Purdue Federal, Development Team Up for Scholarship
Purdue Federal Credit Union (Purdue Federal) and Purdue’s Development Office have teamed up to provide the newly established Purdue Federal Credit Union Leadership Scholarship in honor of Walter L. Walker.
Eligible scholarship recipients include in-state students who have demonstrated financial need, as determined by the Purdue’s Division of Financial Aid. A preference will be given to students enrolled in the Krannert School of Management. The Division of Financial Aid will select recipients annually from those students who have applied for need-based financial aid and filed the appropriate forms in a timely manner.
This scholarship honors Walter Walker, who passed away Feb. 7, 2015. Walker was Purdue Federal’s first credit union manager. He served as manager and president from 1972 until his retirement in 1986. Many people credit Walker with providing the vision for growing a fledgling credit union into one that on Oct. 31, 1985, reached the $100 million asset mark for the first time. He built Purdue Federal’s strong foundation through expanding services and emphasizing the credit union’s philosophy of “people helping people.”
Today, Purdue Federal (formerly known as PEFCU) is a member-owned financial cooperative with more than 65,000 members nationwide and assets exceeding $900 million. It has earned the honor as Best Financial Institution, Best Checking Account and Best Mortgage Lender in Lafayette-West Lafayette as voted by Journal & Courier readers continually since 2009.
Purdue Federal has a relationship with the Krannert School dating back decades, says Professor Charlene Sullivan, associate dean of undergraduate programs. Mark Moriarty, associate professor, currently sits on its board of directors, and Sullivan herself served on the Purdue Federal board for 20 years. Other faculty with stints on the board include economics professor Jerry Lynch, as well as former faculty members Mike Staten, David Kidwell and Richard L. (Chip) Peterson.
Purdue Federal also has employed numerous interns from the School of Management over the years, including students in finance, accounting and marketing, among other areas. “Purdue Federal has been a great contributor to the University on many levels,” Sullivan says. “This scholarship is a result of our long history together and is the sort of relationship that Krannert prides itself on having with community employers.”
