CUES 107: NCUA’s Pandemic Support and ACCESS Program for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion—an Interview With Rodney E. Hood

It’s interesting that as the unpredicted, unprecedented year of 2020 was closing, Rodney E. Hood identifies this quote as a professional mantra he lives by: “Proper preparation and planning can prevent poor performance.”

Chairman of the National Credit Union Administration Board, Hood says in this show, taped Dec. 8, that this quote he learned in high school helps him remember to always put his best foot forward and get “things done with professionalism, duty and integrity.”

“As long as I stay focused on those Ps … it gets me through,” he says.

For 2020, putting the best foot forward meant helping the federal agency he leads support credit unions on two important fronts: the COVID-19 pandemic and efforts to boost diversity, equity and inclusion in the credit union industry after the killing of George Floyd in May.

Hood talks in the show about key things the National Credit Union Administration did in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including:

• Staying open, even though the staff is working from home for safety
• Allowing remote board meetings and annual membership meetings
• Continuing offsite regulatory examinations
• Recognizing the challenges of lending in these times and supported the making of small-dollar loans, loan modifications and forbearances
• Supporting small and low-income-designated credit unions that are on the front lines in serving people who have been marginalized or underserved

He also expresses his vision for the inception and next steps of NCUA’s Advancing Communities through Credit, Education, Stability and Support program, also known as ACCESS.

The show also gets into:

• Why Hood loved studying Latin and what modern language he’d like to speak fluently (and why)
• How the pandemic-impacted economy compares to the Great Recession in 2008 and why Hood thinks credit unions are better positioned for success now than they were then
• What Hood thinks would be good next steps for NCUA to take as credit unions ride out the pandemic
• Examples of real people who have been impacted by credit unions during these unprecedented times

Links for this show:

• NCUA’s COVID-19 response 
• Chairman Hood’s statement in response to the killing of George Floyd
• African American Credit Union Coalition
• NCUA’s ACCESS program
• NCUA’s voluntary diversity assessment