GWLN and WYCUP Announce 2025 Scholarship Recipients

The Worldwide Foundation for Credit Unions (WFCU) proudly announces the recipients of the 2025 Global Women’s Leadership Network (GWLN) and World Young Credit Union Professionals (WYCUP) Program scholarships.
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These distinguished awards recognize outstanding credit union leaders from around the world, providing them with transformative learning experiences and professional development opportunities.

For the 2025 scholarship cycle, GWLN received a record-breaking 101 applications from 25 countries, underscoring the growing demand for leadership opportunities within the credit union movement. WYCUP continues to identify and support emerging leaders, offering a platform for young professionals to expand their global perspectives and strengthen their contributions to the cooperative finance sector. This year WYCUP received 87 applications from 23 countries.

2025 WYCUP Scholarship Recipients
The WYCUP program, which fosters young credit union professionals’ growth and global collaboration, has awarded scholarships to the following outstanding individuals to attend the following global credit union events this year:

Super Summit Sicredi:

• Áine Thompson, Operations and Sustainability Officer, Kilrush Credit Union (Ireland)
• Caitlyn Harrington, Senior Member Solutions Advisor at Valley First, a division of First West Credit Union (Canada)
• Gloria San Gil, Senior Financial Analyst, IMB Bank (Australia)
• Hazelmae Overturf, Chief Impact Officer, Kaua‘i Federal Credit Union (USA)

World Credit Union Conference:

• Elizabeth Ayuso, Business Development Officer, Belize Credit Union League (Belize)
• Kefilwe Masalila, Chief Executive Officer, Botswana Savings and Credit Cooperative Association (Botswana)
• Kristin Tabin, Director, People and Planning, SaskCentral (Canada)
• Milena Parreira, Desenvolvendo a liderança jovem, Sicredi Youth Committee (Brazil)
• Vitor Cora, Aluno Presidente de Cooperativa, Sicredi Youth Committee (Brazil)

WYCUP scholarships cover travel, lodging and registration fees, while providing access to exclusive events, networking opportunities and professional development activities.

“Providing opportunities for growth in leadership is a driving purpose for WYCUP, so seeing a continued rise in the number of applications brings that message front and center,” said Ari Farrell, WYCUP Program Manager. “Each year, the applications are stronger, proving that young and emerging leaders are innovating and pushing the movement forward. This scholarship provides a unique opportunity to connect with and learn from the global credit union movement to help launch their careers -- helping them be the next generation of leadership.”
2025 GWLN Scholarship Recipients

The GWLN scholarship empowers women in the credit union industry by providing access to networking, education and professional growth. This year’s winners are:

• Gaylene Quitadamo, Manager, People & Culture, Unity Bank Limited (Australia)
• Jo Ha, Interim General Manager, Community Savings Credit Union (Canada)
• Rosario Cañadido, Member Development and Services Officer, Philippine Federation of Credit Cooperatives - National Capital Region (Philippines)
• Sibongile Prudence Vilakati, Manager, Hlalawati Savings and Credit Cooperative (Eswatini)

The 2025 GWLN scholarship includes airfare, hotel and registration fees for each scholar to attend the World Credit Union Conference (WCUC), which will take place July 14-16, 2025, in Stockholm, Sweden.

“It’s exciting to see the growing interest in our scholarship program,” said Eleni Giakoumopoulos, GWLN Director. “In the last five years, the number of applications has quadrupled, and this year we received the largest number on record. It was a tremendous challenge to select the four winners. Going forward, we aim to increase the number of scholarships awarded each year and continue investing in women across our global credit union movement.”

Both programs are made possible through the generous support of industry partners. Our current and past scholarship sponsors include TruStage, Velera, Origence, and OneAZ Credit Union through the Susan Adams Scholarship Fund.

The WYCUP and GWLN scholarships provide recipients with access to global credit union events, mentorship and networking opportunities, equipping them with the tools to drive meaningful change within their credit unions and communities.

For more information about GWLN and WYCUP, visit www.cuwomen.org and www.wycup.org.

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