Grants of up to $25,000 each are available to help small institutions establish mentoring programs with larger, low-income-designated credit unions to “provide expertise and guidance in serving low-income and underserved populations,” the federal credit union regulator said Monday.
The total amount of grants available is $125,000, the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) said in a release. Small, low-income credit unions designated as minority depository institutions (MDIs) may apply for mentoring grants from May 1 through June 30, the agency said.
NCUA said that credit unions selected for the mentoring program will participate in agency-led group meetings and training relevant to their needs and will share progress on the mentoring partnerships.
NCUA Board Chairman Rodney Hood, in announcing the grant program, said that the economic disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has hit both rural and underserved communities especially hard, “and these are the areas that minority depository institutions predominately serve.”