NJEA President Marie Blistan announced the grant at the 2021 NJEA Equity Alliance on Jan. 16, 2021. The first installment of the grant will support the creation of the NJEA Racial & Social Justice Institute under NJEA’s newly-created Human and Civil Rights Division.

“NJEA is thankful to have Visions Federal Credit Union as our partner in public education,” noted Blistan. “As educators, we help shape society. We have a great responsibility to instill compassion, courage, and conviction in the young people we teach and help our members meet the diverse and changing needs of our student population. Visions is helping make our vision of more equitable public schools a reality.”

The goal of the NJEA Racial and Social Justice Institute is to stand in solidarity in teaching on the issues of systemic racism, institutional racism, environmental racism, colorism, homophobia, and all other forms of inequity. The Institute will provide high quality training and workshops for educators, students, families, and communities. It will also work to support local initiatives in public schools and county colleges.

Much like NJEA, Visions has a long history of serving New Jersey’s educators. The credit union entered the New Jersey market in 2012, merging with Paragon FCU (formerly East Bergen Teachers CU serving educators in Bergen County), and later expanding through a merger with Tri-Co FCU (serving educators in Morris, Sussex, and Warren counties.) The NJEA grant is part of Visions Federal Credit Union’s Visions Cares program, which is responsible for over $1 million in annual contributions to the communities Visions serves, as well as a work-force volunteer program that yields thousands of volunteer hours annually.

“Visions wanted to make a splash and a big impact across the state of New Jersey,” said Tyrone Muse, President and CEO of Visions Federal Credit Union. “An investment of this size has the capability to make some real change, and when faced with a decision, partnering with NJEA was a no-brainer. Their vision for the institute has the capability to impact every educator and student in the state of New Jersey.”

Visions also created the Visions Loves Educators (visionsloveseducators.com) program, a tailored collection or products, services, and grants tailored to the needs of educators. The Visions Loves Educators Classroom Funding program gave over $20,000 in mini-grants to educators in need of supplies and materials over the last year.

The New Jersey Education Association represents over 200,000 active and retired public school educators and support professionals. NJEA is a diverse, democratic organization working to create an optimal environment to achieve excellence in public education in New Jersey.

About Visions

Visions Federal Credit Union is a not for profit financial institution completely owned by its members. Established in 1966, Visions proudly serves over 217,000 members in communities throughout New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. Services include banking as well as auto, home, personal, and business loans. Visit www.visionsfcu.org for more information.

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