Wisconsin Bankers Foundation Honored With Governor’s Financial Literacy Award
Pictured left to right: First Lady Kathy Evers; Ami Myrland, WBF Board member, EVP and CFO of Capitol Bank; Rose Oswald Poels, WBF Board chair, president and CEO of the Wisconsin Bankers Association; Cassandra Krause, WBF executive director, communications manager of the Wisconsin Bankers Association; Governor Tony Evers; David Mancl, director of the Office of Financial Literacy, Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions
The Wisconsin Bankers Foundation (WBF), the non-profit arm of the Wisconsin Bankers Association (WBA), was selected as a recipient of the 2022 Governor’s Financial Literacy Award in the legacy category. The award was presented by Governor Tony Evers at the State Capitol on April 21, 2023.
“Financial education gives people the tools they need to achieve their dreams, expand their opportunities, and attain financial security for themselves and their families,” said Gov. Evers. “The dedication of these individuals and organizations to help Wisconsinites become more financially secure and achieve their dreams is commendable and helps ensure not only the future success of individuals and families, but our entire state.”
The legacy award is given to an organization, business, or individual whose purpose and heritage is ingrained in sustained financial literacy and capability efforts. The Wisconsin Bankers Foundation was selected in recognition of its Reading Raises Interest program, which provides kits with books and lesson plans that banker volunteers present in preschool and elementary school classrooms around the state. The kits focus on the fundamentals of money management and are distributed annually in conjunction with Teach Children to Save Day in April.
“We are grateful to Governor Evers for honoring our organization with this award and for emphasizing the importance of financial literacy,” said Cassandra Krause, Wisconsin Bankers Foundation executive director. “It is exciting to see the Reading Raises Interest program continue to reach new students year after year thanks to the collaboration of banker volunteers and educators across the state.”
Recognized in the individual category was Terry Patterson-Taylor of the Wisconsin Women’s Business Initiative Corporation, a WBA Associate Member. In the organizational category, the Wisconsin Coalition on Student Debt (of which the Wisconsin Bankers Foundation is a member) and Ascendium Education Group were recognized. Also in the legacy category was Bank On Greater Milwaukee (of which WBA and many WBA-member banks are partners).
More information on the award and the complete list of 2022 recipients can be found on the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions’ website.
