Nation's Largest Ethnic Credit Union Awards Record Levels of College Scholarships

Educational Grants Total $350,000; Number of Students Honored Jumps 25%

Program Extends Reach To Chicago And Other Markets

Credit Union Commences Financial Support For The Institute of World Politics

BROOKLYN, N.Y., July 6 /PRNewswire/ -- With spending on education increasingly becoming a victim of the economic downturn, the nation's largest ethnic credit union announced today that it surpassed last year's record of college scholarships awarded to students within its membership.


This year, the Polish & Slavic Federal Credit Union handed out $350,000 in grants to more than 315 students, ranging in age from high school to post-graduate level.


"We continue to buck the trend when it comes to investing in our neighborhoods and in our members' futures," said Mr. Bogdan Chmielewski, CEO of the PSFCU. "We increased the scholarship money by a hefty $50,000 while the number of students who benefited from this vital program rose by 25%. This is one of the most important projects we undertake annually. It gives us such great pride to help these hundreds of children reach their potential in school. And it gives them hope and strength knowing that they have someone in their corner rooting them on. After all, we are a credit union, not a bank."


As the PSFCU's scholarship program has grown, so too has it geographic reach. The organization's scholarship program expanded beyond New York, as it awarded grants to students in Chicago and a dozen other cities outside its home region.


"We're extremely excited to be able to broaden our reach to so many cities beyond the Metropolitan New York area," said Ms. Bozena Kajewska-Pielarz, a Board Member who led the Scholarship Committee this year. "Thanks to our Online Branch, which enables us to offer membership to residents of other states, and our imminent Chicago expansion, young members from areas other than our traditional New York and New Jersey footprint will be able to benefit from the program."


The scholarships were awarded during two separate ceremonies -- in late May for high school graduates and three weeks later for college students. Prior to these events, the credit union funded a stay for 20 gifted students at a science camp at the Copernicus Observatory at Vestal, NY.


A former PSFCU Chairman, Mr. Alex Storozynski, who recently authored a biography of Thaddeus Kosciuszko, put in a surprise appearance at both ceremonies, presenting historical tidbits from his The Peasant Prince. Each scholarship recipient received a copy, which the author graciously autographed.


As the credit union handed scholarship checks to college students, it also inaugurated a new program of financial support for the Kosciuszko Chair at the Institute of World Politics of Washington D.C., presenting a $10,000 donation to the Institute's founder, Professor John Lenczowski. It also designated a special $5,000 scholarship to be awarded to a student who will be admitted to study at the Institute next year.


The 70,000-member PSFCU has one of the most ambitious scholarship programs among the country's credit unions. Since its inception in 2001, its scholarship fund has helped defray the cost of college for more than 1,100 students, as it has handed out $1.8 million in grants.


About the PSFCU

Founded in 1976 by a group of Polish immigrants to help other ethnic Poles obtain mortgages, the Polish & Slavic Federal Credit Union now has 13 branches in New York and New Jersey, a Virtual Branch, a Mobile Branch and an operations center in Fairfield, NJ. The 33-year-old credit union, with more than $1.2 billion in assets, serves 70,000 members of the Polish and Slavic communities throughout New York and New Jersey. The union, which is the largest ethnic credit union in the United States, also operates ATMs at the National Shrine at Doylestown, PA.





SOURCE PSFCU