Tag Archive for: Wisconsin Bankers Foundation

Posts

,

Asset Builders Holds Annual Finance and Investment Challenge Bowl State Championship

Wisconsin Bankers Foundation grant recipient Asset Builders held their annual Finance and Investment Challenge Bowl (FICB) state championship tournament on Wednesday May 21, 2025, in Madison. FICB is an interactive educational game designed to help promote financial literacy and awareness among high school students.

Using a quiz bowl format, high school students representing schools from across the state face off as they are tested on their knowledge about personal finance, business, economics, and current events. Two teams make their way through the competitive brackets to battle for the FIBC “cup.”

 

This year’s results:

  • First Place – State Champion: Nicolet High School
  • Second Place: Northland Pines High School
  • Final Four: Oshkosh West High School
  • Final Four: Rhinelander High School
  • Consolation Champion: Menomonie High School

Asset Builders Executive Director Richard Entenmann and FICB final round quizmaster Matt Moore with US Bank, Milwaukee congratulated the teams from Northland Pines High School and Nicolet High School on making it to the championship round.

If you’re interested in getting involved as a volunteer for FICB, visit www.ficbonline.org or contact Asset Builders’ co-founder and executive director Richard Entenmann. There are numerous opportunities to volunteer at 14 regional competitions held throughout Wisconsin during the school year leading up to the state championship in the spring.

Kudos to the financial industry volunteers and donors who supported FICB this year!

/by
, , ,

Bank of Sun Prairie Named 2024 WBF Financial Education Innovation Award Winner

Wisconsin Bankers Foundation Recognizes Initiative of Bank of Sun Prairie and St. Vincent de Paul 

Jimmy Kauffman, Bank of Sun Prairie president and CEO (holding award); and colleagues accept the 2024 Wisconsin Bankers Foundation Financial Education Innovation Award from Rose Oswald Poels, Wisconsin Bankers Association president and CEO and WBF chair and treasurer; and Alvaro Araque, WBA chair.

The Wisconsin Bankers Foundation (WBF) is pleased to announce that Bank of Sun Prairie has been selected as the recipient of the 2024 Financial Education Innovation Award. The award was presented on February 6, 2025, at the largest banking industry event in the state, the Wisconsin Bankers Association (WBA) Bank Executives Conference, in Milwaukee.

“It is important to raise awareness that when unexpected expenses hit, banks offer much better alternatives to high-interest payday loans,” said Rose Oswald Poels, WBF chair and WBA president and CEO. “Bank of Sun Prairie’s partnership with St. Vincent de Paul is an outstanding program that connects people who are experiencing financial hardship with resources to get them back on solid financial footing.”

Bank of Sun Prairie has created a unique partnership with St. Vincent de Paul in Madison to provide microloans of around $500–$2,500. The program not only helps borrowers avoid costly payday or title loans, it also comes with financial literacy support. Participants are coached each month to help them find ways to make the minimum payment. One recipient, Terri, was able to pay off her car title loan and secure a low-interest loan with the bank. Terri’s monthly payment dropped from $437/month at 305% interest to $74/month at 5% interest, and she could afford to stay in her new apartment rather than become unhoused. The program also connects people with the bank’s Fresh Start Checking Accounts, which can help those who have had challenges with using and keeping a checking account in the past to move forward.

The WBF Financial Education Innovation Award is a prestigious category of the WBF Excellence in Financial Education Awards. Submissions for the 2024 WBF Excellence in Financial Education Awards encompassed over 900 financial education presentations — including Teach Children to Save Day presentations, homeownership workshops, and elder financial abuse prevention seminars, among other initiatives — given by more than 400 Wisconsin bank employees, reaching approximately 30,000 Wisconsin community members.

/by
, ,

Over 30,000 Wisconsinites Reached by Banks’ Financial Education Efforts

Wisconsin Bankers Foundation Recognizes Volunteer Service of Bank Employees

On Thursday, November 21, 79 Wisconsin bankers and 21 banks were honored by the Wisconsin Bankers Foundation (WBF) for their efforts in promoting financial literacy to Wisconsin’s community members. WBF is the non-profit arm of the Wisconsin Bankers Association (WBA) whose mission is to promote financial literacy and financial capability to the public and to broaden consumer empowerment in the financial services industry through research, education, grants, and scholarships.

Excellence in Financial Education award recipients were recognized during the WBA FLEX Retail & Marketing Summit in Wisconsin Dells.

The outstanding efforts of all honorees were celebrated at the recent WBA FLEX Retail and Marketing Summit held in Wisconsin Dells on November 21, 2024. During the 2023–2024 fiscal year, the individual and bank-level WBF Excellence in Financial Education award winners helped WBF expand its financial education to reach over 30,000 people throughout the state. These efforts included giving presentations in local classrooms to teach children about saving and managing money, leading homeownership workshops, and hosting fraud prevention seminars, among many other initiatives.

“Wisconsin bankers are very passionate about promoting financial wellness and helping their communities to thrive,” said Rose Oswald Poels, chair of the Wisconsin Bankers Foundation Board. “We are glad to recognize the remarkable work of these banks and individual bank employees in equipping Wisconsinites with skills to make informed decisions about money and build bright financial futures.”

Pictured (from left to right): Wisconsin Bankers Foundation Executive Director Cassie Krause, Financial Literacy Banker of the Year Award recipient Sue Krause of Fox Valley Savings Bank in Fond du Lac, and Financial Literacy Banker Award recipient Paige Vieth of Royal Bank in Elroy.

This year, Sue Krause of Fox Valley Savings Bank in Fond du Lac was awarded the prestigious Financial Literacy Banker of the Year Award. Krause completed 138 financial education presentations over the year. Paige Vieth, of Royal Bank in Elroy, was recognized with the Financial Literacy Banker Award for completing 70 financial education presentations.

In addition, Krause and Vieth were honored with the Certificate of Excellence alongside Rachael Ehrenberg, Farmers State Bank of Waupaca; Tammy J. Tongusi, Forte Bank, Hartford; Katlein Detloff, Ladysmith Federal Savings & Loan Association; and Jenean Friedl, Ashley Lombard, and Jen Yager of Royal Bank, Elroy, for exceeding 20 financial education presentations in their local communities during WBF’s 2023–2024 fiscal year.

Seventy-one individuals received a Certificate of Recognition completing at least five financial education presentations. This year’s recipients are Katelyn Hodel, Shane Moen, Ty Neupert, Peter Schleicher, and Sharilyn Zimmerman, Bank of Lake Mills; Laurie Janowski, Heather Kadletz, Sue Neuzil, Kala J. Schmitt, and Stephanie Slaby, Bank of Luxemburg; Tiffany Hilliard, Bank of Wisconsin Dells; Ann Cooley, Shari Huza, Sara Pahl, and Kim Rabska, Community First Bank in Boscobel; Rachael Danielson, Tami Miller, Emily Pfannes, and Amy Weiss, First National Bank of River Falls; Aaron J. Mork, FNC Bank in New Richland; Carol Swanson, Ladysmith Federal Savings & Loan Association; Jade Brindley, Tami Brogley, Amanda Brown, Kari Geyer, Jeffery Glass, Kayla Hamlin, Donna Hoppenjan, Linda Kress, Erika Nemitz, Courtney Pickel, Trisha Rehlinger, Sarah Rogers, Barb Skaife, Jenni Thomas, and Sheryl Tierney, Mound City Bank in Platteville; JoNell Empereur, Molly Gilbertson, Dan Lenz, Morgan Payne, Kendra Ruenger, Jaclyn Rutkowski, Amanda Schultz, and Tammy Wagner, National Exchange Bank & Trust in Fond du Lac; Ameilia Abraham, Hannah Corning, Jace Gustafson, Nona Havey, and Tracy Odegaard, One Community Bank in Oregon; Christine Buckman and Erik Thompson, Pillar Bank in Baldwin; Gina Patzer, Premier Community Bank in Marion; Silvia Donday-Selenske, Rochelle Mitchell, and Marisa Rivera, PremierBank in Fort Atkinson; Cody Belken, Courtney Dean, Morgan DeGuire, Brandie Howell, Luke Manke, Jessie Preston, Shania Sake, Holly Shelton, Maizee Splinter, Michael Starks, and Ashley Tabbert, Royal Bank in Elroy; Veron Gray and Mario Monterrey, The Equitable Bank SSB in Wauwatosa; and Jenni Badtke, Traci Chisholm, and Eric Hopfensperger, Wolf River Community Bank in Hortonville.

The WBF Excellence in Financial Education Award was presented to 21 WBA-member banks for their bank-wide dedication to financial education: Bank of Lake Mills; Bank of Luxemburg; Bank of Sun Prairie; Farmers & Merchants State Bank, Waterloo; First Federal Bank of Wisconsin, Milwaukee; First National Bank of River Falls; FNC Bank, New Richmond; Forte Bank, Hartford; Horicon Bank; Ladysmith Federal Savings and Loan Association; National Exchange Bank & Trust, Fond du Lac; One Community Bank, Oregon; Pillar Bank, Baldwin; Premier Community Bank, Marion; PremierBank, Fort Atkinson; River Bank, Stoddard; Royal Bank, Elroy; The Stephenson National Bank & Trust, Marinette; Waukesha State Bank; Waumandee State Bank; and Wolf River Community Bank, Hortonville.

/by

Executive Letter: Empowering Futures – Foundation Gala Shines Light on Financial Literacy Initiatives

By Rose Oswald Poels

As chair of the Wisconsin Bankers Foundation (WBF), I am happy to report that the second annual WBF Gala held on September 12 at the Wisconsin Historical Society was not just a fundraising success but was also a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the important work being done by the Foundation.

The mission of WBF, the non-profit arm of the WBA created in 2015, is to promote financial literacy and capability through education, scholarships, grants, and research. Some of the ways that mission is being achieved are through the popular Reading Raises Interest Kits distributed statewide in conjunction with National Teach Children to Save Day, higher ed scholarships for students attending Wisconsin institutions, Banconomics reports that provide key data to banks in the Midwest, and grants made to other non-profit organizations aligning with our mission.

Leaders from non-profit organizations which received 2024 WBF grants were present at the Gala, and it was wonderful to see their financial literacy work being recognized by the attendees. Those non-profits are:

• 6:8, Inc – Circles Sauk Prairie program inspiring and equipping families and the community to resolve poverty and thrive
• Asset Builders – Statewide high school Finance and Investment Challenge Bowl competition
• Eastbrook Academy – Empowering educators for financial education excellence
• Economics Wisconsin – Statewide middle and high school stock market game

Attendees also heard an inspiring speech from Cole Hicken who was a 2021 WBF Spring Scholarship recipient. Hicken impressed us all with his reflections on the impact his scholarship had on his trajectory, his current success in the industry, and his goals for the future.

The festive event started off on the terrace of the Historical Society overlooking the UW-Madison Library Mall before moving to the elegant library space where guests enjoyed delicious food, good company, and the fun, fast-paced live auction.

I want to sincerely thank the incredibly generous attendees, sponsors, and donors who supported the WBF through multiple ways including presence at the Gala, event sponsorships, table sponsorships, donating silent and live auction items, and generous auction bidding. I am proud to reveal that the Gala raised a net profit of $23,000. We could not have achieved this success without the big-hearted and impactful support of WBA members and their guests.

Champion Sponsor:
FHLBank Chicago

Advocate Sponsors:
Bell Bank, Capitol Bank, Johnson Financial Group, and FIPCO’s ShareFI

In-Kind Donors:
4imprint
American National Bank – Fox Cities
American Players Theatre
Associated Bank, Green Bay
Bank of Kaukauna
Bankers’ Bank, Madison
Bell Bank, Eau Claire
BOK Financial Capital Markets
DoubleTree by Hilton Madison East
Mary and Kyle Engelke
Findorff
Fiserv
Food Fight Restaurant Group
Godfrey & Kahn
Green Bay Packers Foundation
Donna Hoppenjan
Ironwood
Mark Koehl
Cassandra Krause and Pierre Rideau
Lake Ridge Bank, Middleton
Ami Myrland
Rose Oswald Poels
Park Bank, Madison
Peoples State Bank, Wausau
The Edgewater Hotel
The Equitable Bank, Wauwatosa
Wilderness Resorts
Wisconsin Bankers Association

/by

Executive Letter: Champion Financial Literacy in Wisconsin at the Second Annual WBF Gala

By Rose Oswald Poels

As chair of the Wisconsin Bankers Foundation, I am looking forward to the return of our Gala event for a second year. The event is coming up in just over a month on Thursday, September 12 from 5:30–9:30 p.m. at the Wisconsin Historical Society in Madison. Last year’s inaugural gala was a fantastic event and a festive way to both celebrate and support the work being done by the Foundation.

The Foundation, which was established in 2015, is the non-profit arm of the Wisconsin Bankers Association and is dedicated to promoting financial literacy and capability through education, scholarships, and research. Its programming includes the beloved Reading Raises Interest Kits distributed statewide in conjunction with National Teach Children to Save Day, higher ed scholarships for students attending Wisconsin institutions, Banconomics reports, and grants to other non-profit organizations aligning with its mission.

The gala is open to the public, and I encourage you to attend and invite clients, family, and friends.

The Wisconsin Historical Society is an ideal venue for this year’s Gala; it is both elegant and welcoming with impressive views of Library Mall and Memorial Union. Semi-formal attire is encouraged, but if you are coming straight from work there is no need to worry about your business attire.

If you are not sure what to expect, Blue Plate catering will be providing an enticing array of heavy appetizers, desserts, and beverages and Geoffrey Sandler with Celebrations Entertainment will again serve as DJ, auctioneer, and all-around party host. Last year it was fun to see Geoffrey put attendees in a celebratory mood while ramping up the energy (and generosity) in the room, particularly during the live auction.

Once again there will be an appealing variety of both silent and live auction items to bid on. You can feel good about giving generously because your winning bid helps to actualize a stronger financial future for Wisconsinites. I recently reflected in an Executive Letter that WBA is fortunate to have dedicated bankers who are working every day to carry out our long-standing industry commitment to financial literacy and capability. This Gala provides an ideal way to celebrate that commitment and reflect on the impact of the foundation and our industry.

In addition to ample opportunities to network and enjoy the food and beverages while taking in the ambience, attendees will hear firsthand about the positive effect of WBF grants and scholarships. Representatives from the four very deserving non-profit organizations receiving 2024 WBF Grants will be recognized at the event. Additionally, a former WBF Scholarship recipient will share about the impact of the scholarship program on his education and career path.

I invite you to take an active role in this event by sponsoring the Gala or donating items for the auction. As a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization (FEIN 46-3791061), your sponsorship payments to WBF are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by IRS rules.

For sponsorship opportunities or to donate auction items, please contact Nick Loppnow at nloppnow@wisbank.com or Cassandra Krause at ckrause@wisbank.com.

I feel confident that if you attend this year’s Gala that you’ll look forward to the event every year!

Check out this short video to get a sense of how beautiful the venue is and an overview of the fun that attendees had at last year’s inaugural event.

/by

Executive Letter: A Shared Commitment to Financial Literacy and Capability

By Rose Oswald Poels

We know that bankers throughout Wisconsin are working every day to help customers build a strong financial foundation and achieve their future goals. Bankers often do this work under the radar, but shining a light on these efforts and achievements can inspire others working in the industry and underscores how banks empower customers and community members to make sound financial decisions. WBA is fortunate to have dedicated bankers that proudly and consistently work to carry out this long-standing industry commitment to financial literacy.

The 2023–2024 WBF Financial Education Summary Forms recognize the achievements of both banks and their individual team members for their financial education presentations and activities from June 1, 2023, through May 31, 2024. These activities typically include volunteer hours with Junior Achievement, Teach Children to Save presentations, coaching teams of students for the Finance and Investment Challenge Bowl, and financial outreach or seminars that assist community members in managing or understanding their personal finances.

Individual bankers who have volunteered their time and insights through a visit, presentation, or other types of financial literacy-focused events complete the ‘Individual Summary Form.’ Submissions are compiled to highlight the number of presenters and participants, as well as the financial literacy topics covered, each fiscal year. Based on the number of presentations, bankers may also be selected to receive the Financial Literacy Banker of the Year Award, Financial Literacy Banker Award, or a certificate of excellence or recognition.

The bank-wide form captures information related to the bank’s financial education initiatives. Based on the level of a bank’s total activity, member banks may earn the Excellence in Financial Education Award, presented at the award ceremony at the WBA FLEX Retail & Marketing Summit on November 21, 2024.

Additionally, the Foundation’s highest honor, the Financial Education Innovation Award, is awarded to one bank that showcases an innovative, comprehensive financial education initiative or program. A separate ceremony honoring the Financial Education Innovation Award is held during the WBA’s annual Bank Executives Conference in February.

By documenting your bank’s endeavors in the realm of financial literacy, you are assisting the team at WBA as we work to share the impactful stories about Wisconsin banks and emphasize the value of the banking industry by:
• spotlighting the outstanding efforts of bankers in Wisconsin to increase the financial literacy and capability of their community members,
• celebrating financial education and the achievements of hundreds of bankers, and
• providing insight to Foundation staff on topics, tools, and demographics that can be incorporated into future resources.

This is why I encourage bankers not to be shy about sharing information about volunteer efforts. Make your efforts known by submitting the forms! I extend a heartfelt thank you to the bankers who have dedicated hours of their time and expertise to engage individuals of every age in financial education. This work is improving the futures of individuals and communities across Wisconsin.

The Foundation is genuinely honored to recognize and celebrate the wonderful and innovative efforts of the WBA membership. I urge all members — even those who do not seek recognition — to submit the two forms located on the Foundation’s website by Wednesday, July 31.

/by
, , ,

Executive Letter: Promoting Financial Literacy During Financial Literacy Month

By Rose Oswald Poels

For banks, promoting financial literacy and capability is a long-standing, year-round tradition. These efforts are especially amplified throughout April, Financial Literacy Month. It is during this time that our industry showcases our ongoing commitment to supporting the financial wellness of our local community members.

With a mission to promote financial literacy and capability to the public and to broaden consumer empowerment in the financial services industry, the Wisconsin Bankers Foundation is proud to partner with banks across the state to aid in the effort to equip individuals of all ages with the knowledge and skills essential for making informed financial choices. In addition to scholarships offered annually to Wisconsin students and research published on Banconomics.com, education remains a significant priority. As such, the Foundation has curated a list of digital resources bankers may leverage in their efforts to promote financial well-being. These resources are free to use in April and throughout the year.

In addition to promoting these efforts in conjunction with your team’s participation in WBA’s Power of Community Week, I ask that your team also complete the Foundation’s 2023–2024 Financial Education Summary Forms to capture and celebrate the numerous ways bankers volunteer their time and expertise to foster financial literacy. While many bankers do not seek recognition for their outstanding service to Wisconsinites, reporting the financial education-focused activities your bank is involved with helps inform the efforts of WBA and WBF staff and is compiled for elected officials and members of our communities to highlight our collective efforts.

As economic uncertainties linger, personal finance and financial stability remain top of mind for communities throughout the country. In Wisconsin, it is evident that bankers remain dedicated to building a stronger and more resilient financial future for all. Thank you for your continued commitment.

/by
Wisconsin Bankers Association logo

questions@wisbank.com

608-441-1200

4721 S Biltmore Ln.
Madison, WI 53718

Get our Newsletter!
Subscribe