Florida Credit Union

Florida Credit Union

Formerly called	Alachua County Teachers Credit Union
Founded	1954
Headquarters	Gainesville, Florida
Area served	North Central Florida
Website	www.flcu.org

Florida Credit Union is a member-owned financial services institution headquartered in Gainesville, Florida and serving the North Central Florida area. As of December 2011, Florida Credit Union had over $459 million in assets and has more than 73,000 members.^[1] FCU is regulated under the authority of the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA).^[2]

History

Established in 1954 as a state-chartered credit union, FCU was originally called the Alachua County Teachers Credit Union and was owned and run by teachers in the Alachua County School System. The credit union is now open for membership to anyone who lives or works in one of 19 North Central Florida counties: Alachua, Bradford, Citrus, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Flagler, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Hernando, Lake, Levy, Marion, Putnam, St. Johns, Sumter, Suwannee, Union, and Volusia.

Despite its expansion, the credit union still maintains a close relationship with the school systems. This includes a partnership with the Alachua County Public Schools Foundation and the Alachua County Tools for Schools Program.^[3][4] FCU also participates in Marion, Levy, Union, Gilchrist, Bradford and Columbia County School Systems’ "Back to School" and Teacher Appreciation events throughout the year.

Mission

Serving as a cooperative within the community, FCU follows seven cooperative principles, which include voluntary and open membership, democratic member control, member economic participation, autonomy and independence, informational education and training, cooperation among cooperatives and concern for the community.

Mission Statement

The Florida Credit Union mission statement reads as follows:

“Dedicated to serving its membership by offering convenient products and services that are designed to meet the financial needs of the member/owners while preserving the strength of cooperative for future generations.” ^[5]

Branches

Florida Credit Union has ten branches located in five North-Central Florida cities:^[6]

Gainesville

43rd Street Branch 2831 NW 43rd Street, Gainesville, FL 32606

13th Street Branch 3720 NW 13th Street, Suite 10-C, Gainesville, FL 32609

Haile Market Square Branch 2785 SW 91 Street, Suite 200, Gainesville, FL 32608

Ocala

Silver Springs Branch 3504 E. Silver Springs Boulevard, Ocala, FL 34470

Ocala Branch 2424 SW 17 Road, Ocala, FL 34471

Country Oaks Branch 9680 SW 114th Street, Ocala, FL 34471

Maricamp Branch 10 Bahia Avenue Lane

Ocala, FL 34472

Starke

Starke Branch 2460 Commercial Drive, Starke, FL 32091

Lake City

Lake City Branch 583 West Duval Street, Lake City, FL 32055

DeLand

DeLand Branch 1699-A N. Woodland Blvd., DeLand, FL 32720

FCU Scholarships

Florida Credit Union was originally called the Alachua County Teachers Credit Union and was owned and run by teachers in the Alachua County School System. Despite our expansion, FCU continues to maintain close relationships with the school systems through partnerships and by participating in “Back to School” and Teacher Appreciation events.

Additionally, Florida Credit Union awards scholarships on the basis of student’s scholastic record, future potential, leadership, initiative, character, dependability, integrity and financial need. The award is open to any student who is enrolled or plans to enroll in the current year in undergraduate study. Either they or their parent/guardian must be a member of Florida Credit Union to be eligible for a scholarship.

Servin-Ellis Scholarship Fund

The Servin-Ellis Scholarship Fund was originally established in memory of the first treasurer/manager of FCU, Oscar Servin. In 1997, the fund was renamed to also honor Dr. Jonnie Ellis, a board member who served from 1987 to 1997 and served as Chair from 1993 to 1996. The scholarship fund is awarded annually in May and is divided among more than one recipient.

Buchholz Academy of Finance Scholarship

This scholarship, originally a subset of the Servin-Ellis Scholarship, is distributed annually in May and is awarded to one or more Buchholz High School Academy of Finance seniors who enrolled or plan to enroll in the current year in undergraduate study.

Dr. John C. Rawls Scholarship Fund

The Dr. John C. Rawls Scholarship was established in honor of Dr. John C. Rawls, a member of the Board of Directors since 1957. Over his 55 years of service, Dr. Rawls served on the board as President, Vice President, Secretary, Chair and Treasurer. During a nine-month period in the 1990s, he served as the interim CEO of the credit union until a new CEO could be found. This scholarship is available to high school seniors as well as anyone who is furthering their education, regardless of age. It will be awarded annually in May and divided among more than one recipient. ^[7]

References