Editor’s note: Three Universities of Wisconsin universities partnered with Royal Credit Union to launch an innovative internship program using artificial intelligence to support a local business. This story is one of four in a series showcasing the impact of this collaboration. Read more: [Student Story] | [Faculty Story] | [Collaboration Story].
The Universities of Wisconsin (UWs) are committed to supporting organizations that contribute to Wisconsin’s economic vitality, including the work of The Wisconsin Credit Union League. While our sectors differ from higher education to financial services, we each play important roles in strengthening communities across the state.
Wisconsin’s state chartered credit unions, which manage more than $69 billion in member-owned capital, are navigating a rapidly changing environment. Many of the challenges they face, such as workforce shortages, succession planning, and growing demands for specialized skills, are also familiar across Wisconsin’s broader economy. The UWs stand ready to help.
According to Sarah Wainscott, President and CEO of The Wisconsin Credit Union League, member institutions are seeking support in emerging areas such as understanding new markets like crypto and stablecoins, defending against increasingly sophisticated fraud enabled by artificial intelligence (AI), and improving the use of data.
“From crypto to fraud prevention to data analytics, the needs are urgent,” Wainscott said.
The Universities of Wisconsin can offer resources, expertise, and collaborative opportunities that help organizations address these evolving challenges.
From Challenge to Partnership
Through a unique multi-campus collaboration between Royal Credit Union and UW-Eau Claire, UW-River Falls, and UW-Stout, students from the three universities partnered to build data intelligence tools as part of a pilot internship program conceived by Royal Credit Union- an Innovation Lab.
Learn more about how the cross-campus collaboration came together from UW-Eau Claire.
Brandon Reichers, President and CEO of Royal Credit Union, said the Innovation Lab goes beyond a traditional internship to focus on learning and developing insights for addressing future problems. When asked why not just hire AI consultants, Reichers was clear: “We didn’t want polished answers from a consultant. We wanted to leverage students’ natural curiosity.”
The goal was about more than saving money. It was to access what credit unions need most: fresh thinking, adaptability, and mission alignment.
Under faculty guidance, students helped Royal Credit Union organize and classify data using Structured Query Language (SQL), proposed and tested statistical algorithms using Python, and then compared solutions to market recommendations for an optimized approach.
Learn more about the faculty approach from UW-River Falls.
While learning was integral to the process, the outcome also delivered real business impact. Chris Meyer, Royal Credit Union’s Vice President of IT Innovation and Efficiency, said the program allowed them to try innovative ideas without derailing existing strategic projects or core work.
For Royal Credit Union, working with curious students was highly beneficial. The Innovation Lab brought students excited to demonstrate and grow their skills, while also resulting in potential new business value.
Learn more about the student outcomes from UW-Stout.
“While data will be a focus for the next several years, from a talent standpoint we need people with natural curiosity who are driven by purpose,” Riechers said.
Scaling Statewide
As a statewide generator of talent, the Universities of Wisconsin are positioned to connect with local credit unions regionally, utilizing our student talent to help address business challenges and potentially bringing students who seek mission-driven work to organizations that need them.
Wainscott said many credit unions are smaller than Royal Credit Union — about half of Wisconsin’s 101 credit unions have assets under $100 million. At the same time, credit union CEOs are retiring, and many have small staffs with limited resources for recruitment or executive leadership development, much less tackling new technologies.
In that environment, university partnerships become an economic development strategy: Students gain experience. Credit unions build capacity. Communities get better financial services. Community members and businesses have access to capital and local investment
“As cooperatives credit unions are ‘people helping people,” Wainscott said. “We serve and strengthen our own neighbors, our main streets, and our community partners.”
This partnership shows the value of connecting student learning with real business challenges. Royal Credit Union created a well-defined Innovation Lab, and our campuses were able to connect students whose skills matched what the business needed. These kinds of collaborations strengthen both student learning and Wisconsin’s economy,” notes Chris Patton, VP University Relations at the Universities of Wisconsin.
Capital Ready to Deploy
Strengthening credit unions through university partnerships unlocks community capital already here, ready to support Wisconsin’s economic growth. Total assets for Wisconsin-based credit unions reached $72.4 billion at the end of the third quarter.
Capital without capacity sits unused. Opportunities get missed. Communities go underserved.
To leverage the opportunity to partner with the UWs on workforce and data analytics is a win-win. “Sign me up,” Wainscott said.
Connect: To explore how UW partnerships might address your business challenges in talent, innovation, or community impact, complete our brief interest survey or contact Idella Kangas directly.
Wisconsin Credit Unions: 101 state-chartered credit unions | $69B+ in assets | 75 in-school branches | Member-owned, community-focused