CUES and TruStage® just unveiled the 25 professionals who’ll make up the first-ever CUES x TruStage Leadership Pathways cohort.
Think of it as a year-long master class in becoming the kind of leader the industry desperately needs.
This isn’t your typical leadership program where you sit through PowerPoint presentations and call it professional development. Leadership Pathways combines three heavy hitters: management education, one-on-one executive coaching, and a built-in network of peers who are climbing the same ladder. The goal? Prepare rising stars for bigger roles and longer-lasting impact across the credit union movement.
Meet the 2026 Cohort
These 25 professionals are about to spend a year leveling up their leadership game:
- Crystal Acevedo, I AM Federal Credit Union
- Taryn Allbrooks, Concord Federal Credit Union
- Priscilla Awkard, Coastal Credit Union
- Christopher Bowles, Young Community Federal Credit Union
- Kenia Calderon Ceron, Seattle Credit Union
- Sylvia Clark, New Covenant Dominion Federal Credit Union
- Cesar Cortez, First Alliance Credit Union
- Amanda Denney, Elements Financial Credit Union
- Alberto Diosdado, Universal City Studios Credit Union
- Ana Duarte, A+ Federal Credit Union
- Katherine Flory, Questa Credit Union
- Lars Gilberts, Numerica Credit Union
- Alisa Holman, Sun Community Federal Credit Union
- Terry Inskip, OAS Federal Credit Union
- Vashyon Jackson, RBFCU
- Sam Jensen, Peak Credit Union
- Jessica Martinez, Credit Union West
- Mary Navarrete, Point West Credit Union
- Erika Ordaz, Rivermark Community Credit Union
- Stephanie Peoples, One Detroit Credit Union
- Esperanza Poblano, AACUC
- Tyler Richards, Edwards Federal Credit Union
- Grace Thompson, Civic Federal Credit Union
- Grant Weiland, Border Federal Credit Union
- Cassandra White Hemphill, Church of The Master Federal Credit Union
The Power of Partnership
What makes this cohort special isn’t just the names on the list—it’s how they got there. Partner organizations including Inclusiv, the National Association of Latino Credit Unions & Professionals (NLCUP), the African American Credit Union Coalition (AACUC), and CU Pride helped identify and nominate candidates. That collaborative approach meant the selection process pulled from different roles, regions, perspectives, and credit union experiences. In other words, this cohort actually reflects the diverse reality of the industry.
Why This Matters
Leadership Pathways exists to fix a real problem: not everyone with executive potential gets access to executive-level development. The program opens doors to high-impact training—specifically, the CUES Advanced Management Program with Cornell University—for emerging leaders who show serious potential, a hunger to grow, and a genuine commitment to advancing the credit union movement.
Bottom line? This is about building a stronger leadership pipeline across the entire credit union system, not just at organizations that already have robust development programs. And based on this inaugural cohort, the future’s looking pretty bright.