MADISON, Wis.—The Worldwide Foundation for Credit Unions (WFCU) has named the recipients of the 2025 Global Women’s Leadership Network (GWLN) and World Young Credit Union Professionals (WYCUP) Program scholarships.

“These distinguished awards recognize outstanding credit union leaders from around the world, providing them with transformative learning experiences and professional development opportunities,” the organization said. 

For the 2025 scholarship cycle, GWLN reported it received a record-breaking 101 applications from 25 countries, underscoring the growing demand for leadership opportunities within the credit union movement. 

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

‘A Driving Purpose’

“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,” Ari Farrell, WYCUP program manager, said in a statement. “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 the organization said. 

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.

‘Growing Interest’

“It’s exciting to see the growing interest in our scholarship program,” GWLN Director Eleni Giakoumopoulos said in a statement. “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.”

The organizations thanked sponsors that include TruStage, Velera, Origence, and OneAZ Credit Union.