WASHINGTON-NCUA Chairman Dennis Dollar was selected to participate in a White House panel on minority homeownership Tuesday, October 15 at George Washington University's Marvin Center in Washington, D.C. The panel is entitled The President's Homeownership Challenge: A Blueprint for the American Dream. President George W. Bush and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Mel Martinez selected Dollar to serve on the panel focusing on mortgage financing because of the burgeoning role credit unions can play in mortgage lending to underserved communities. The panel ties in well with Dollar's Access Across America initiative. "I am honored to participate in this conference on an issue so important to American families and our nation's economy," Dollar said. The conference aims to bring together government agencies, community and faith-based organizations, and mortgage lenders to discuss the value of homeownership and specific initiatives to increase minority homeownership. President Bush and Martinez will both attend and address the conference. The White House plans to issue a comprehensive agenda in June to increase minority homeownership by at least 5.5 million by the end of the decade. "Access to affordable housing opportunities for people from all walks of life is one of the building blocks of NCUA's Access Across America initiative," Dollar commented. He added that NCUA's participation in the panel signifies a "considerable recognition and enhancement to what America's credit unions are accomplishing and NCUA is encouraging.It is also a tremendous opportunity for credit unions to play a leading role in a significant presidential initiative of nationwide importance." Dollar plans to highlight the agency's "Access Across America" initiative and the innovative role credit unions are serving throughout the United States in providing access to affordable financing. [email protected]