YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Local credit unions are expanding and providing their members with lower-interest loans, financial literacy education and a way to support their communities.
Michael Kurish, CEO and president of the Associated School Employees Credit Union, says staying local is part of the key to success.
The ASECU has seen membership grow by more than 10% over the past year. Kurish attributes it to commercial banks merging with larger banks outside the area, which prompts customers to reevaluate their options.
“Many of these individuals chose to become customers of those institutions because they were locally run and operated,” Kurish says. “There’s a great deal of parochial pride in the Mahoning Valley and people are concerned when their money is transferred to entities outside of the area.”
A local credit union has a volunteer board of directors who live in the community. Kurish says people know if there is a problem with their account they can call or stop in – and not be transferred to another city.
“I think individuals like dealing with their neighbors and they like knowing that the decisions are made by people who live in the community and that funds are going to be kept in the community,” Kurish says.
Sandi Carangi, CEO of the Mercer County Community Federal Credit Union, agrees the big plus for credit unions is how much they give back to their communities. The people who entrust their money to credit unions know that it stays local.
“If it wasn’t for the families and the people in the community, we wouldn’t exist, because our structure is, we’re a not-for-profit financial cooperative – all credit unions are,” Carangi says. “People in the community can come right to us and know that we’re investing right here, where they live, where they work, where they’re raising their family. And we take a lot of pride in that… That is what credit unions were built upon.”
According to the Ohio Credit Union League, 3.3 million Ohioans choose to bank with at least one of Ohio’s 205 not-for-profit credit unions. Ohio’s credit unions average 15,952 members and $237 million in assets.
America’s Credit Unions reports that in Pennsylvania, there were 308 credit unions with more than 4.9 million members in 2024, but banks still control nearly 90% of the deposits.
Credit unions tend to have lower interest rates on both new and used cars, credit cards, and home equity loans.
Although the lack of anticipated changes to the federal interest rates have not spurred a lot of home buying, Kurish says over the last year, the auto lending market has been very strong for the ASECU.
“We have a portfolio that has grown by over 40% over the last year,” Kurish says. “We have seen our assets grow by over 10%.”
Mercer County
Carangi says the Mercer County Community Federal Credit Union continues to look at ways to expand throughout the region it serves: Mercer, Crawford, Shenango and Lawrence counties in Pennsylvania and Trumbull, Mahoning and Columbiana counties in Ohio.
After investing $1 million to expand its Sharon, Pa., branch about five years ago and more than $6 million to build new corporate offices in Hermitage, the Mercer credit union is planning to open a third branch within its service area sometime in 2026.
“We’re looking to the pockets of population where people are not being served by credit unions,” Carangi says. “Possibly, that’s where we want to be.”
The Mercer credit union now serves almost 13,000 members.
Carangi says they recognize that members expect to be able to utilize technology for their banking. Between the mobile app and online resources, there were 70,000 logins each month in 2024. Now that number is approaching 100,000 monthly logins.
“We want to make you know we’re there for you, whether it’s in person or online, we’re here,” Carangi says.
Young adults want technology with the bells and whistles, so they can check their accounts and bank 24 hours a day, seven days a week, Kurish says. And as banking becomes more digital, Kurish points out competition is no longer just the other financial institutions down the street.
But with technology comes the need to protect people and make sure they are not giving away their information.
“We try to provide educational updates every now and then, email blasts to our members. We put information on our website. We make information available in our lobby. You just cannot stress how important it is to keep your information confidential,” Kurish says.
Next Generation
Both the ASECU and Mercer County are working with local organizations to educate young people about finances.
The ASECU provides educational materials to youth who have accounts with them. Additionally, Kurish says they encourage savings by not charging the same fees for youth accounts as others.
Through a $5,000 grant, the Mercer credit union partnered with GreenPath Financial Wellness, a national nonprofit that provides online tools and resources to its members. For free, members can find ways to get out of debt, set a budget, build credit and get help with the housing process whether they are new homebuyers or struggling with rent or a mortgage.
In addition to online resources, Mercer currently has three certified financial counselors and is in the process of adding four more.
“We feel that it’s a really important part of our mission, to make sure we’re taking care of our members from a financial wellness perspective,” Carangi says.
Mercer teams up with Junior Achievement of Western PA and now Junior Achievement of Eastern Ohio. Carangi says the credit union is very involved in sending students to JA BizTown in Pittsburgh and will now help students in Trumbull, Mahoning and Columbiana County go to JA BizTown in Ohio.
Pictured at top: Michael Kurish, CEO and president of the Associated School Employees Credit Union.