News & Press Releases

Alliant Credit Union Foundation recently provided a $25,000 grant to Hadley School for the Blind, to help fund the school’s new Forsythe Center for Entrepreneurship, announced David W. Mooney, Foundation Chairman and President & CEO of Chicago based Alliant Credit Union.

This was in addition to a $5,000 general purpose grant the Foundation gave to Hadley School last year. Mr. Mooney said, “Donating to Hadley School is right in line with our Foundation’s purpose of promoting economic empowerment and self-sufficiency of people, especially through educational opportunities.”

The Forsythe Center, scheduled to begin operating this fall, will prepare aspiring and current entrepreneurs who are blind or visually impaired to succeed in business, according to Hadley School President Charles E. Young. This is the latest program of the 90-year-old, Winnetka, Illinois based school, which provides free-of-charge distance education to 10,000 students annually in all 50 states and 100 countries. Hadley relies on contributions from individuals, foundations and corporations to fund its programs.

The Foundation’s grant was presented to Mr. Young and George Abbott, Hadley’s VP of Education & Training, during Alliant Credit Union’s December Employee Recognition Meeting, held at Alliant’s headquarters near O’Hare International Airport. Mr. Abbott, who will manage the school’s new program, spoke of the great need for entrepreneurial training designed for people who are blind or visually impaired. He said that 80% of people with such disabilities are unemployed and may only be able to attain meaningful jobs and incomes through self employment.

Mr. Young mentioned that individual donors have pledged to make a two-for-one matching grant each year for the next three years for new contributions made to the new entrepreneurial center. “Therefore, the Alliant Credit Union Foundation grant results in $75,000 for our new program,” he added. “This is a great help toward getting the Center up and running, as we continue its development over the next few years”. He expressed his gratitude to the Foundation for its contribution to enhance Hadley’s ability to promote independent living through distance education for those who are blind or visually impaired.”

Alliant Credit Union Foundation was established in 2009 via a $4 million grant from Alliant Credit Union, America’s sixth largest credit union in asset size with locations in the Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay and Washington, DC areas.

In addition to the Hadley School grants, the Foundation has donated to a number of worthwhile charities, causes and educational purposes. Included are Orphan Foundation of America, Operation HOPE (financial literacy and economic empowerment organization), Breast Cancer Network of Strength, American Red Cross, Haiti Earthquake Relief and more. In all, the Foundation contributed approximately $200,000 during 2010.