and democratic organizations.
- The highest standards of personal conduct are observed at all times. Maintain integrity, competency and cooperation at all times.
- Make reasonable efforts to learn about the financial industry in general, and the Association and related organizations specifically, to increase skills in making and supporting appropriate policies and decisions.
- Attend and participate in scheduled meetings and events regularly.
- Encourage unity between member credit unions and their officials.
- Avoid conflicts of interest regarding Association activities, services and programs, and do not promote or engage in any activity not in the best interests of the Association or its member credit unions.
- Be committed to maintaining a strong membership organization.
- Observe the different roles of management and the board.
- Fully support the decisions and policies adopted by the Board, regardless of personal opinion.
- Make every effort to provide credit unions and the Association with accurate, pertinent information and attempt to affirmatively correct any misinformation concerning credit unions or the Association.
- Maintain confidentiality of the organization’s business and exercise prudent discretion in disclosing information not yet made common knowledge.
- General Session, Keynote, and Breakout Speakers
John McKechnie is a Senior Partner for Total Spectrum, a Washington, D.C.-based team of principals and partner companies with decades of legislative and campaign experience at the state and federal level. He’s been with the firm since 2011 and represents a wide variety of credit union and financial services providers on Capitol Hill.Previously he spent five years in government as a Presidential appointee at the National Credit Union Administration where he served three Chairpersons in the capacity of Director of Public and Congressional Affairs.
McKechnie’s career in the credit union industry began in 1987 as the Director of Political Action with CUNA. It culminated in a four-year stint as CUNA’s chief federal lobbyist, heading up the national trade association’s federal legislative and political advocacy. His Saturday morning keynote entitled “View from D.C. – Washington Turmoil and What it Means for Your Credit Union” will be an interactive, two-way session that no one will want to miss.
Mary Kelly, PhD, CSP, CDR US Navy (ret) is an internationally renowned author and keynote speaker on economics, leadership, productivity, and business growth. In 21 years as a Navy intelligence and logistics officer, she trained more than 40,000 military and civilian personnel.Kelly has spent 25 years on active duty in the Navy, leading multi-national teams throughout Asia. She was an intelligence officer specializing in Asia and Russia, an HR director, a chief of police, and a professor at the Naval Academy.
She’ll draw upon her Ph.D. in economics for the topic of her Saturday morning general session entitled “’FutureNomics’ for Credit Union Leaders“. Her unique background drives her insights into a blend of business growth and leadership topics, as chronicled in the 11 books she’s authored on those subjects.
Shahar Ziv is Senior Director of Global Corporate Strategy at PayPal where he leverages his 15 years of experience at the intersection of financial services, payments, and technology to shape PayPal’s vision of democratizing financial services.Shahar is an alumnus of Cornell University and Harvard Business School, and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Harvard University Employees Credit Union (HUECU). In partnership with HUECU, he co-founded a popular personal finance class at Harvard University in 2011 that has helped hundreds of undergraduates improve their personal finances.
His Saturday morning general session is entitled, “Embracing Disruption: How Technology Innovation Is Re-Shaping the Financial Landscape”
- Updates for Registered Exhibitors and Companies Desiring to Exhibit on the Rescheduled Dates
For companies not yet registered as an Exhibitor, stations and select presenting sponsorships for the rescheduled dates are still available. All information contained in the original Exhibitor / Sponsor Information Kit which can be downloaded here remains relative to the rescheduled dates, as does the requirement to complete and submit the online application hosted at SurveyMonkey. The number of exhibitor stations is limited, so interested vendors should submit an application as soon as possible.
Purchasing a station in Friday’s Exhibitor Hall is required for anyone other than Vermont credit union employees or volunteers to attend our convention. The fee for applications submitted before the rescheduled early bird date of 7/1/20 is $2,000. The fee for applications submitted between 7/1/20 and 8/14/20 is $2,200. All returning 2019 exhibiting companies receive a $200 loyalty discount which lowers their 2020 fee to $1,800 (early bird) or $2,000.
Failure to submit payment to AVCU for the exhibitor station fee (and optional presenting sponsorship fee) by 8/14/20 will result in cancellation of your application and revocation of all exhibitor and sponsor privileges. Be sure to download and review the entire Exhibitor / Sponsor Information Kit linked above for full details.
Questions or inquiries about any aspect of the 73rd Annual Meeting & Convention of the Association of Vermont Credit Unions can be addressed to Convention Manager John Cote by email (preferred) to JohnCote(at)vermontcreditunions.coop or by phone at 802-861-7033 (direct).