Community Commitment Awards Categories

Learn more about the eight Community Commitment Award categories.

Affordable Housing
Community and Economic Development
Financial Education
Financial Inclusion
Protecting Older Americans
Supporting Military Families
Volunteerism
George Bailey Distinguished Service Award

Affordable Housing

Commends outstanding efforts to improve the accessibility of quality housing for everyone in your community. Examples include, but are not limited to:

Establishing partnerships with stakeholders such as civic groups, nonprofit organizations and government agencies to promote affordable housing construction or rehabilitation.
Creating mortgage lending programs designed to encourage qualified buyers to become catalysts for change and purchase homes in neighborhoods in need of residential renewal or
Hosting homeownership education seminars and counseling sessions to encourage community members to become responsible homeowners and sustain their homes.
Helping to address common barriers to purchasing homes, such as downpayment assistance, underwriting below-market mortgages, and improving capital access.

Community and Economic Development

Applauds banks take innovative approaches that drive economic growth and revitalization in their communities. Examples include, but are not limited to:

Establishing partnerships with stakeholders such as retailers, community groups, residents, and property owners to assist in job creation and training, attract new businesses to the area, or build thriving economic centers in neighborhoods.
Creating lending programs designed to meet the unique lending needs of rural and frontier communities or
Financing community facilities or addressing elements that improve a neighborhood’s quality of life, including access to childcare, education, health care, fresh food, physical activity and/or public safety.

Financial Education

Honors initiatives that build personal financial skills among people of any age and help them access pathways to financial success. Examples include, but are not limited to:

Honors educational initiatives that build personal finance knowledge and help form programs or partnerships with local nonprofits, community centers, faith-based ministries, or schools to offer age-appropriate personal finance presentations and resources.
Providing financial education programs to employees to improve their financial wellness; or
Creating tailored, responsive, and customized financial education for an underserved population such as domestic violence victims, formerly incarcerated adults, or people with disabilities.

Financial Inclusion

Celebrates efforts to increase economic inclusion for all. Examples include, but are not limited to:

Establishing partnerships with stakeholders such as nonprofit organizations, government agencies, and other partners to promote building wealth and financial inclusion for underbanked individuals or those with no or limited credit histories.
Creating innovative, safe, affordable products to encourage underbanked customers to access mainstream financial institutions.

Protecting Older Americans

Recognizes banks that develop programs, services, or products that help safeguard seniors and their financial assets. Examples include, but are not limited to:

Establishing partnerships with law enforcement, adult protective services, corporations, community-based organizations, and faith-based ministries to protect older Americans from financial exploitation.
Hosting workshops to educate older Americans, their families, and other community members about caregiving or financial exploitation.
Creating robust training programs for front-line employees to prevent, detect, and report on elder financial exploitation.
Developing innovative product features to support older customers; or
Constructing new technological systems designed to detect and counter elder financial exploitation.

Supporting Military Families

Recognizes bank programs that improve the quality of life for active duty, transitioning and veteran military families. Examples include, but are not limited to:

Initiatives that educate active-duty service members, veterans, military spouses and/or their children about personal finances.
Innovative training, mentoring, apprenticeship, and/or employment programs designed to hire and retain transitioning service members, veterans and military spouses.
Housing programs, fundraising events and partnerships with organizations that support veterans and active-duty service members; or
Projects that help veterans and/or military spouses start, grow, and build small businesses.

Volunteerism

Celebrates bank programs that encourage employee outreach and service in the community. Examples include, but are not limited to:

Programs in which employees commit to renovating schools, community centers, clubhouses and other facilities to help anchor and sustain life in the community.
Mentoring initiatives that match employees’ skills with the needs of underserved or at-risk groups.
Partnerships with groups advocating for seniors and others to retrofit their homes to enable them to enjoy full accessibility and increased quality of life.
Develop or participate in practices that protect the environment/sustain natural resources by “going green” or
Provide companionship care or coordinate transportation for community members.

George Bailey Distinguished Service Award

Named after the community banker George Bailey in “It’s a Wonderful Life,” this award is given to a non-CEO bank employee who demonstrates outstanding initiative, performs outside expectations, and inspires others. George Bailey Award winners go above and beyond to serve their banks, colleagues, financial industry, and communities. Examples include but are not limited to, an employee who:

Exceed the requirements of their job responsibilities to build goodwill between their bank and community.
Made outstanding contributions to their institution(s); had major positive influence on peers, subordinates, and the industry as a whole; or
Consistently giving back to the bank and the community in terms of their time, energy, and resources through volunteerism, community service, and charity.