Chancellor Kristin Sobolik cuts a ribbon to mark the opening CommunityAmerica Credit Union’s new branch in the Millennium Student Center on Wedneaat the University of Missouri–St. Louis. Sobolik (center) was flanked by (from left) UMSL Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center Executive Director Scott Morris, Vice Chancellor Reggie Hill, Ed G. Smith College of Business Dean Shu Schiller, CommunityAmerica Credit Union St. Louis Market President Kathy O’Neill, Louie the Triton, CommunityAmerica Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer Whitney Bartelli and other officials from the credit union. (Photo by Derik Holtmann)

Members of the University of Missouri–St. Louis community and its neighbors have a convenient new place to access their banking needs.

Chancellor Kristin Sobolik gathered with leaders from CommunityAmerica Credit Union amid the midday hustle and bustle of the UMSL campus to commemorate the opening of the credit union’s new branch with a ribbon-cutting on Wednesday afternoon.

“I really welcome having your presence here in our Millennium Student Center so that you can help with services for our faculty, staff and students in their own financial lives,” Sobolik said. “It’s easy, accessible and community-focused. That’s fantastic, especially as we create and continue to expand on the vibrancy of our in-person campus here at the university.”

The MSC branch, located across the hall from the Triton Store, is part of CommunityAmerica’s ongoing expansion in St. Louis with currently eight locations across the region and a new regional headquarters on track to open next year in Des Peres. The branch will operate from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m.-1 p.m. on Saturdays with additional access to a video teller seven days a week.

“This action today, opening the branch and collaborating with the University of Missouri–St. Louis, is really just an extension and further evolution of our commitment in the St. Louis market,” said Kathy O’Neill, who serves as the St. Louis market president at CommunityAmerica. “Our goal, as we’ve said, is to improve the financial lives and to meet people where they are, and what better place to do that than in the Millennium Student Center, where students or people from the community can come in? So, this partnership really helps us live our mission.”

The new partnership also extends far beyond the 435 square feet the new branch and ATM are occupying in the MSC.

UMSL and CommunityAmerica have been joining forces to develop the Triton Financial Wellness Program. The UMSL Center for Excellence in Financial Counseling, led by Director Mark Fetters, has been working with team members from the credit union to design a comprehensive curriculum, which will include financial education activities, hands-on workshops and personalized coaching sessions.

“That will help strengthen the financial acumen and money management habits for Triton students,” said Whitney Bartelli, CommunityAmerica’s chief marketing and strategy officer. “Students learn so many other things throughout college, but they often leave unprepared. They may not know about a credit score, may not know about just day-to-day money management. So, I’m super excited about that element of the partnership.”

CommunityAmerica is also engaging with UMSL’s Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center and its executive director, Scott Morris, and aims to provide support for the Anchor Accelerator Program, which has been assisting early-stage, scalable businesses in the Greater St. Louis area grow through capital, mentorship and experiential learning over the past five years. The program will now be known as the Anchor Accelerator Program Powered by CommunityAmerica, and the credit union will provide mentorship, financial services and learning opportunities to support the founders as they grow their businesses.

The credit union has contributed a gift for the naming of the CommunityAmerica Credit Union Auditorium in the newly renovated UMSL Innovation Center, which is slated to mark its official opening in November.

CommunityAmerica has already hired two students as part of the staff at the new branch and is committed to hiring other UMSL students to work in its branches or serve as interns within the organization.

“We really want to begin to provide that opportunity for them to develop themselves and in their careers,” O’Neill said, and added, “This partnership really is about building a stronger future together and ensuring that everyone who’s connected to the University of Missouri–St. Louis and the surrounding community has the financial support and expertise to thrive.”