When Michigan StateUniversity Federal Credit Union became one of the first in thenation to offer ATM voice output for visually impaired people andthose with print-related disabilities, Michael Hudson was in a keyposition to back the idea.

Hudson, who is blind, has served on the supervisory committee ofthe $2.6 billion credit union since 2011 and was named chairman in2013. In June this year he was named to the MSUFCU board ofdirectors. He joined Michigan State in East Lansing in 1992, andcurrently serves as director of the MSU Resource Center for Personswith Disabilities.

Actually, Hudson said, he has long-standing experience withcredit unions.

“My earliest banking accounts were with a credit union as achild,” he recalled. “So I've always had that awareness. I sawsomething nice in the membership ownership of a credit union.

“When I came to work at Michigan State University, I had adifferent credit union I was working with. Then it became apparentthere were some real strategic advantages to moving to this one.I've been with this credit union as a member since 1993.”

Hudson started wondering if there were ways the credit unioncould be even more leading edge, including accessibility formembers with disabilities. He had a chance to talk to thepresident/CEO, initially through email. He received a positiveresponse to the idea of making ATMs more accessible, and began aworking partnership.

“All that led me to believe this was an organization that waswilling to invest in its members,” Hudson said.

After becoming a member of the supervisory committee, he learnedthe powerful role internal controls play in assuring a financiallystable organization, and how precise the internal audit processneeds to be.

Hudson indicated he will also bring to the board, through alifetime of working with credit unions, an awareness of how theyaffect people's ability to gain financial health and manage theirfinancial resources.

He's also alert to the fact that as MSUFCU's membership hasgrown to some 184,000 members, 10 to 20% of them will experiencesome kind of disability.

“We know that only about a quarter of the disabilities out thereare visible. Three-quarters are things you wouldn't see. Some ofthe things we do as a credit union will make a big difference inthe quality of services we provide to those members,” Hudsonsaid.

As a director of a credit union serving many students, Hudsonalso is concerned that young people today are not as savvy abouthandling money as financial institutions might like. Withoutguidance, they can make some pretty bad choices, for example takingon too much credit card debt.

“A college setting is a great place to help influence, forexample, the 50,000 students here at MSU,” Hudson said.

He also said he believes the United States has been a leader inlegislation such as the Americans with Disabilities Act. Such lawshave made it imperative to work on disabilities issues.

“There are also people who have gone out and said, 'I have adisability, but it is not going to stop me from being successful,'”Hudson observed. “Disabilities don't seem to cast people in thesame light they did 30 or 40 years ago. They're lessstigmatized.”

Attending his first board meeting as a director, he discoveredso much was happening he decided he had a lot to learn. But he'sconfident that within a fairly short time he'll be up and runningand start to contribute new ideas.